When You Are Engulfed in Flames
by David Sedaris
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Book Reviews of When You Are Engulfed in Flames
Book Review: Good, solid entertainment.
Summary: 4 Stars
David Sedaris is back with more witty and entertaining stories of his life, his family and his thoughts on the world. He continues to make astute observations of the world and its quirks and writes about them in a way that keeps the pages turning. Stories of his childhood and adult life as well as tales of his family never cease to amuse. His writing style is brilliant and he is a true talent. Unfortunately, his storytelling has aged like a good wine and has softened around the edges. In some ways this is good because it makes for a solid whole, but it is not laugh out loud funny like some of his earlier works - specifically Me Talk Pretty One Day. I smiled a lot and chuckled a few times, but gone are the days of aching bellies and tears streaming down the face so heavily that you can't read. The writing has taken on a darker and more mellow edge over the years. However, I continue to be a fan and always hold out hope that one of these stories will bring me to laughter and tears.Book Review: Ain't talkin' pretty in this one
Summary: 2 Stars
If anything should be engulfed in flames, it's Sedaris's latest collection of autobiographical musings, which was a total disappointment. Part of the problem may have been my high expectations. I loved Me Talk Pretty One Day, but can't say the same for a single one of the twenty-two stories included in this book. He still has the ability to see humor in almost any situation, but delved too deeply for me into uninteresting, inappropriate subjects. Here are my titles for some of the stories: A Slow Soporific Sayonara to Smoking, , The Unexpectedly Expletive Elderly, Scoring a Skeleton, Bon Jour to Monsieur Molester, The Bestiality Boys (I mean Girls), Winged Window Wackers, Pathetic Passenger Pixxed on a Plane, Risperdal and the Rotten Roommate, and Boil-Piercing Peril. David Sedaris a colorful character and excellent humor writer. But he missed the humor mark this time and crossed the line into inappropriate subject matter. Better: Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris.Book Review: Still not sure about Sedaris
Summary: 4 Stars
This is the second book by Sedaris that I've read at the insistence of my co-worker (first was Naked). And although I enjoyed it more than Naked, I still don't understand why he is called one of the funniest writers out there. Based on the reviews, I am not the only one who thinks that way. Yes, sometimes he can be quite ironic or sarcastic, but laugh-out-loud funny? I don't think so.
Once again we are presented with an anthology of autobiographical essays. Several of them are funny, some are sad, some I just didn't bother to finish.
I am surprised Sedaris does not venture beyond these life stories about his family, his sexuality, his bizarre youth and adulthood. After all, if anything, he is a great observer. This is why I enjoyed so much his last essay in the book about his attempt to quit smoking in Japan. I didn't care for the smoking part, but his notes about Japanese culture were clever and witty. Why can't he write more of that?
Book Review: If you like Sedaris, you like Sedaris
Summary: 4 Stars
David Sedaris is without a doubt the most talented essayist in the country and the fact that he's also the most famous is not so much a validation of American taste as it is a validation of the Gevalia Kaffe/Sunday New York Times/All Things Considered/This American Life Podcast crowd. Good job! They're good at picking humorists and squeezing African-Americans out of Harlem.
Personally I prefer to read Sedaris than listen to audio tapes. His voice, I think, actual detracts from the situations. As in previous books When You Are Engulfed in Flames creates unbelievable, and in some instances unsympathetic, situations but Sedaris performs the literary magic trick of bringing you along for the ride. His voice, however, is so specific that it detaches me from the opiatic experience of walking in this talented man's shoes.
Also, as with previous essays, I believe he's at least 70% full of crap. But who cares? It's amusing crap.
Book Review: Priceless book.
Summary: 5 Stars
The only problem with this book is that it passes by too quickly. I read it in one weekend and thoughly enjoyed the experience. I think the ideal reader for this book would be a Southerner; more than in any other of his books, Sedaris draws from his Southern childhood and finds many experiences that resonated deeply with me.
What I like most about Sedaris, however, is that no matter how bad I'm feeling, reading one of his essays makes me feel refreshed and energized. Every single essay in his book is hilarious and provides his insightful reflections on human nature and experience.
I can't say enough about how wonderful this writer is. Sedaris' wit and inventiveness rival that of Mark Twain. He is an American treasure, and I personally believe people will be reading him a hundred years from now. The only thing that would make me like him even more as a writer would be a foray into fiction (I'm crossing my fingers!).