The Lynda Barry Experience

by Lynda Barry

Cartoonist, painter and writer Lynda Barry lets loose a cavalcade of stories about her early childhood in Seattle. Some parts of her story are true, some are made up. Her brothers say she makes up a lot of things, which is true.

Genres: Comics, Humor, Graphic Novels

1 pages, Audio CD

First published November 1, 1993

About the author

Lynda Barry is an American cartoonist and author, perhaps best known for her weekly comic strip Ernie Pook's Comeek.

Reviews

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

I heard a portion of this CD (Naked Ladies) on a mix tape my ex-girlfriend got from some drug-connection friend of hers. I was a fan of Lynda's comics, but had no idea the voice on the tape was hers.
I later heard she had an audio CD that was out of print, but she was selling copies herself for ten bucks apiece, with hand drawn covers, so I sent her a check. I got my burned CD, personalized cover and all, and she never bothered to cash that check!
I recently picked up the out-of-print original CD at a local used CD store, so now I have both. Can't bear to part with either one, I guess.

P.S. (insert actual review here) It's amazing.

[Martha Garvey · Rating 5 out of 5]

She. Signed. My. Cassette.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love hearing Lynda Barry read her own work--she's brilliant in every medium. My favorite is the story about The Aswang.

[Sheila Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything on this cd (I first had it as a cassette tape!) is relevant, hilarious, bittersweet, and compelling. "WarTime" talks about intergenerational trauma that she experienced as a child of a war survivor. Then in "Naked Ladies" she talks about being a kid and talking about sex with other children. Then in "Aswang" she talks about a mythological creature her grandmother taught her.
The stories are Lynda-family-specific but they also encompass the time in which they are set, mostly the 1970s in America. It's a time capsule told in story form.

Lynda's voice in each story is completely unique and real. I can't think of anything else I've read or listened to that's like this. It hits all of the points of the human spectrum brilliantly. I've listened to the tape and CD maybe a couple hundred times. I've given it out as gifts (purchased directly from her, way back when) to so many people I've lost count.

In between many of the stories are recordings from answering machines that are so weird...telling a man to put his wig back on, or pretending to be the love doctor. There's nothing like this anywhere!

There's a sense of heartbreak throughout, but you might not notice it at first because you'll also be laughing.

[Walkermettling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dude. This cassette tape is an awesome artifact. Her stories are funny and weird, she plays the accordian...and there is an essay in reaction to the first gulf war about how the war in the Philippines affected her mother. A piece that also existed in her monthly story page in the back of Mother Jones magazine (1989-1991, look it up in google books, they're all there!).
Great!

[Phillip Lozano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my Glob. As amazing as her comics are, listening to Lynda Barry tell her own stories is a sublime revelation. Funny, scary, touching, painful, incredible ... it hits all the right notes. If you can find it, snag it. It's worth the price many times over.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is nothing better than this!

[Tristy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This album is EVERYTHING. Hearing Lynda Barry read her own stories is priceless and her answering machine messages are legendary. This album never gets old.

[Elisabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Aswang! Beck! Naked Ladies!