I wish this book was double the size. I didn't want it to end. David Sedaris is insightful, relevant and hilarious...not so easy, but he makes it look easy. This collection of essays speaks the truth to 50somethings. His relationships with his "partner," siblings, animals, aging parent and his FitBit will touch every reader.

A hilarious and more intimate look into Sedaris' life, particularly his sister's suicide and his mother's alcoholism. His dry and honest approach to life is hilarious and makes me want to go back and reread his other works.

In the same format as David's other books, Calypso is a collection of short stories based on his life experiences. This collection is more recent, rather than looking back at earlier life stories, taking place in the last several years. Perhaps because of the recent deaths in his family, many of the stories include more details about his sister Tiffany and his parents, giving the book more of a dark edge. Very few of the stories are lighthearted. They can often be described as funny, sad, or gross. Sometimes funny and gross, sometimes sad and gross. David's life continues to be fascinating and hilarious, and this book proves it.

David Sedaris lets you into his family once again. Set against the backdrop of his family home purchase on the North Carolina coast, we learn of the pain of addiction and its impact on the family, as well as sibling relationships and true love all while laughing your ass off!

Lou Sedaris and I can sum "Calypso" up in one word: fantastic! Sedaris is my absolute favorite author. This collection of essays is more melancholy than his previous works, but I think I love it the most of all. And that’s like saying I love one of my kids more than the other.

Thank you Netgalley for sending me a galley for review, all opinions are mine.
David Sedaris did it again! This book is so funny and enjoyable, but has that darkness that i love. Now in this bok Sedaris gives us 21 essays for our enjoyment, these essays made me feel all type of emotions, even sadness yall! it is worth the read, it has all you can think of . He wrote from his experience and emotions when he realized he was a gay male, in a time where it wasn't to easy to come out. He gave us raw emotion when writing about his sisters suicide and even his mothers alcohol abuse. But through it, you will enjoy it so much. maybe not everyones cup of tea, but it is beautifully written.

Another humorous book from Sedaris. Every book gets better with his stories. A must read if you like his work!

Published by Little, Brown and Company on May 29, 2018

It’s difficult to say what any particular David Sedaris essay is about, since they meander delightfully, like a puppy in a garden filled with squeaky toys, until it becomes clear that the essay is simply about Being David Sedaris, a unique person living a unique life in a world he shares with billions of other unique people, each of them full of stories.

Sedaris writes about the perils of middle-age, the acquisition of guest rooms, and the fear of losing family members, as well as the regret of not asking questions about half-overheard conversations that pop up in memory years later. A couple of essays describe family gatherings before and after his sister’s suicide. One is about his strained relationship with his father and jazz, the real only connection they ever made; another addresses his father’s reluctance to move out of a home he can no longer maintain. A particularly poignant essay focuses on his relationship with his (long deceased) alcoholic mother. Sedaris is a humorist, but much of Calypso is touching and personal, not necessarily the stuff of humor.

Sedaris fans need not fret, however, because other essays showcase his quiet wit. He writes about being short, the discoveries he makes while walking (including the discovery that his Fitbit was ruling his life), his preference for feeding snapping turtles rather than attending family gatherings. He talks about gay marriage, which he favors in the abstract but opposes in his own life as mundane, like wearing Dockers to Olive Garden.

Other funny essays discuss words and phrases that should be banned (“awesome”), his arguments with his long-term lover Hugh about appropriate behavior and pets, family gossip and family quarrels, his attempt to feed his tumor to a snapping turtle, ghosts, psychics, the reasons he’s depressed (hint: Trump and Trump voters), his fear of crapping his pants, and phrases that people in various countries yell from their car windows when they are angry at another driver (he proclaims Romania the winner in the contest for most creative vulgarity). I think the essay about pants-crapping edged out the others for most laughs per page, although your mileage may vary.

I can’t say that I was enthralled by his descriptions of the odd clothing he purchases while shopping in Tokyo, but one essay that did nothing for me compared to twenty that provoked smiles or empathy isn’t a bad ratio. On the whole, the essays in Calypso are so insightful or amusing or both that I can forgive Sedaris for writing about his questionable taste in attire.

RECOMMENDED

As always, I enjoy David Sedaris. His essays always contain humor and ultimately some life lessons. His latest collection, Calypso, is incredibly entertaining. When you're reading, you feel as though he's talking to you with a stream of consciousness style. He writes about family, relationships, house guests and more. His work is, as always, wonderful.

