Sitzbook Review: 3 Books by Comedians

It’s been a bit of a weird year of reading so far.

I’m currently really far behind where I usually am at this point in the year. I think that’s probably because I started running in January (to train for a Star Wars half marathon I ran in April). That was great, of course, but it also meant that I didn’t use the exercise bike at home much, which is where I do a large percentage of my reading.

Also, with two kids, a couple jobs, and countless other things to do, it just seems like I never have time to read.

But still, I’ve done what I can, and I’m still hoping to read a lot (and quickly, and possibly include more graphic novels) so that I can finish up 52 by the end of the year. Wish me luck.

I semi-intentionally tried to get a few “themes” going for some sets of consecutive books. For example, I did a few non-fiction books in a row, and I also read three books by comedians back to back to back. Here’s a couple thoughts on each of them. Each one will be 100 words, as is my new tradition.

Food: A Love Story by Jim Gaffigan

I’d never read anything by Jim Gaffigan, nor had I seen more than a few minutes of his comedy. So I didn’t really have many expectations.

Strangely enough, I think this book still somehow managed to fail to meet those nonexistent expectations. It’s hard to explain, but this book just didn’t do it for me.

I’m sure Gaffigan is a good parent, but his whole shtick revolves around the dumb, hungry, overfed dad stereotype. I know that he’s got a lot of fans, but I guess I’m just not one of them.

I did like the food map, though.

I Must Say: My Life as a Humble Comedy Legend by Martin Short

I definitely enjoyed this book more than the first one. However, I didn’t know too much about Martin Short, aside from his roles in ¡Three Amigos! and Captain Ron, and a few other movie credits here and there. And I don’t think I’d ever seen any of his television bits, and those characters featured heavily in this book.

Still, Short seems like a thoroughly interesting and entertaining person, and I did like some of the stories in this book. I especially found his “Nine Categories” interesting, and I plan to think about them more if I ever get thinking time.




Based on a True Story: Not a Memoir by Norm Macdonald

Macdonald has gotten in the news for saying some stupid things over the last few days, so I’m a bit reluctant to praise him, in case he says something even stupider.

But of the three, this book was definitely the most interesting. It’s a bit bizarre, though, and I wondered exactly how much was true and how much was just crazy, made-up B.S. Then again, that’s the whole point of him writing the book, I think.

It’s a good read, I’d say. I can’t really go into more detail, though, since I’m just about out of space. Check it out.

Have you read any of these? Did I miss the mark, or do you agree with me? Let me know. Thanks for reading!

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Sitzman

Errand-Running Monkey at Sitzblog
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