My husband is a big fan of stand up comedy. We’ve seen a lot of Netflix and HBO specials together- including the Jim Gaffigan special that introduced the world to “Hot Pooockets.” I knew Jim Gaffigan had a big family because he is currently capitalizing on it; between his Chrysler commercials and his semi-autobiographical TVland series it’s hard to miss. While Gaffigan has always been successful it’s clear his kids’ antics are helping write their future college tuition checks. “Raising kids may be a thankless […]
Another problematic medical memoir.
This is the second problematic medical memoir I’ve read in as many weeks. Dr. Austin is an ER doctor, and his book is probably 70% standard stuff for these kinds of books – patient anecdotes and ruminations on the meaning of things. I’ve read…a lot of those books. The other 30% focuses on the impact of shift work and burnout on his family life. The 70% I loved. It was reasonably well-written, and you’d have to go out of your way to make the […]
I feel sort of guilty that I didn’t connect with this more
The two volumes of Maus are Art Spiegelman’s attempts to document the struggles of his parents before and during the Second World War, as well as his not always harmonious relationship with his elderly father. The framing narrative shows Art interviewing his father Vladek about his recollections of the time before and during the war, as well as trying to deal with his temperamental parent, despite their many differences. The illustrations are famous and the subject matter is, of course, very worthy. So why didn’t […]
This one starts decently but then…it gets worse
You can usually tell when an author has a small but rabid following, when Goodreads has their rating insanely high (4.51 in this case — Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone has a 4.42) but less than one hundred reviews. That should have been a big clue to me, in addition to the fact that I have never heard of YouTube star Shane Dawson (I promise I’m not super old — just kind of old). But whatever — Overdrive recommended it, and at least it was short? […]
“I make art for the sake of art . . . and for my own selfish gratification, because I’m an artistic monster.”
I have a tendency to read memoirs written by celebrities, or “celebrities”, when they pop up on Overdrive — regardless of whether or not I’ve heard of the person. They usually short, fun reads and contain at least a few good stories. I probably don’t enjoy them as much when I have no outside information about the writer, but they’re usually worth the few hours it takes to read them. A strong endorsement, huh? Actually Lindsey Stirling’s memoirs, The Only Pirate at the Party, were pretty enjoyable overall. […]
Triple Cannonball!
I’ve been vaguely familiar with Tig Notaro for the last few years, but mostly as a writer on Inside Amy Schumer, and as the comic who announced her breast cancer at a stand up show. I had no idea that in the four months prior to her breast cancer diagnosis in 2012, that Notaro also almost died from Clostridium difficile (C. diff), lost her mother in a freak accident, and went through a break up. I’m Just a Person tells the story of that year, and how Notaro coped (or […]
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