I’ll admit upfront that I have not generally been a fan of David Sedaris. Sure, I’ve found an essay here and there that I was impressed by, but overall, I’ve found the acclaim more than a little mystifying. And it’s true that Calypso, his newest collection, was a bit of a mixed bag for me. But it’s also true that it is my favorite collection by him, with the hit and miss ration falling much more toward the hit than prior ones.

I still had some issues. His humor isn’t really mine apparently (obviously mileage will vary on such a subjective aspect). At times it was hard to relate to the pay habits of the rich and famous (first class air travel, spending a ridiculous amount of money on pants, etc.). I’ve always had a problem with non-fiction authors calling their work “tru-ish” or “real-ish,” leaving it up in the air how much of it is actually true. And a few essays felt slight or just sort of “meh” in terms of evoking a response.

But any collection, whether essays, poems, stories, photographs, etc. will have its ups and downs, and as noted, Calypso had more ups for me. I think part of the reason for that is there is a depth of feeling here, a melancholy richness that I don’t recall in earlier work. Some of that, much of it, is driven by his sister’s suicide, which rises regularly throughout the collection, sometimes creating a hollow kind of ache, sometime hitting the gut like a kick to the stomach, as when he recalls having a security guard at one of his events shut the door in his sister’s face. Another such facet is his relationship with his aging father, the way Sedaris struggles both with where the two have been and where they are going. Throw in musings on his mother’s death and her alcoholism, along with his own growing sense of mortality, and a palpable feeling of pain and grief hangs over much of the writing here. That sense of loss — whether post-trauma or anticipatory — makes for a deeply layered reading experience, one that had me reacting and thinking much more than previous collections by him. The humor is still here, but it’s sharpened by the poignancy that surrounds it. By far my favorite read by him.

David Sedaris is a household name in game of essay writing and he should be. He can write about anything and it's not only so funny but spot on. He writes just the right way that isn't too clever or obvious but he is so very observant. In Calypso, he writes about his summer house that he shares with his family and how he likes that he's the one who bought it so he can have the last say in everything, he writes about the suicide of his sister Tiffany and that's not even painted as the sad subject it should be. He had a fatty cyst-like thing removed from a woman who came to his book signing that was a doctor when he complained that he wanted to be able to feed the mass once removed to this snapping turtle he likes to watch (the regular hospital said no that he could not take home what was removed from him but the lady at the book signing said of course he could). He writes a little about politics, specifically about how he can spot a trump supporter anywhere and about how he has an obsession with fitbit and that despite a digestive illness he needed to complete his goal (despite being physically and mentally ill). I can go on and on but you'll just have to read it.

David Sedaris has said in a few interviews that he feels like this is his best book so far. He is correct.

The most important things I learned from this book are as follows:
1. The Sedarises have a beach house called the Sea Section.
2. Amy Sedaris has a second apartment in order to get away from her rabbit for a few hours a day.
3. David Sedaris walks so much, in part, because of a need to outdo the suggestions of his Fitbit. I used to have a similar relationship with Mapmyrun and am glad to know that other people also enjoy this particular type of mental illness.
4. David Sedaris deals with norovirus much, much better than the average human person, managing to make it through a leg of his book tour with a particularly bad bout of flu. He might have some kind of superpower.
5. It is possible to feed your benign tumor to a turtle, but such a thing is made more difficult by first having to find someone who will allow you to keep the tumor (doctors aren't allowed, apparently), then having to ship the tumor, and, finally, having to ensure that the specific turtle you want to feed it to has not died while you are completing the aforementioned tasks.

Whether or not you've ever read a Sedaris title, this one has something for everybody.

I loved this book – far different from others I’ve read (and I’ve read them all) from Sedaris, this series of essays from the now 60-ish man are poignant, funny, shocking, angry, sentimental, and illustrative. My first introduction to his work was in a story told on NPR radio in which he is ‘Crumpet the Elf’ in a Christmas Santa display. Quickly, he became a storyteller favorite, as this one seasonal job is a favorite of listeners and exposes the ‘dark underbelly’ of all that joy and tinsel. Now several years later, the middle-aged Sedaris is back: reminiscing about family, relationships, people and even his fitbit in Calypso.

