I heart David Sedaris. His stories are sooooo funny! I almost feel like you miss out when you read his book rather than listening to him tell his stories. Especially when he talks about how he wants to sing old radio jingles in the voice of Billy Holiday. You read it and it's funny - but when you hear him - in a voice so like Billy Holiday it's shocking - singing My bologne has a first name...it's o...s...c...a...r. it's just a hoot!

Man is he funny. Like if Garrison Keillor were gay and favored pop culture over hot dishes. That funny. (I bet I made someone's eye's bleed by writing that....)I just mean his voice rings true and it is the voice of the alternative American. I just mean he's funny. Yeah. That's what I am getting at. He. Is. Funny.

i get why people think he's funny, but i don't know, i just didn't. i never laughed outloud, and i'm one to cry, smile, gasp, bite my nails, and/or give big appreciative laughs when the author gives me reason (even while sitting in public places and at inappropriate times). i never was given reason. though, i can recoginze why he is enjoyed by so many, mr. sedaris and i don't connect.

So, maybe not exactly literary fiction as it would technically fall under creative non-fiction. However, I personally think creative non-fiction should be considered a form of literary fiction considering not everything, or even most things, in a creative non-fiction story have to be strictly “real”. Besides, this is one of my all-time favorite books!

Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris takes place in two parts: Part One and Part Deux. In part one Sedaris tells stories of his childhood and family. Part Deux captures his experiences in France first as a visitor to his partner’s property in Normandy and later as an inadvertent transplant from New York to Paris.
The wry sarcasm and sardonic sense of humor that permeate Sedaris’ stories make the occasional moments of sweetness and vulnerability unexpected and all the more poignant. From his early years as a child stammering through grade school to his middle years back in school and struggling with a new language, Sedaris manages to capture characters and settings excellently and eloquently. With only a little description and a line or two of dialogue he is able to create a vivid character that jumps off the page. His language is clear and concise, not overly flowery, and that is reflected in the clarity and vibrancy of his characters.
For anyone who has struggled with learning a second language the stories of Sedaris’ attempts to learn French will leave you rolling on the floor. I have never before encountered a writing that so aptly portrays how it feels to be stuck in that sort of limbo where you know enough words to speak, but not nearly enough to make sense. For instance, he describes how his French class tries to tell a Muslim student about Easter (en français of course) “He call his self Jesus and then he die one day on two…morsels of …lumber.” “He die one day and then he go above of my head to live with your father.” “He weared of himself the long hair and after he die, the first day he come back here for to say hello to the peoples.” “He nice, the Jesus.”
Sedaris’ knack for finding the essence of a character, setting, culture or conversations and disposing with extraneous bits that would hamper the sharpness of his stories makes for makes for entertaining, moving, thought provoking, and, most of all, entertaining reading.

This is the first book I've read by Sedaris, but I will certainly be picking up more in the future! He writes witty essays about his life, this collection specifically focusing on a period when he moved to Paris and was learning French, with other stories sprinkled in. His writing was funny without trying to be too edgy, punny, or forced. The audiobook is narrated by him, and there's even certain parts of it that are recordings of live readings. I really enjoyed this because you got to hear his delivery of the story, as well as how he interacts with an audience. My only gripe is that the audiobook weirdly omitted some stories that were in my physical copy of the book. Still, all of these were easy and fun to read, not requiring too much brain power, but still offering a good message.

3.5 stars from me!

My real life book club choose this for our January book read. I'm glad they did because this was a funny and quirky book to read. I enjoyed all the stories of his family, his time in Paris, living in NYC and also trying to learn how to speak French.

David Sedaris has a unique and funny way of looking at situations and I loved it! I will definitely read more books of his in the future.

Recommended for people who like to laugh, who like witty dialogue and who do not get offended by how ridiculous Americans can be. You know who you are! Stay away from this book.

Hilarious

Thank you David Sedaris for bringing laughter and fun to my driving, walking and chores this week!

