David Sedaris
Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim (2004)
Author: David Sedaris
Genre: Nonfiction (Memoir)
Book Summary:
The book consists of a collection of essays that vary widely in topic, from Sedaris visiting his sister and her parrot that can mimic the sound of the milk steamer on a cappuccino machine to Sedaris asking a man in Amsterdam how the Dutch celebrate Christmas. He often focuses on his family and the experiences he had growing up as a gay boy in the South. It's clear that Sedaris found it very hard to fit in with people his own age- he wasn't interested in sports or girls and he had few friends. Despite the difficulties he had, he finds humor in his many situations. He also writes about how his family moved to the South when he was young, which is why he often speaks negatively of North Carolina and the South in general- he is not a native. Sedaris's mother and father are important figures in the book and he examines the events in his childhood and how they affected his parents. For example, he watched his parents grow apart because his father failed to buy a house by the ocean, so his mother eventually moves out of their bedroom and into a spare room and decorates it with sand dollars and seascapes. Another set of essays deal with Sedarir's life when he was dropped out of numerous colleges and moved back home and then bounced from apartment to apartment. The essay about a very cheap apartment that he lived in in Raleigh and the young girl who lives next door to him in especially memorable because Sedaris is unable to help his young neighbor, even though he reaches out to her. He also writes about cleaning houses in New York and how he started to become famous when his story was broadcast on NPR. Other essays come from Sedaris's life after he has become an established writer and he is living with his boyfriend Hugh in France. He writes about a small dinner party in Paris which he ruins by insisting that a man he met had a rubber hand and no one else believes him. Also, Sedaris explains why, when he was home alone, he tried to drown an injured mouse and he encounters some lost tourists. There are two essays about when Sedaris's brother got married and when his wife had a baby. His brother is quite a character and he is the exact opposite of Sedaris, which makes the essays hilarious. The essay about his brother's child being born is poignant because Sedaris reflects on how his family has changed throughout the years and how things have happened that no one in his family expected they would.
Geographical Setting: United States and Europe.
Time Period: Late twentieth century
Appeal Characteristics:
Sedaris's writing style is witty, self-depricating and extremely honest; he isn't afraid to make himself appear weak, shallow or obsessive-compulsive. He is a keen observer, of both his family members, his friends and even strangers in a diner. The book can be laugh out loud funny, especially when Sedaris examines the baffling aspects of life, such as the Duth tradition of the "seven to eight black men" who travel with Santa on Christmas Eve. The tone can be both light and dark, as the topics range from Sedaris explaining that he thought his brother would never have children, "He'd dismember his baby, with every intention of putting it back together, but then something would come up- a karate movie, the chance to eat two dozen tacos- and the reconstruction would be forgotten about"(232), to Sedaris's mother crying because his father has kicked him out of the house because he's gay. The pace is often measured and rather slow because Sedaris will examine a small event in his life, such as when tourists come to his house in France when he is home alone. The chapters are divided up into specific events and he rarely writes about a great span of time that would cause the pace to speed up. The frame of the book is that everyday life, with its small events that are significant, funny or even unremarkable, are worth examining, writing about and sharing with others. The characterization in the book is successful because Sedaris uses vingettes and small sections of dialogue to illustrate what the people in his life are like. For example, Sedaris's brother's dialogue reveals a lot about him. When he is buying "Baby Einstein" videos for his unborn child he says, "'I don't care if it's a boy or a girl, but this little son of a b---- is going to have brains'"(234). Also, it's clear that Sedaris is very fastidious and particular about his surroundings because, when his father comes into his room with a cigar, a young Sedaris says,"'I hope you're not going to smoke that in here...Normally I wouldn't mind, but I just Scotchgarded the drapes'"(165-166).