It’s a collection that gradually tightens its hold on your attention and heart: like a boa, it starts with the joys of the ‘spare room’, dedicated and used ONLY for guests with a luggage rack, real bed and en suite. Or, the ‘second’ guest room, upstairs, with a bathtub rather than a shower. A sign of being a ‘real grownup’ and with that frisson of “middle-aged satisfaction’, it is instantly clear that this series of stories is of the now – the changes as age creeps up, attitudes change and a dedicated guest room becomes a symbol that epitomizes arrival at that nebulous point of “success’. Of course, this leads to ‘proper behavior’ for the hosting couple: from choreographed displays of support and affection through reaction to oft-told stories, ‘who’ is responsible for and to the quests (His, Yours or Ours), the quirks of family and behavior (just walking out when the conversation / story isn’’t engaging, not saying goodnight, entering in the middle of a story), and every moment is eay to visualize, imagine and wonder about. From here – the stories range from questions you WANT to ask a stranger – mostly to get a reaction, but perhaps because you are a bit curious, to the words that should be banned evermore and never pass your lips, their banality and overuse make them nonsense platitudes, especially in the service industry.

Much time is spent reminiscing and discussing his sister’s suicide, his mother’s death (in 1991 but still rippling through the family), his aging father and the oddly transformative relationships that are had with siblings – the changes as they move from shared interests to shared mocking, sorrows, questions and simple proximity. Relationships and people are explored and discussed: shopping (endlessly) in Japan and the odd things brought home, his obsession with his ‘steps’ and fitbit, worn just under his Apple watch which also cues activity: stand, sit, walk. His collection of badges for steps, and his routine of cleaning the roads near his Sussex home, getting in those 7 miles (or so) of steps.

Relationships are heavily featured here: from passing interactions with cashiers and those coming to book signings, to his attempts to ‘bring everyone together’ at the shore house – for everyone but I get final say on decoration: he’s got a pinch of grumpy old man competing with an often mischievous little boy - prone to inappropriate but highly interesting questions for strangers and a slight judgmental remove when the questioned turns out to be just as expected – confused, slow and perhaps a bit aghast. His relationship with Hugh, now some twenty years on, is lovingly exasperated: they are so different yet accepting of those differences, the changes, the struggles and even his ‘permanent engagement, suggested by the accountant for tax purposes – with few intentions of an actual wedding – the overdone, boring and often all for show ceremony of marriage that people have been subjected to for ages. It’s not that he didn’t believe in the right to marry – he’d actually hoped that upon gaining the right (and completely sending the right into a tizzy) that everyone would rejoice in the ability – but not join the industry….

That’s where the beauty and joy of the observations and these stories reveal themselves. It’s a conversation, admittedly with one person monopolizing all the speaking time, but a conversation that has you comparing your thoughts, experiences and outlook to another person –and finding some common points in the humanity, the desire to connect and the equally strong desire to remain aloof and outside the drama, even as you are framing it within your own views of the world as it exists now, and how different that is from what you did, or could imagine. Sedaris has a knack of making you care about those moments that have become automatic, reacted to rather than planned for, the orchestrated interactions that never quite follow the sheet music as something or someone is consistently out of tune, and the need to move forward: being aware and adjusting as things come up, never forgetting to ask the unexpected question. I loved this (and other) books by Sedaris – the humanity that never quite loses that snarky, sarcastic and often spot-on observations make him a storyteller for these ages –

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Review first appeared at <a href=” https://wp.me/p3OmRo-9O5/” > <a> I am, Indeed </a>

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars

I first discovered David Sedaris as part of the This American Life podcast. I love listening to him read his own stories and that was my only regret when I accepted this ARC--it wasn't read to me by the author.

I love David's stories. He is always incredibly honest, sometimes painfully so. In this book, he tells stories about his sister's suicide and how his family coped with her estrangement and ultimately, her suicide. No, it's not as light-hearted as some of his other works, but there is still humour and with it some vulnerability.

Ok - so what took me so long to read a David Sedaris book?

This was hysterical! What a welcomed break from murder mysteries and dramas that I tend to read. Quite often I laughed so hard I had tears rolling down my cheeks. My intention when I got this book was to only read a few chapters at a time. But once I started I just could not put it down.

