Overdrive Reveiws: Stalking David Sedaris Edition.

 

I waited longer for Theft By Finding, the latest book by David Sedaris than I have for anything else on the library system.I think this a fact
works as a testament David Sedaris’ popularity. Especially since this is an odd book. Not quite a memoir, this book consists of excerpts from David Sedaris extensive pile of diaries kept since he was 19 presented in various dated entries starting in the 80s.

The result is….fun. It’s good. I enjoyed it. It’s David Sedaris, and I love him. I was so dorkily into his writing my memoir teacher assigned us more of his essays on the fly. I would listen to him mock the phone book.

And it does have some great stuff in it. His descriptions and language are twisty and specific and memorable. His sister’s cat, when offered a treat, “Wheezed with delight”. I love little tidbits like “Then I came home and carved the word failure into a pumpkin.” or “in Germany, groundhog day is called ‘eternally weeps the groundhog’.

And I get that lame fangirl thrill from any mention of things from his essays. His job at the apple farm, his evil french teacher, his jobs in construction and moving companies. Ihop.

But ultimately, Theft by Finding felt like less than the sum of it’s parts. A lot of fun little moments that don’t really add up to much. Without the form of full essays, the exercise comes across as a little flat.

But hey, I can always go read Me Talk Pretty One Day and Naked for the 6th time. This time with a bit more insight into what makes the author tick.