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byp's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars. Some chapters are two-star, but several made me laugh out loud. My favorites were Wines by the Glass, A History of America, Those Old Hobo Songs, and Mary Runfola.
cinchona's review against another edition
2.0
This book was more serious and personal than I expected. For the most part, I have a hard time relating to Oswalt--I'm not male, or a dungeons and dragons fan, or a stand-up comic, and he's not making much effort to reach out to me anyway. So the all this personal self-reflective philosophical stuff can be difficult to connect to.
On the other hand, parts were funny, so it was ok.
On the other hand, parts were funny, so it was ok.
lurker_stalker's review against another edition
2.0
There were a few stories that I found interesting or amusing but mostly they weren't my thing. I'll keep enjoying Patton Oswalt on TV and Twitter and probably not in books.
casspro's review against another edition
4.0
I was surprised by this one. I kept trying to read the book in Patton's voice, and I had difficulty doing so. It doesn't read like one of his stand up routines, which is what I was expecting. Instead, it's much more introverted and optimistic. I was on board for cynicism and I got some transformative existentialism instead. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, just not what I was anticipating. The chapters that are more autobiographical were my favorites, with their raw honesty. The parody chapters were interesting, but felt like a different style of Patton's comedy that I hadn't experienced before. I wanted something more familiar, but I'm happy with the outcome of this one.
fracturing's review against another edition
3.0
I adore Patton and his stand up, as probably most people who pick up this book do. There are some great portions, like the fake script punch up, and some hilarious/sad stories like his gig in Canada - but overall I just found the book a bit disappointing. Some parts felt too forced. Others just flat out weren't that funny. Maybe this works better as a book on tape?
dodgson's review against another edition
5.0
Oswalt has always been a thoughtful storyteller—among the many strengths of his comedy is his ability to take you on a journey, rather than tossing out wisecracks and observations. His prose is strong and evocative, and it’s interesting that episodes of memoir are interspersed with “comedy bits” full of out-loud laughs—no rhyme or reason, apparently just stuff that came to him that would work better in a book than onstage.
tamdot's review against another edition
2.0
Hit and miss. The memoir parts are great and should have been longer. The interludes were skipable.