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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
This book was FANTASTIC. I was introduced to NPH when he was playing Barney Stinson on HIMYM and was impressed with his level of actor. He made what would ordinarily be an almost repulsive, male chauvinist, dare I say sleazy, character actually likeable (if not loveable). He played Barney with a deeper, hidden sense of softness amidst the crazy antics of the show and his character in particular I rooted for him every step of the way. It wasn't until much later that I ever even heard about Doogie Hauser and I have still never seen an episode.
Then I saw him in Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along blog and, again, he made the unlikeable character of a master villain into a sympathetic and endearing protagonist. This is the point I realized, not only can he act, he can also sing. Then I saw him hosting the Tony Awards and I was amazed. Here he was, singing, dancing, literally jumping through hoops and, wait, did he just do a major magic trick in the middle of the opening number?! It was at this point I deemed him a triple (maybe quadruple?) threat. He is a very talented performer.
Not only that, but he seems like a legitimately nice guy. I remember when some gay marriage proposition was being voted on, he appeared in a commercial saying "I vote because I fell in love and I want it to matter." It was disarmingly sincere. Since then, I've seen clips of videos of him and David playing with their twins and their love and joy seems to emanate from them effortlessly. NPH is a powerhouse performer and it seems, to boot a great guy who seems to really get what his life is all about.
This book just made me love him more. I listened to it audiobook style and it was positively delicious hearing the words in Neil's voice. The way he said THE END during all the "end" stories were outlandishly foreboding. He is funny. His stories were engaging. Granted, I couldn't actually "choose" my own adventure because I was listening to it, but it didn't at all spoil the experience at all. It is part outlandish, part historical, part an inside-look at celebrity life, part ridiculous. All glorious. For me, this book has made me love NPH even more. This was my favorite of all the celebrity books I've read as of late. For me, this beats the Bossypants off Tina Fey and passed over the Yes, Please of Amy Poehler. Why is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? Sorry, Min, it's because NPH is in the house and he is AWESOME.
Note: I liked the works by Tina Fey, Amy Poehler and Mindy Kaling (hers especially, maybe she is tied with NPH on enjoyability). I just really loved this book.
Then I saw him in Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along blog and, again, he made the unlikeable character of a master villain into a sympathetic and endearing protagonist. This is the point I realized, not only can he act, he can also sing. Then I saw him hosting the Tony Awards and I was amazed. Here he was, singing, dancing, literally jumping through hoops and, wait, did he just do a major magic trick in the middle of the opening number?! It was at this point I deemed him a triple (maybe quadruple?) threat. He is a very talented performer.
Not only that, but he seems like a legitimately nice guy. I remember when some gay marriage proposition was being voted on, he appeared in a commercial saying "I vote because I fell in love and I want it to matter." It was disarmingly sincere. Since then, I've seen clips of videos of him and David playing with their twins and their love and joy seems to emanate from them effortlessly. NPH is a powerhouse performer and it seems, to boot a great guy who seems to really get what his life is all about.
This book just made me love him more. I listened to it audiobook style and it was positively delicious hearing the words in Neil's voice. The way he said THE END during all the "end" stories were outlandishly foreboding. He is funny. His stories were engaging. Granted, I couldn't actually "choose" my own adventure because I was listening to it, but it didn't at all spoil the experience at all. It is part outlandish, part historical, part an inside-look at celebrity life, part ridiculous. All glorious. For me, this book has made me love NPH even more. This was my favorite of all the celebrity books I've read as of late. For me, this beats the Bossypants off Tina Fey and passed over the Yes, Please of Amy Poehler. Why is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? Sorry, Min, it's because NPH is in the house and he is AWESOME.
Note: I liked the works by Tina Fey, Amy Poehler and Mindy Kaling (hers especially, maybe she is tied with NPH on enjoyability). I just really loved this book.
Oh my goodness. Can you give a book 7 stars? 10? I adored this book
I didn't think I could adore NPH any more than I already did, but I was wrong. He really is funny, true hearted And its a joy to hear his tale from his side.
