I was excited to read this book but I was disappointed. It was not that funny. Will go to a different author for humor. Some of it produced a "Ha Ha" from, but a lot of it felt too snarky for my taste. Will be my last book by David Sedaris. I read it all, hoping for improvement but it never improved. ( )

Loved every word ( )

After a ripping introduction to the work of David Sedaris in 2021 via Calypso, his work has been hit and miss since then. Naked was a 2 star read, Me Talk Pretty One Day a 3 star read and Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim earning a mere 2 stars despite the catchy title.

I decided at the end of 2021 to put the brakes on my Sedaris tear for a while, knowing I'd probably come back to his oeuvre at some stage in the future.

Years later and enough time has passed that I now miss listening to a good Sedaris story told in his unmistakable lilting voice with his white gay privilege proudly on display. So it was, that I picked up Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris published in 2013.

Immediately better than the last 3 books from him I've read, I was soon chuckling to myself and enjoying his inimitable style of storytelling. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris is a return to his droll sense of humour and genuine interest in other people that kept me engaged in Calypso.

Sedaris has previously written about health care in America and France and their differences, although I never tire of his content around dentists. Chapter 2 is entitled Dentists Without Borders and the reference to his 'good time teeth' and his doorbell response to being asked if he was okay was easily my favourite story in the collection.

The unflattering accounts that had me frowning with budding disapproval in Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim were thankfully absent here. This collection was more self deprecating and even included a few live recordings with audience laughter and applause convincing me I'd also enjoy seeing the author live if he plans another tour Down Under.

While I live in hope, part of me wonders if all of Sedaris' stories and anecdotes are true - did he really holiday in a nudist camp or have that strange encounter at the taxidermist shop? - or are they cleverly constructed fiction presented by a humourist as fact for our entertainment or his amusement?

Either way, I've found myself firmly back onboard the David Sedaris train and there are still plenty of collections and books to discover. What should I read next? ( )

I have a read a number of David Sedaris’s collected essay books and this one measures up to them all, with the added bonus of a series of vignettes, or fictional monologues, interspersed. The essays themselves contain his usual wacky, witty, wry observations about ordinary things he encounters in life, sometimes a metaphor for the slings and arrows of his life, and there were many. He remains at his best in these essays, his own voice shining through, using wit to lighten the heavy burdens of his search for himself, for love, for a functional family, and redemption; to reveal his own insecurities about his body and his health. ( )

David is funny and a good story teller with a dry wit. Fun collection of stories and quips from his life. ( )