Me Talk Pretty One Day
by David Sedaris
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I just don't care for David Sedaris.
There, I've said it. I've made peace with the fact. I have stared deep into the cockles of my heart, and forced myself to come to the only obvious-but-unpopular conclusion.
I just don't care for David Sedaris.
It was somewhat of an existential struggle for me to reach this conclusion because I'm exactly the kind of person who should like David Sedaris.
I am a sarcastic Generation Xer with an overdeveloped sense of irony. I enjoy reading pe...more
There, I've said it. I've made peace with the fact. I have stared deep into the cockles of my heart, and forced myself to come to the only obvious-but-unpopular conclusion.
I just don't care for David Sedaris.
It was somewhat of an existential struggle for me to reach this conclusion because I'm exactly the kind of person who should like David Sedaris.
I am a sarcastic Generation Xer with an overdeveloped sense of irony. I enjoy reading pe...more
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Read in January, 2008
so i wrote a book review on this book for a class assignment (haha-i'm not that nerdy that i write lengthy book reviews in my spare time)
David Sedaris is bringing back the funny with his new novel, Me Talk Pretty One Day. His sidesplitting humor stems from his North Carolina upbringing and his colorful parents, siblings, and friends. This work is a collection of autobiographical essays that seem too obscure to come from a true account of his life, but I guess Sedaris is just that weird. His ...more
David Sedaris is bringing back the funny with his new novel, Me Talk Pretty One Day. His sidesplitting humor stems from his North Carolina upbringing and his colorful parents, siblings, and friends. This work is a collection of autobiographical essays that seem too obscure to come from a true account of his life, but I guess Sedaris is just that weird. His ...more
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Read in August, 2006
I read Me Talk Pretty One Day on the recommendation of my roommate, the fabulous WER. She gave me her copy of the book, so with a strong recommendation and a free read, I couldn’t possibly refuse.
Me Talk Pretty One Day is a rough autobiography of writer and humorist David Sedaris. I say a “rough” autobiography because it is not told in chronological order, nor is it a straightforward chronological account of the events of his life. Instead, he presents life as a series of vignettes,...more
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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 ...more
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 ...more
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David Sedaris... I can't really say enough. With an ascerbic wit and sometimes uncomfortably unflinching eye he relates the stories of his growing up in this hilarious but dark memoir. The brushstrokes with which he paints the characters of his family are sometimes broad and loving, sometimes knife-sharp, always insightful (I suppose, since it's only through this book that I know his family). There are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, such as a time when,as a young boy, his mother was tailor...more
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bookshelves:
2007,
literatura-inglesa,
owned
Read in December, 2007
Siempre había tenido curiosidad por leer algo de David Sedaris. Lo que me acabó de animar fue una comparación de su mirada sarcástica y crítica con la de Dorothy Parker. Ahora no me acuerdo de dónde leí esta comparación, pero ya os digo que quien la dijo se lució de lo lindo. No digo que esté mal, porque se lee muy bien y muy rápido, y tiene momentos graciosos, aunque nunca desternillantes, y encima cuando ya llevas unos diez cuentitos suyos se hacen algo cansinos, porque es como ir a...more
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Read in June, 2006
"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...more
"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...more
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2008-yippee
Read in February, 2008
This book has been my tube companion for the past fortnight. It is the perfect accompaniment to the London commute for two reasons:
1) The essays are perfectly formed, so you can be assured that you'll be able to finish 3 little chunks over 40 minutes or so. Once the train trundled into Westminster station I would know to quicken my pace so as to finish another section before alighting at Blackfriars and elbowing some bankers.
2) My tube line is the epitome of the British stiff upper lip. Peop...more
1) The essays are perfectly formed, so you can be assured that you'll be able to finish 3 little chunks over 40 minutes or so. Once the train trundled into Westminster station I would know to quicken my pace so as to finish another section before alighting at Blackfriars and elbowing some bankers.
2) My tube line is the epitome of the British stiff upper lip. Peop...more
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Read in May, 2008
This is one of those books that people have been telling me to read ever since it was first published and which I've been avoiding for that very reason. Any book that gets great reviews around the board, is loved and reccomended by countless credible sources and seems generally to fit my niche almost has to be disappointing. Had I read this when it came out, there is simply no way that I could have loved it enough to appease it's fans/my friends. "What?! You only liked it? (or) You ONLY lov...more
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Read in July, 2007
So I know this is totally cheating, but I never actually read this book, I listened to it on CD. And I am against the whole book-on-tape idea to begin with, but I needed something easy to listen to on my commute home a few months ago when I was still living all the way in NJ with my parents, and a lot of people whose sense of humor I appreciate told me David Sedaris was hysterical. Actually, I didn't even listen to the whole book, it was so bad I think I only made it past 4 stories. So here i...more
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bookshelves:
world-modern-literature
Read in January, 2008
David Sedaris gives you a short break in between two boisterous! This is not a novel, may be called a series texts for a stand-up comdedian. Sedaris has a very strong sense of self irony, typically American, which is possibly not hundred procent understandable for readers of non English speaking cultures. I think he has writen the book for Americans, and it’s understandable if all Americans love it.
