Calypso

The reviews all said this wasn’t intended to be a laugh a minute book, but it was actually much more than that. It was funny, sad, poignant and deeply and honestly insightful. Not to be missed.

Did you hear? David titled his latest book "Calypso" just like that John Denver song! David Sedaris is the answer to a beleaguered parent's prayers: a poor, artsy, drugged-out ne'er-do-well who vaulted to literary super-stardom. It's a heartwarming tale. "Only in America" I like to say.John Denver sang the song "Calypso" about Jacques Cousteau's scuba yacht. Cousteau sailed around the world, swam underwater with a camera and put the footage on TV. Nice work if you can get it, Jacques! John sang, "Like the dolphin beside you, you bring us beside you, to light up the darkness and show us the way . . ." and so forth. Then John died in an experimental plane crash in the early 1990s, just as David Sedaris was making a huge hit on Public Radio. I don't think they ever met, but if they had, maybe they would sing this song together.In the BOOK Calypso, David writes about his life now, in which he flies around the world first class, stays at the Four Seasons and visits his beach house. While I am madly in love with the guy, I have to say that part is not compelling literature, hard to relate to for the rest of us. Maybe David knows it too, because he spices things up with Death Talk. David's mother died and his sister killed herself. Let's sober up with that for fifty pages or so!The man writes so well, I could retype the whole book here, but I'll content myself with one stinger that makes me love David even more, were that possible:"More often than not, your breakfast room will have a TV in it, tuned to a twenty-four-hour cable-news network. Sometimes you’ll see two TVs or more. At a place I stayed at in Kentucky one year, there were eight. After I ordered, the waitress went around with her remote and activated each one, making me think of a lamplighter, if lamps were instruments of torture rather than things that make it easier for you to see how old and tired-looking you’ve gotten. “People like it,” she said when I asked if it was really necessary at six o’clock in the morning.You hear this a lot in America, especially when you’re complaining about televisions, or loud music, or, more common still, television and loud music together in the same room. “People like it.”“Yes,” I always want to say, “but they’re the wrong people.”Admit it, you have to love this guy! If only John Denver had stayed on the ground, I'm sure he would have loved this book too, and maybe added a verse to his Calypso song in acknowledgement.Now, as the credits roll on my little review, I want all you Sedari to stand up. Come on, alive or dead, all of you! Lou, Sharon, Lisa, Gretchen, Tiffany, Amy, David, Paul. Hugh, start singing, you're married now! And you, too Mrs. Hamrick!"Aye, Calypso the places you've been to, the things that you've shown us, the stories you tell! Aye Calypso I sing to your spirit, the men who have served you so long and so well. [yodel, yodel, eeeeeeyaaaaaeyeeeee!]"

I wholeheartedly love David Sedaris. His wit, his phrasing, his language. He makes you appreciate the ordinary days, the heartbreak, the joy - there is no one like him. Having lost my dad recently I appreciated his candor about his own dad. Their love and frustration with each other that always finds its way to kindness.

Calypso is a collection of stories that focuses on heavy themes, including death, family and aging. Despite such themes, David Sedaris makes his book easy to read with the use of self-deprecating humor and relatable stories that anyone with a family could understand.The book almost acts as Sedaris’ way of grieving loss in his life. A pivotal character in Calypso is Sedaris’ sister, Tiffany, who Sedaris introduces to readers early in the book through the heart-wrenching story “Now We Are Five.” He speaks on the death of his sister and how her suicide affected him. Although Sedaris does not focus hard on his emotions in this book, you can still sense the feeling of regret and guilt as he talks about his sister. He has a way of making these moments in the book very moving, causing you to feel sorry for his family. Sedaris even brings in stories of gay marriage, politics, and other hot-button issues that some would be fearful to bring up in writing. Sedaris is not a sugar-coater; he takes the honest approach with these topics and provides a clear stance on his positions. “A Number of Reasons I’ve Been Depressed Lately” is one of the few stories in Calypso where Sedaris showcases his dislike of President Donald Trump, and even talks about how he became nervous at the time of the election when thinking about a Donald Trump presidency. This sounds rather intense, right? Don’t worry. Sedaris has his way of making these serious topics still laughable. His own awareness of himself is one way that Sedaris is able to be so successful with his humor. He knows that he is an older man who is dying, and he is very mindful of where he comes from. Therefore, it is easy for Sedaris to make fun of himself and allow readers to laugh at him. He also has an impressive way of taking the most mundane instances and turning them into something hilarious. A trip to the airport or picking up trash from the side of the road seem pretty lackluster, but Sedaris makes these moments come to life with his humor. He also does not drag out a topic for too long. He will not sit on a deep topic for an uncomfortable amount of time. As soon as you think you are walking into a depressing topic, you come upon a paragraph that offers a random, silly comment that makes you laugh. Some of the stories are made up of small tangents, keeping you on your toes and making you fit these things together. This puzzle-like aspect of Sedaris’ writing makes you focus more on what he is trying to say, which makes the reading that more interesting.The books personal touch and Sedaris’ impressiveness to turn the ordinary into the most entertaining is captivating. The reading truly is an experience and a whirlwind of emotions, making you fight back tears or fight back laughter. Give this book a try if you are looking for something different than a sappy romance novel. You will enjoy Sedaris’ take on his personal life and bask in his impressive ability to make nothing into something.

Some parts of this collection of essays are exquisite, and even I read them twice, but as always with Sedaris, it ‘s a mixed bag. “Your English Is So Good” made me howl. However, for some reason Sedaris has this fascination with people pooping. Such humor is not my cup of tea, so to speak. The essay “I’m Still Standing” made me gag several times (elderly people bepooping themselves in the close quarters of a crowded plane doesn’t tickle my funny bone, I’m sorry); furthermore, poop allusions can be found splattered across the text. Come on, David! That is just so juvenile, or maybe I’m just a squeamish prude. And I do understand that Sedaris is trying to bring out the humor that accompanies the decrepitude and disappointments of getting older and then of getting much older. Of course, most of it is black humor that can be a little depressing, but some of it is just straight-foward humor related to the ironies of life. Overall, I still recommend reading this collection because it contains more gold than dung.

Love all David Sedaris' books. I am busy reading them all! Big fan :)

Well its just David Sedaris being onto of his game loved it it made me laugh so much and then slapped me in the face with it's human truths!! BRILLIANT!

This book is full of delightful stories and i loved it. The writing is superb, and the stories are so unique and amusing. I thoroughly recommend this book. I am going to have to read more books by David, they are just so beautifully written and funny !

I read books on my phone with the Kindle app to pass time when insomnia hits (with the black screen I need less light). But this book kept me awake, made me laugh out loud in the middle of the night.

Muito divertido. Um retrato inteligente e crítico da sociedade norte-americana atual e suas contradições. E muito, muito bem escrito, tornando a leitura muito prazerosa.