If you ever bump into me on a bus and I'm staring at a screen laughing my a** off, it's because I'm reading Sedaris. 4.5/5

David Sedaris is fifteen years older than I am, yet I'm quite sure that we're twins, separated at birth. At a quick glance, we appear to have nothing in common. I'm neither a gay man nor a former junkie with a penchant for taxidermy or preserved human body parts, but I certainly see this world of wonders and weirdos in a similar light.

When he writes about his family of origin, I almost can't hold myself together. Even with an abdominal injury, I couldn't keep from giggling almost uncontrollably at several of the essays in this collection, most especially, "Genetic Engineering." Describing his parents, he writes:

"To me, the greatest mystery of science continues to be that a man could father six children who shared absolutely none of his interests. We certainly expressed enthusiasm for our mother's hobbies, from smoking and napping to the writings of Sidney Sheldon. (Ask my mother how the radio worked and her answer was simple: Turn it on and pull the goddamn antenna.")"

His father is a dominant theme in this collection, and he characterizes him better than some of our most famous characters in fiction. The final essay, "I'll Eat What He's Wearing," had me laughing, shaking my head, and, curiously, wanting to meet his dad.

I loved this read, and I end my review with one of my favorite lines from the book, "Like branding steers or embalming the dead, teaching was a profession I had never seriously considered."

n  n
Instagram || Twitter || Facebook || Amazon || Pinterest


So I'm doing this project where I'm rereading some of the books I enjoyed as an adolescent and seeing what holds up and what doesn't. David Sedaris was one of my high school faves because he was just snarky and inappropriate enough to make me feel edgy, but just snobby enough to make me feel grown-up. Having read ME TALK PRETTY ONE DAY 10+ years later, I have to say that I basically feel the same way. His sense of humor is not for everyone. I feel like he has a very "British" sense of humor; it reminds me a lot of Black Adder, in that it's a blend of intellectual superiority, toilet humor, and very cuttingly observant insights about society and its foibles. I don't normally laugh at a lot of so-called humor books, but this made me giggle out loud several times. It was UPROARIOUS (to me).



In this collection of autobiographical essays, Sedaris talks about his addiction to drugs, his stint as a creative writing teacher, his foul-mouthed younger brother who refers to himself as "The Rooster" (one of the best chapters, imo), his French teacher who said that being in his presence was like undergoing a cesarean every day (ouch), and the speech therapist who sneaked into his life like a government agent. He has such an interesting life and the way he writes is just SO FUNNY. I don't know how much of it he made up or took liberties with and I don't even care. That's how good it is.



If you like funny memoirs, read this book. I feel like Augusten Burroughs tries to channel his energy but as with chocolate and vanilla, Coke and Pepsi, and The Illusionist and The Prestige, one is clearly superior to the other. ME TALK PRETTY ONE DAY definitely holds up!



4.5 to 5 stars

"You could turn up your nose at the president or Coke or even God, but there were names for boys who didn't like sports."

"Lisa had been born with a lazy leg that had refused to grow at the same rate as it's twin. I liked the idea that a part of one's body might be thought of as lazy--not thoughtless or hostile, just unwilling to extend itself for the betterment of the team."

"She was what we called Tanorexic."

"My father is the type who once recited a bawdy limerick: "A woman I know who's quite blunt/Had a beartrap installed in her... oh, you know. It's a base, vernacular word for the vagina." He can absolutely kill a joke."

"If she's old enough to bleed, she's old enough to breed."

"I can't promise I'll never kill anyone again. It's unrealistic to live your life within such strict parameters."

"My first goal was to make him my boyfriend, to trick or blackmail him into making some sort of commitment. I know it sounds calculating, but if you're not cute, you might as well be clever."

"Every day we're told that we live in the greatest country on earth. And it's always stated as an undeniable fact: Leos are born between July 23 and August 22, fitted queen-size sheets measure sixty by eighty inches, and America is the greatest country on earth. Having grown up with this in our ears, it's startling to realize that other countries have nationalistic slogans of their own, none of which are "We're number two!""

"Wearing a walkman is like being deaf with none of the disadvantages."