Apparently NPH and I are on much the same wavelength. We both fondly recall Choose-Your-Own-Adventure from our childhood, and we both wonder similar things: "...why is Spider-Man hyphenated and Batman not? These are the questions that keep you up at night." In this sense, the Choose-Your-Own-Autobiography and second-person format are perfect.
I read this exactly like I used to read Choose-Your-Own-Adventure: I started out playing by the rules, choosing paths and following them, until I got to a premature THE END. And then I started over and did it again, but tried to choose different paths, or read a little from two paths to see where things were going and tried to stay alive. And then I said "to hell with it," and started from the beginning again, reading all the parts I missed and occasionally skipping around. It was as much fun as I remember.
The format allows the biographical stuff to be mixed up with fictional elements, recipes, magic tricks, and letters from NPH's friends. All of this conveys just as much about the authors persona as the timeline. It does leave a bit of an impression that after the book closes, the real NPH will become a hermit and eschew (bless you) his public life.
I probably couldn't read this again, and I can't imagine it working well if another person tried the same format, but it truly was a unique experience.
I read this exactly like I used to read Choose-Your-Own-Adventure: I started out playing by the rules, choosing paths and following them, until I got to a premature THE END. And then I started over and did it again, but tried to choose different paths, or read a little from two paths to see where things were going and tried to stay alive. And then I said "to hell with it," and started from the beginning again, reading all the parts I missed and occasionally skipping around. It was as much fun as I remember.
The format allows the biographical stuff to be mixed up with fictional elements, recipes, magic tricks, and letters from NPH's friends. All of this conveys just as much about the authors persona as the timeline. It does leave a bit of an impression that after the book closes, the real NPH will become a hermit and eschew (bless you) his public life.
I probably couldn't read this again, and I can't imagine it working well if another person tried the same format, but it truly was a unique experience.
I listened to the audiobook which was a fun listen. NPH narrates it. There are guest “appearances”. I don’t normally care much for the autobiography genre. I picked the book up to fulfill a reading challenge and I am glad I did.
My IRL book club has done a memoir-of-choice-month in July for the last three or four years. This year I chose to read CHOOSE YOUR OWN AUTOBIOGRAPHY by Neil Patrick Harris (NPH).
I have been a fan of NPH for a while. I loved him as Barney Stinson in the sitcom HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER and as Dr. Horrible in Joss Whedon’s DR. HORRIBLE’S SING-ALONG BLOG. And, I thought it would be fun to read his memoir.
CHOOSE YOUR OWN AUTOBIOGRAPHY is written in the style of the choose your own adventure novels. This style lends mostly to true stories about NPH with the occasional “if you want to listen to your own horrible death, keep listening” anecdotes. Like most celebrity memoirs, NPH narrates his own audiobook. I really enjoyed listening to him recount his own story. I also really loved when he broke out into song. Despite the choose your own adventure style which would’ve worked better in book form, the audiobook’s definitely the way to go.
I really loved a lot of the over-the-top parts. I especially loved listening to the sometimes true, sometimes comedic notes from his friends. However, my favorite parts were the stories of his life with his husband, David Burtka, and their twins, Gideon and Harper. When he talked about his family, I saw a regular person instead of a celebrity.
NPH’s memoir’s the first one I’ve read that focuses on the author’s entire life instead of some challenge he had to deal with. CHOOSE YOUR OWN AUTOBIOGRAPHY is just about NPH as a whole and gives him a chance to be funny. Because of this, I didn’t feel really feel inspired like I have with other memoirs.
Even thought I didn’t feel inspired or like I got a lot out of NPH’s memoir, it was fun to listen to in an entertaining way and I’m glad I read it. I’d definitely read another memoir by him if he ever decides to write one.
This is fun and entertaining, which is what I needed right now! :)
The audio of this was wonderful. (And I rarely write reviews)
I thought the whole choose your own adventure dealio was going to be fun, but it felt very.. bland.
Very funny! I thought HIMYM was a decent show, and I vaguely remember Doogie Howser, but after reading this I really admire his passion for acting and want to watch everything he's ever acted in.