There is a saying that laughter is the best medicine. If you're looking for a good belly laugh to make you feel better, don't look any further.

I received this from Little Brown and Company via Netgalley.

I've loved David Sedaris since Me Talk Pretty One Day. While this may be a little darker than some of his previous books, it doesn't venture into depressive territory. He is enormously funny and entertaining, as always, and I loved reading this book. David Sedaris has always seemed to sell easily; this book will certainly follow in that tradition.

I think this is David Sedaris's best book since Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. I've always particularly enjoyed the stories about his family, they always seemed the most personal and the little details and personalities of his parents and siblings were hilarious. In Calypso Sedaris delves a little deeper into his family. He writes about his sister's suicide, his mother's alcoholism and his father's not so graceful aging. He and Hugh have bought a beach house in North Carolina, his family gatherings have a somber tinge as they remember those who aren't there. There are a few grotesque parts, it wouldn't be a David Sedaris book without them.

My one complaint is that quite a few of the stories had been published in other sources and I had already read them.

Fans of David Sedaris are going to thoroughly enjoy this newest collection. As to be expected, the author is at times snarky and at times irreverent- all things I love about his writing- but there are also somber moments in this book as he deals with mortality and loss. No worry, though, I also laughed out loud numerous times while reading, and found this to be my favorite work of the author's in some time.

Aging, suicide, parents, death… David Sedaris gives us an ultra-personal look into his life that manages to be funny in spite of it all.

Calypso by David Sedaris is a very highly recommended collection of 21 darkly humorous, yet touching, essays. This may be the best book by Sedaris yet.

David Sedaris has always had a keen eye for details and the absurd while observing the world with a cynical, but honest, eye. In these stories he focuses more on mortality and death, while simultaneously showing the love and devotion he has for Hugh and his family. The discussions between David and his sisters are both hilarious and insightful. While I can generally mention some topics covered in the essays, Sedaris smoothly segues from one topic to another. This is a memorable collection

Contents:
Company Man: One of perks to middle age is that, "with luck, you'll acquire a guest room."
Now We Are Five: How David and his siblings are handling the suicide of their youngest sister, Tiffany. Also buying a beach house he and Hugh named the Sea Section.
Little Guy: Reflections on being a short man. "I’m not one of those short men who feels he got shafted."
Stepping Out: David discusses his Fitbit obsession.
A House Divided: Reflections on class, and Tiffany embracing poverty as an accomplishment.
The Perfect Fit: "I’m not sure how it is in small families, but in large ones relationships tend to shift over time. You might be best friends with one brother or sister, then two years later it might be someone else. Then it’s likely to change again, and again after that." And shopping with his sisters.
Leviathan: Sedaris contemplates how people become crazy in two ways: animals and diet, and he discusses feeding the wild turtles near their beach house.
Your English Is So Good: Using a language instruction course doesn't necessarily help you with context or commonly used phrases.
Calypso: America and the spread of information through TV news, along with pictures in wood grain and health concerns, including his desire to feed his tumor to a turtle.
A Modest Proposal: Gay marriage and proposing to Hugh.
The Silent Treatment: His father's inability to have meaningful discussions and growing up with him.
Untamed: A wild fox they named Carol.
The One(s) Who Got Away: David asks Hugh about previous partners.
Sorry: "Whenever I doubt the wisdom of buying a beach house, all I have to do is play a round of Sorry! and it all seems worth it."
Boo-Hooey: Sedaris can’t stand people talking about ghosts, but he does believe they can visit you in your dreams. "Who are you hanging out with, for God’s sake?" someone might ask. "Camp counselors?"
A Number of Reasons I’ve Been Depressed Lately: A self-explanatory list.
Why Aren’t You Laughing?: Sedaris discusses his mother's alcoholism.
I’m Still Standing: Having embarrassing accidents in public on airplanes.
The Spirit World: Amy and a psychic
And While You’re Up There, Check on My Prostate: A discussion of what angry drivers yell at other drivers.
The Comey Memo: Jim Comey was staying at an area beach house and their father's declining abilities.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Little, Brown and Company via Netgalley.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2018/05/calypso.html
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2400801829
https://www.librarything.com/work/21861223/reviews/156368199
https://www.facebook.com/shetreadssoftly/
https://twitter.com/SheTreadsSoftly/status/999380388815437824