"In New York I'd go to the movies three or four times a week. Here I've upped it to six or seven, mainly because I'm too lazy to do anything else. Fortunately, going to the movies seems to suddenly qualify as an intellectual accomplishment, on par with reading a book or devoting time to serious thought. It's not that the movies have gotten any more strenuous, it's just that a lot of people are as lazy as I am, and together we've agreed to lower the bar."

«لحن سداریس شبیه آدم هایی است که تلاش خاصّی برای خنداندن آدم ها نمی کنند و بدون این که بخواهند یا دست خودشان باشد، بامزه اند. از آن ها که یک جمله ی خیلی خنده دار را با قیافه ای خیلی جدّی می گویند و بعد وقتی تو داری روی زمین غلت می زنی، پشتشان را به تو می کنند و می روند»
[بخشی از ریویوی خ.توکّلی برای همین کتاب]
بزرگ‌ترین چیزی که توی کتاب توجّه‌م رو جلب کرد، همین بود. این که نویسنده «بامزّه‌بازی» درنمی‌یاره؛ شوخی نمی‌کنه؛ نمک نمی‌ریزه. صرفاً همه‌چیز رو خیلی بامزه تعریف می‌کنه و باعث می‌شه آدم بلندبلند بخنده. صادقانه برخورد می‌کنه؛ انکار نمی‌کنه که زیادی الکل استعمال می‌کنه [ :-" ] یا معتاد بوده به متاآمفتامین؛ یا این که:
«وقتی به بیست‌وچندسالگی رسیدم، داروندار مغزم با ترکیبی از مواد و الکل و محلول‌های شیمیایی‌یی که در محل کارم استفاده می‌شد به یعما رفته‌بود. هنوز هم لحظاتی وجود داشتند که علی‌رغم همه‌چیز احساس نبوغ به من دست بدهد. این لحظات مثل‍اً در پی یک موفقیت به‌خصوص نمی‌آمد؛ عامل تمام‌شان کوکائین بود و کریستال متاآمفتامین -- موادی که به تو اجازه می‌دهند در حالی‌که یک نِی توی دماغ‌ت است و تا قِرانِ آخر حقوق یک هفته‌ات را بال‍ا کشیده‌ای با خودت فکر کنی «خدایا؛ من چقدر باهوشم.» » [صفحه‌ی 216]
این که تعارف نداره با خواننده خیلی خوبه؛ شخصاً این موردش رو دوست داشتم کلّی.
نثر کتاب خیلی روون و دوست‌داشتنی ه. -هرچند من همون داستانی که توی همشهری‌داستانِ -به‌گواهِ ریویوی خ.توکّلی!- آذر 89 ازش ترجمه‌شده‌بود رو ترجیح می‌دادم به این یکی ترجمه‌ش؛ فصلِ «بال‍اخره یه روزی قشنگ حرف می‌زنم».-
و در نهایت این که من رو تا حدودی یادِ «عطر سنبل، عطر کاج» می‌نداخت؛ مخصوصاً اون‌جاهایی که درباره‌ی خانواده‌ش حرف می‌زد؛ فصل آخر مثل‍اً.
در کل بسیار هم خوب و دوست‌داشتنی؛ شدیداً اوصیکم. فقط این که گورون شده؛ ترجیحاً اوصیکم به امانت گرفتن :)) با تشکر از کمپین‌مون اصن :-" و از خ.توکّلی -صاحابِ اینی که ال‍ان دستِ من ه- .

× این یه تیکه‌ش هم خیـلی خوبه :)) «وقتی بچه بودیم حق نداشتیم بگوییم «خفه شو» ولی وقتی خروس به سن بلوغ رسید دیگر فریاد زدن «ببند فاضلاب رو» قابل‌قبول بود. قوانین مربوط به موادمخدر هم تغییر کرد. «علف ممنوع» تبدیل شد به «علف در خانه ممنوع» بعدش هم «لطفاً انقدر تو پذیرایی علف نکش».» [صفحه‌ی 65]