Missing "Me Talk ...." will be a regret, anyway.
با خواندن کتاب های...more
Missing "Me Talk ...." will be a regret, anyway.
با خواندن کتاب های...more
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bookshelves:
funnystuff,
memoirs,
rgbookclub
recommends it for: someone who needs to smile on the inside
Read in June, 2008
recommended to Alison by:
TRGBCrecommends it for: someone who needs to smile on the inside
I'm copying/pasting previous comments because...I'm just that lazy. And, it frees up some time for me to make a little jacket for my clock radio (I've been thinking of doing that). :)
I don't think (MTPOD) is necessarily as "funny" as it is "jealousy-inducingly clever". I mean...the man has a way with words. And he sees things in a way that most people just don't. I think he's very unique & talented, although not particularly laugh-out loud hilarious.
In &q...more
I don't think (MTPOD) is necessarily as "funny" as it is "jealousy-inducingly clever". I mean...the man has a way with words. And he sees things in a way that most people just don't. I think he's very unique & talented, although not particularly laugh-out loud hilarious.
In &q...more
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Read in February, 2008
Hilarious, and unmemorable. This was a book that had me laughing out loud (to the annoyance of my fellow New Yorkers sharing my subway car (as expressed and publicized by much teeth-sucking), and which I retained nothing of after I turned the last page. I doubt I’ll pick up his other books.
My favorite passage, occurring at a language school where students are called upon to explain Christ (dead and subsequently risen) in a language they do not quite speak:
The Italian nanny was attemp...more
My favorite passage, occurring at a language school where students are called upon to explain Christ (dead and subsequently risen) in a language they do not quite speak:
The Italian nanny was attemp...more
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bookshelves:
biomemoirs,
humor,
nonfiction,
rorysbooklist
Read in June, 2008
It's always a fascinating experience to read a book that is somehow funnier when read in public than privately. A book that makes you laugh loudly, suddenly in the middle of a doctor's waiting room, or in the center seat on a plane, or alone in a pub while waiting for friends is something worth checking out. I just found it odd that I could be reading the conclusion of the same story at home, and didn't even crack a smile... just, "oh, that was somewhat witty."
On the negative s...more
On the negative s...more
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Read in June, 2006
What did I learn from this book? That embellishing your life can be okay when you're a great storyteller, no harm's done to anyone, and everyone who reads it knows it's ridiculous and loves you for the constant chuckles.
David Sedaris knows all about timing and spacing. Many of his essays and quips are built around the perfectly turned phrase, the expertly used grammar, and the flat-out zaniness of the subjects. (He's probably not hurting for ammo with a sibling like Amy Sedaris of Strangers ...more
David Sedaris knows all about timing and spacing. Many of his essays and quips are built around the perfectly turned phrase, the expertly used grammar, and the flat-out zaniness of the subjects. (He's probably not hurting for ammo with a sibling like Amy Sedaris of Strangers ...more
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Read in June, 2005
Hilarious - I couldn't read it in public because David Sedaris had me laughing so hard the entire time. Each short story tells a crazy little antic of the author's quirky family, which is the sort of family whose living room you want to take a seat in so you can just watch as the spectacle unfolds in front of you.
It's clear, though, in each story that the family loves each other dearly - this isn't a some crap self-pitying memoir about the chaos one had to struggle against while growing up ...more
It's clear, though, in each story that the family loves each other dearly - this isn't a some crap self-pitying memoir about the chaos one had to struggle against while growing up ...more
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Read in April, 2001
I have read this book at least ten times since it came out almost ten years ago, and it still makes me laugh outloud till it hurts. For me it, it is hands down Sedaris's masterpiece.
His self-mocking sarcasm, overstated passion, and understated selfishness are so finely crafted, it's no wonder many people find it offensive or confusing. My best friend in high school was a very big fan of his, had a very similar scathing sense of humor, and was also coincidentally gay. While being gay has n...more
His self-mocking sarcasm, overstated passion, and understated selfishness are so finely crafted, it's no wonder many people find it offensive or confusing. My best friend in high school was a very big fan of his, had a very similar scathing sense of humor, and was also coincidentally gay. While being gay has n...more







































