Dare I admit that this is my first taste of Sedaris? Yep. It is. I know, I know…shame on me.

A good book always finds you at the right time though, and his collection of best essays is just what I needed to end 2020 and get through the holiday season.

I listened to it on audio and enjoyed it even more because he reads it himself. Some of the stories were even taped in front of a live audience at his reading events so it was fun to hear the reactions from the audience.

There’s a little bit of everything here, but Sedaris’s wry humor always stands out. If you are a Sedaris fan already, you’ll love it. If, like me, you haven’t given him a try yet, here’s a good place to start. I’m hooked and intend to catch up and read or listen to all of his books this year.

I worked in a bookstore in 1999 to 2000 when his book, Me Talk Pretty One Day, came out. Several other bookstore employees raved about him and thought I would like it, but I didn’t listen. I had different tastes in reading back then. Now that I look back on it, it was all probably crap.

After listening to the audio, I realized my coworkers were probably right. I should have given him a try back then. I probably would have liked it. Alas, we’re all book snobs, aren’t we? Me too. Well, back then. Not so much anymore.

I became hooked on NPR a few years ago which is where I knew Sedaris from most recently. That, and also from CBS Sunday Morning. So, here we are. My reading tastes have changed over the years, and I intend to catch up on what I’ve missed out on.