Magical Thinking: True Stories Audiobook

" The best way to guarantee exposure in this day and age in the literary world -- or so James Frey's publishers would have you believe -- is to write a memoir. A few years prior to the publication of this book, Burroughs did just that and scored a major bestseller with Running With Scissors. That was followed up with Dry, which chronicled his attempts to become sober. Magical Thinking, on the other hand, details no one particular period of his life, but instead gives us a disjointed look at many different individual moments in short story format. The stories range from his being cast in a Tang commercial as a child to his life in advertising and his most recent relationship (at least insofar as the time of publication of this book). All the stories have bite and show a man at odds with his surroundings... from a child who could tell he was gay early on to a young man willing to tell off his raging bitch of a boss to a self-proclaimed obsessive compulsive who cannot bring himself to clean his own apartment or figure out how to rid it of a rogue mouse. It's amazing to think that one person could've lived through such a variety of events. Short stories always have been and always will be my cuppa. I love the fact that every detail in the story is essential to the overall enjoyment of it. The brevity of this style of writing makes me want to keep reading until the end and having multiple payoffs within one bound volume keeps me going. However, these stories were pretty middle of the road in my mind. Yes, he can be funny and sarcastic and they're far from bad. Yet for every one good story, we have one or two average ones. There seems to be an overall lack of consistency or quality control. Yet I still want to read his other, full-length memoirs. But the stories in this particular collection have been done before and better by David Sedaris. "

" I really enjoy this author, he has a twisted sense of humor that I really can relate too "

" A collection of short stories from Burroughs. Nothing surprising here but a decent read overall. "

" I enjoy all of his books. Not his best, but a fun read. "

" this guy reminds me of David Sedaris, though his past is a little more troubled. This is a collection of his essays. Some of them are a little raw, if you're a sensitive reader...or very conservative! "

" Just as good as Running With Scissors though it is a book of short stories. Highly recommend. Funny, funny. I didn't want it to end. "

" What the heck was I thinking? "

" Really entertaining stories, and a very interesting look into the way someone else's brain operates. "

" Just as funny as Sedaris, if not more sarcastic, which I love! I'm torn between the two authors and continue to laugh at the world through them. "

" He's gotten somewhat serious of late. Have not read "wolf at the table" looked too dark...But may re-think.... "

" one of my favorite authors and never fails to impress "

" I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I think his short story writing is comparable to David Sedaris. Really loved it! "

" Stories are light, entertaining, humorous. This is my first Burroughs read -- and I like his style. "

" Short stories from Augusten Burroughs life. Good times! "

" This guy is hysterical. A must read for anyone with a warped sense of humor. "

" Hysterical! I laughed through this entire book. Augusten Burroughs has the courage to put on paper the cynical, shallow thoughts we all have but are too afraid to say. "

" I generally like Augusten Burroughs but this wasn't his best in my opinion. He's still hilarious and you'll marvel at the crazy things that have happened in his life, but in this one some of his less admirable qualities are apparent. "

" This was my first Augusten Burroughs book and I want to be his BFF. I was laughing outloud on the train. "

" Very funny! Thanks Nicole. "

" Acidly witty short stories from a gay man's life :) "

" I LOVED it. Exactly the dark, humor I needed. "

" I could not get into this "

" Omg Sooooo funny! I was laughing out loud! "

" Love reading about Burroughs' disfunctional life. "

" i love everything he does. this is a little different. lots of short stories that just make you feel good. "

" Basically a collection of short stories about his life in New York. I enjoyed this book more then Running with Scissors- maybe because it was a little easier to relate to... "

" More cutting wit from the gay ad guy from New York City! "

" Far less depressing than the memoir, and actually laugh out loud funny in parts. Still weird as hell though. "

" This felt like a re-run of "Scissors" and "Dry" so I was less enthralled (though possibly more hopeful due to the cool title) ... "

" Enough laugh out loud moments to be worth your while. "

" great short stories... he's hilarious... "

" I heart all things Augusten Burroughs. "

" Quite hilarious and interesting... Augusten Burroughs is brutally honest as always. "

" again, a work of art.... more on this later... love this author! "

" He does a great job making the crap he went through seem funny. He does bring to mind D. Sedaris, but more obstinate and stubborn. I think it's just survival traits of an abused and neglected child. Humor helps too. "

" As a first foray into the interesting life of Augusten burroughs, the short story format was perfect. each one was snappy, quirky and funny, something i rarely describe books as. There were times when I genuinely would laugh out loud. And I have read it again, it's one of those kinds of books. "

" I enjoyed reading these essays. I think I enjoyed it more having read his memoir about his father first. Funny, tragic and well-written. "

" New favorite author - love the way he writes and his stories are amazingly ridiculous "

" Absolutely love the way Burroughs writes about his life. Short, concise, and hilarious. For those who don't know, he's the author of "Running With Scissors." "

" Augusten Burroughs is one of my favorite authors. He tells things exactly how they are, and often writes with true emotion. Magical Thinking is much funnier and more light-hearted than some of his other books. It is my favorite of all of his books, though the others are great as well. "

" Trite B.S. I liked the interview with him the best, other than that he is way to self centered and just plain mean. Doesn't really like people at all, better when he is sober but, who cares. Liked running with scissors better than this self serving tripe. "

" This book is definitly my favorite so far of his. This author is just hilarious. "

" The Chapstick story is the best. "

" This is totally not the kind of book I would normally read and enjoy, however, I found it hard to stop reading for some unknown reason. "

" Another great read by Burroughs. He is quickly becoming my go to author when asked for book recommendations! This was another snarky memoir with a few "Omg!" moments. On to the next Burroughs book I go! "

" If we could do 1/2 stars I would have given it 2 1/2. Some of the stories were entertaining, some I skimmed because they were kind of boring. But as the book went on I liked it more than in the beginning. "