When You Are Engulfed in Flames
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I am very lucky to have read the new Davis Sedaris book before anyone else as I received an advanced readers' edition from the publisher. How hip am I? And who actually is David Sedaris, why is he so popular (there are 112 library customers waiting for his new book), and why all of a sudden is his name mentioned everywhere?
David Sedaris is by turns a humorist, an essayist, and a contributor to National Public Radio. He has written several books of essays including NAKED, ME TALK PRETTY ONE DAY, DRESS YOUR FAMILY IN CORDUROY AND DENIM, and his latest, WHEN YOU ARE ENGULFED IN FLAMES.He was raised in Raleigh, North Carolina, the second oldest in a family of 6 children. Many of his essays are autobiographical and recall fondly and not so fondly his family and what it was like to grow up in the south.
He can be very funny and his self-deprecating sense of humor is a big part of his appeal. In “Me Talk Pretty One Day,” he recounts his battle with his fifth grade speech therapist by avoiding all words that contain the letter “s”. When asked what he will be doing on New Years Eve, he told her: “On the final day of the year we take down the pine tree in our living room and eat marine life."
As he grew up and was drifting through life, his adventures all became fodder for his future profession. When he was spotted by Ira Glass in a Chicago club reading his diary aloud, he was immediately invited to perform on NPR and is still a frequent contributor to “This American Life”.
In his latest book, “When You Are Engulfed in Flames” he explains how his lack of understanding French, even though he had lived in France for six months, has gotten him into trouble. He decided that any time he was asked a question, he would answer “D’accord” which means “ok”.
I said d’accord to a waiter, and received a pig’s nose standing erect on a bed of tender greens. I said it to a woman in a department store and walked away drenched in cologne. Every day was an adventure.”
Is David Sedaris so popular that you cannot find his books or CD books on the shelf? Try downloading his E-Audio books to your digital audio player or find his works on the Internet. He is so “everywhere” that you can read or listen to his essays right on your computer. I even watched him on the David Letterman show on the Internet.
 So, if like me, you are looking for a light book of essays to take to the beach, and you’ve read Dave Barry, Jon Stewart, Bill Bryson and Woody Allen, try David Sedaris. Also try FIERCE PAJAMAS, AN ANTHOLOGY OF HUMOR WRITING FROM THE NEW YORKER.
And if you’re super hip, try his sister, Amy. Her latest book is I LIKE YOU: HOSPITALITY UNDER THE INFLUENCE which ostensibly is an old fashioned “how- to- entertain” book. Her tongue is so far into her cheek though, that it’s sometimes difficult to know when she is being serious. I listened to it, and it’s a wonderful production. She does different voices and accents, and she, like her brother, is very funny.
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