Read-alikes: As Sedaris is unique in his particular style of writing, the first read-alikes to consider would be his other books, such as Naked. Sedaris' Me Talk Pretty One Day is a humorous and unique look at Sedaris's life, from many events in his childhood to his life with his boyfriend in France. The tone of the book, as in Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, is both humorous and dark. For example, one of David's sisters, in front of strangers, tells him that she hopes he beats his (fictitious) rape charge. She immediately disappears, leaving David to face the horrified stares of everyone around him. Some of the settings in Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim are also in Sedaris's other book and those who enjoyed reading about Sedaris's home in the French countryside might enjoy Me Talk Pretty One Day because readers find out more about his life in France. The book which probably comes closest in subject and style is Running With Scissors by Augusten Burroughs. His memoir, which he swears is true, includes even more kinds of bizzare growing up experiences than Sedaris's work does. Burrough's book Dry is also bizarrely funny although the subject here is his efforts to give up alcohol. Augusten Burroughs's Magical Thinking: True Stories is a collection of essays about Burrough's life, from when he starred in a Tang commercial when he was seven to the present day when he believes that he can make his boss die because he wills it to happen. Burrough's writing shows he can be mean and egocentric, but his book is similar to Sedaris's for many reasons. One example is that the humor in the books makes Sedaris and Burroughs likable, even though the brutal honesty in their books reveals many flaws. In Assassination Vacaction by Sarah Vowell, the author goes on a vacation so she can explore and research the assassinations of Lincoln, Garfield and McKinley. Vowell's and Sedaris's books have a dark sense of humor. For example, Vowell calls Robert Todd Lincoln "Jinxy McDeath" because he was present at three presidential assassinations (School Library Journal). Also, both books have a witty, biting tone and no one is free from the author's sharp tongue. For example, Vowell writes that Garfield's assassin "was the one guy in a free love commune who could not get laid" (Publishers Weekly). Guess Again: Short Stories by Bernard Cooper is a collection of eleven short stories about people dealing with many issues, such as love, loss, sexuality, relationships and the death of parents. Though many of the characters in the stories are gay, all readers can connect with the difficulties they face in their lives. Though this book is fiction, the writing style in both books is similar because the characters in Cooper's book are written with self-depricating humor, similar to Sedaris's representation of himself in Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. Another appeal element the books share is that human behavior is examined in them both. Sedaris often writes about his relationships and how he acts as his role as boyfriend. Cooper also focuses on relationships and how people relate to their family members and significant others. Fraud by David Rakaff is a collection of essays about the author's life, from slice of life pieces to stories about when he goes to a Buddhism workshop hosted by Steven Seagal, travels to Iceland and tries to hike a mountain in New Hampshire. Rakaff's book is written with a witty and self-depricating tone like in Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. But, Rakaff isn't a carbon-copy of Sedaris because his writing has an air of "disappointment" that Sedaris's does not(Amazon.com). Also, both books are immensely readable because nothing escapes the author's keen eyes and much of life is ripe for their hilarious critiques. For another Non-Fiction title that is written as short humorous story is The Know it All by A.J. Jacobs. Cheryl Peck's Fat Girls and Lawn Chairs is a series of humorous short stories with the themes of family and growing up. For a Non-Fiction title with humorous short stories about a quirky family member, try Amy's Answering Machine: Messages from Mom by Amy Borkowsky. Another good author would be Sarah Vowell who is also a commentator on NPR with David. Her book Take the Cannoli: Stories From the New World is a similar collection of personal reflections about life and what we can learn from our experiences. Another author to try is Dave Barry. Barry writes a regular humorous news column and his book Dave Barry Is Not Making This Up is a collection of some of these columns. Another suggestion might be to try to listen to any of David Sedaris's works available in audio-books, for the author's own voice. It matters little whether the read-alike is fiction or non-fiction if the subject includes the bizarre and humorous sides of relationships. Therefore, one could also suggest fiction titles like Little More Than Kin by Rebecca Kavaler. This is a collection of witty short stories about family relationships. The Loser's Club by Richard Perez is a bit more serious in theme than Sedaris's work but does deal with the funny side of coming of age, and is filled with quirky characters.
Red Flags: Profanity, homosexuality, and non-traditional family interactions.
Naked (1997)
Author: David Sedaris
Genre: Non Fiction (Essays/Memoir)
Book Summary:
Sedaris takes us through humorous incidents throughout his life with his unconventional family. Subjects include Sedaris' problems with OCD, his Greek grandmother, his relationship with his sisters, his sexuality, hitchhiking escapades, his mother's battle with lung cancer and a week at a nudist colony. All of these subjects are dealt with in a matter-of-fact manner that brings a unique humor to the narrative.
Geographical Setting: United States
Time Period: Mid to late 20th Century
Appeal Characteristics:
While the material may be bleak, Sedaris never onces pities himself or the subjects of his narrative. The reader can experience Sedaris and his subjects faults for what they are and relate the the fact that we all deal with similar issues and how we view them is what matters.
Read-alikes: Readers may wish to continue with Sedaris' Me Talk Pretty One Day, the subsequent collection of essays which is similar in tone and elaborates more on Sedaris family life and childhood as well as adult experiences. Dave Eggers' A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is also a memoir of a similar tone that deals with serious issues, i.e. Eggers' parents' batter with cancer. Sedaris This American Life colleague, Sarah Vowell, writes memoirs that are popular to a degree. Her Take the Cannoli: Stories from the New World is a collection of essays that comment on aspects of American life. Those who enjoyed the road-tripping and hitchhiking in Sedaris' book might enjoy Vowell's book. For those who like the tone of Sedaris' book might like to hear stories originally broadcast on This American Life (an NPR program Sedaris has contributed to). The audio CD Crime Busters and Crossed Wires: Stories from This American Life, which is a collection of stories aired on the program. Augusten Burroughs' memoirs are often compared with Sedaris'. His Running with Scissors chronicles the authors childhood with an even more unconventional family and also deals with serious subject matter but in a humorous way.
Red Flags: homosexuality, profanity
|top|
|
