The first time I stumbled upon a David Sedaris book at my local library, it was all over. I was hooked, addicted, strung out, and not willing to ever let him go.
I quickly put in requests to reserve a copy of every book he’d ever written. At the time, I had a house full of kids to organize, juggle and feed on a regular basis. His hilarious look at the world was refreshing and invigorating and gave me the perfect escape from end of the day exhaustion, as I devoured his words in the quiet minutes before sleep. As an aspiring writer myself, his easy to read style, that perfectly mixed in the exact right amount of humor, fed my muse.
Many years have passes since I developed my first crush on Mr. Sedaris. Now that the kids are old enough to borrow my car keys, I rarely see them anymore. That not only means I spend a fortune on gasoline that I never get to use, but that I have long spells of uninterrupted time at the family computer. I can get my Sedaris fix through endless links and youtube videos. And every once in a while there is news of new material. Today is one of those days.
Today marks the release of David Sedaris’s newest work, called Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls. If you’ve never read a Sedaris book, don’t be afraid. And definitely don’t assume that if you don’t inject yourself with insulin every day or live in a barn that is inhabited by nocturnal birds, you won’t enjoy this book. This book is about so much more than debilitating diseases and wide eyed animals. It’s a collection of essays about many aspects of life. There’s a piece about dentistry in Europe. You can read a sample of that chapter on Amazon. I am told there are also stories about toilets in Beijing and thoughts about tackling the back country space we call Costco. The kindle version will hit my tablet tonight and no one in my house will have clean laundry or hot food until I’ve finished it.
The history I have with Mr. Sedaris, and the sample chapter I’ve read, lead me to believe I will love this book, just as I’ve loved every one of his books and essays in the past.
In November he’ll be in Denver and I will be there. Barring a late arriving Zombie Apocalypse or an untimely death by chocolate, I’ll be there. If you live in the Denver area, tickets are already on sale. If you have the misfortune of not living in or near Denver, check out this list of his other appearances. Just understand going in, that his Denver appearance will be the best. I’m pretty sure it’s something about the altitude.
Wholeheartedly agree, Judy. David Sedaris is so funny I find myself insisting to friends and family that they let me read them passages aloud, only to find that I can’t actually read the passages because I cannot. stop. laughing. Thanks for the head’s up on his new book!
I’m with you, Amy. I make my kids listen to his audio books when we have long car rides and just about every Christmas I make them listen to “Six to Eight Large Black Men”. It’s like our version of The Night Before Christmas.