In David Sedaris' world, no one is safe and no cow is sacred. A manic cross between Mark Leyner, Fran Lebowitz, and the National Enquirer, Sedaris' collection of essays is a rollicking tour through the national Zeitgeist: a do-it-yourself suburban dad saves money by performing home surgery; a man who is loved too much flees the heavyweight champion of the world; a teenage suicide tries to incite a lynch mob at her funeral; a bitter Santa abuses the elves.
David Sedaris made his debut on NPR's Morning Edition with SantaLand Diaries, recounting his strange-but-true experiences as an elf at Macy's, and soon became one of the show's most popular commentators. With a perfect eye and a voice infused with as much empathy as wit, Sedaris writes stories and essays that target the soulful ridiculousness of our behavior. Barrel Fever is like a blind date with modern life, and anything can happen.
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"oh, I forgot how much I loved David Sedaris and his story telling, I can't tell you how many times I accidentally chuckled out loud while reading this on the train. He certainly has a knack for capturing middle class evil." — Cassidy (5 out of 5 stars)
"oh, I forgot how much I loved David Sedaris and his story telling, I can't tell you how many times I accidentally chuckled out loud while reading this on the train. He certainly has a knack for capturing middle class evil."
" Some good stories, especially the riotous tale of working as a Christmas Elf at Macy's. Much of this is foul and incredibly vulgar, and frankly, his later books are better. But the good parts are very good. "
" Not one of my favorites. I like Sedaris so much better when he writes about his family, it doesn't feel so forced. "
" This collection is a bit uneven, but I enjoyed it. The fiction pieces don't work as well as his personal essays. David Sedaris was smart to stick to non-fiction in his future books (except his most recent). "
" This wasn't my favorite Sedaris book and some of the stories in it I have already read in his other books. Still, he is one of my favorites :) "
" The fiction is crap but the essays are great as usual. "
" I liked this but not one of my favorites by Sedaris. "
" Anything Sedaris does is fantastic, hilarious. "
" The weakest of all the Sedaris collections. His short stories aren't nearly as funny as his essays are. But this was his first collection, so it's forgiven. 4 stars for the essays, 2 for the short stories. "
" Bleh--not his best work. The fiction short stories were poorly written and the personal essays not as sharp and witty as his later work. "
" Sedaris' first published collection, and by far his darkest. An interesting read. "
" His stories did not work nearly as well for me as his essays. Writing about actual events in a way that calls attention to the surreal parts is interesting. Making up surreal stories and writing about them like they are actual events doesn't really work for me. "
" Not as entertaining as Sedaris' other, more personal works. I ploughed through the entire book in under an hour; luckily, it was a gift and I didn't pay for it. "
" Ya gotta love Sedaris. Really. You've got to. "
" Sedaris is always good for a laugh. This one wasn't as "laugh out loud" as Me Talk Pretty, though it kept me turning pages. "
" Again the man is brilliant. "
" page 186: Today a child told Santa Ken that he wanted his dead father back and a complete set of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Everyone wants those Turtles. "
" I am a David Sedaris fan. I have to say though, that I enjoyed Naked and some of his other books more. But, I still like reading the stories in this book. I must since this was a second reading of the book for me. "
" some memorable funniness "
" Maybe I loved this book so much because it was my first David Sedaris, but it was so irreverent and I still remember laughing out loud in public. "
" The title story of this collection is the best short story I've read. "
" Early stuff by Sedaris- not as great as his later books, but "Santaland Diaries" is a classic. "
" I didn't care for this book. I'm all for a strange sense of humor, but these stories were not humorous to me. I don't believe I will pick up another book by this author. "
" The king of the bizarre humorous essay. "
" David Sedaris = NYC/Parisian chic/vulgar humor. Love it. Includes Santa Land Diaries from his NPR program. "
" Not my favorite. but funny parts. "
" Sedaris can be so funny and witty! But not in this book. This book was 12 year old boy humor. I totally missed anything funny that must have transpired. "
" it's much dirtier than his later stuff! "
" Perhaps not as endearing as Me Talk Pretty and Flames, but still Sedaris good. "
" Bit more ADD than his other stuff "
" It started out kind of crass and made me cringe and think of all the people I know who I wouldn't recommend this as a first read of David's work... maybe start them off on something a bit more tame, but by the end I was once again laughing uncontrollably on the skytrain. "
" A couple sections were downright funny. Most of it was very dull. "
" It's his first novel. You can tell he has become a better storyteller in his later works. "
" this guy is quite the storyteller and a character. Fun short stories for driving back and forth to work!Audio! "
" An enjoyable book, mostly short fiction with a few essays that is much more typical of Sedaris. Not quite as good as some of his other books, but an enjoyable read nonetheless. "
" Just not what I was used to with Sedaris. Or, maybe I've just outgrown him. It's been almost a decade since I was introduced. The stories were not about Sedaris' life. Maybe that was the hitch. No matter what, not my favorite. "
" Mmmmm ..... not so sure about this one. Loved the other stuff I have read from Sedaris but I found the stories difficult to get into. There were one or two highlights though the best one being the final piece about being a department store Elf at Christmas. Maybe I was just not in the mood. "
David Sedaris is the author of a dozen books, including four that made the #1 New York Times bestsellers list. He is a regular contributor to the New Yorker and BBC Radio 4. In 2019, he was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He is the recipient of the Thurber Prize for American Humor, Jonathan Swift International Literature Prize for Satire and Humor, and the Terry Southern Prize for Humor.
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