In AN EMBARRASSMENT OF CRITCHES, Mark Critch tells us how he came to be the entertainer we know today. He starts with his high school experience and continues until present day.
AN EMBARRASSMENT OF CRITCHES is an entertaining read. I felt Mark Critch presented a honest overview of his career. He shared the highs, the lows and the embarrassing moments.
Great read for fans of This Hour Has 22 Minutes and Canadian entertainers. I am one of those fans.
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced digital edition of this book.

An Embarrassment of Critch’s by Mark Critch caused me to laugh out loud on a number of occasions. A book that brings the reader along on a number of the author’s personal adventures, from Trinity, NL to the White House in Washington, the top of the Peace Tower in Ottawa to Kandahar, Afghanistan. A delightful and genuine read, including stories about the authors career from the beginning and family life.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

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

Mark Critch is a national treasure, and I will read anything he writes. An Embarrassment of Critch's is another smash hit in my opinion. I can't get enough of stories from Critch's life. He's funny, smart, and just fun to visit with.

Comedian Mark Critch returns with a follow-up to his first memoir, SON OF A CRITCH with AN EMBARASSMENT OF CRITCH’S (both great names, by the way).

I received an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Hailing from St. John’s, Newfoundland, Mark knew from an early age what it was he wanted to do with his life – convincing his father, however, was the hard part. In AN EMBARASSMENT OF CRITCH’S, Mark goes through his early days struggling to find stable work in the entertainment industry all the way to the present where he now holds the honor of the longest-serving cast member on CBC’s THIS HOUR HAS 22 MINUTES.

There were some interesting stories in here including Mark’s experiences with ambushing Canadian politicians for off-the-cuff interviews as well as being a veteran of filming remotes (on-location sketches) for the Canadian comedy institution. Even the stories that weren’t exactly memorable still maintained a level of enjoyment given Mark’s natural talent for storytelling.

The more memorable chapters in the book deal with Mark heading overseas to perform for the Canadian troops in Afghanistan in 2006, a journey fraught with rocket attacks, imported contraband and the horrors of “Emerald Lake”. Then there was Mark’s trip to Russia in 2007 where in response to Russian claiming The North Pole by planting a flag on the ocean floor, Mark tried to do the same by claiming Red Square for Canada by planting a flag in the center of the landmark. It goes without saying – that did not go according to plan. Another standout looked at Mark’s confrontation with Pamela Anderson and Sam Simon as they arrived on the shores of Newfoundland in 2013 to half-heartedly stop the annual seal hunt.

AN EMBARASSMENT OF CRITCH’S is both a look at the ins-and-outs of Canadian showbiz as well as the absurdity of dancing on the line of Canadian political humor.

Mark Critch is a Canadian comedian, actor and writer. He is best known for his work on the CBC comedy series, This Hour Has 22 Minutes. I must admit that I've never watched This Hour Has 22 Minutes but I do know who Mark Critch is ... he was in The Grand Seduction, a fun movie I've seen quite a few times (in fact, I just watched it again a couple weeks ago).

I like reading bios/autobios, he's Canadian and I grew up in the Atlantic provinces so that's why it caught my eye. Plus I'd read his first book, Son of a Critch: A Childish Newfoundland Memoir, and liked it

This book picks up when Critch was trying to figure out what to do with his life. He knew he wanted to entertain and his first big job was with a theatre group in Trinity, a small town in Newfoundland. His big break came when he got a two week gig writing for This Hour Has 22 Minutes in 2003 and he's still there! Over the years, he has met many people, travelled to many places all over the world and have had many adventures, and it was interesting to read about it. He has a lot of guts and this bodes him well when he has to charge up to get interviews from unsuspecting people.

I liked this book. I liked the writing style and thought it was honest and amusing at times.

I enjoyed reading Son of a Critch so much that when I saw the arc for this book I HAD TO READ IT. The writing between this book and Son of Critch is the exact same as it's really light and funny but also gives insight into Mark Critch's life. An Embarrassment of Critchs is a fantastic read and definitely recommended for an injection of Newfoundland humour.

I enjoyed this book. I am usually leery when a book is described as hilarious, but this book is funny. I started laughing two short paragraphs into the Preface. I found some of the stories in the book cringe-worthy but this reinforces the description of the book as immature stories. And although some of the adventures display immaturity, Critch does go on to say when he was out of line, which, contrary to immaturity, is actually mature. Some of the stories were also heart-warming, providing a good variety of emotions. I also liked that this is a book about Canada written by a Canadian, with behind-the-scenes perspectives. The discussion of Newfoundland was also very interesting. This book is well worth reading. Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada.