Barrel Fever: Stories and Essays

by David Sedaris

Hardcover, 1994

Status

Available

Call number

PS3569.E314 B3

Genres

Biography & Memoir

Biography

Collections

Your library, University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh

Publication

Little Brown & Co (T) (1994), Hardcover

Description

In David Sedaris' world, no one is safe and no cow is sacred. A manic cross between Mark Leyner, Fran Lebowitz, and the National Enquirer, Sedaris' collection of essays is a rollicking tour through the national Zeitgeist: a do-it-yourself suburban dad saves money by performing home surgery; a man who is loved too much flees the heavyweight champion of the world; a teenage suicide tries to incite a lynch mob at her funeral; a bitter Santa abuses the elves. David Sedaris made his debut on NPR's Morning Edition with "SantaLand Diaries", recounting his strange-but-true experiences as an elf at Macy's, and soon became one of the show's most popular commentators. With a perfect eye and a voice infused with as much empathy as wit, Sedaris writes stories and essays that target the soulful ridiculousness of our behavior. Barrel Fever is like a blind date with modern life, and anything can happen.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member sweetiegherkin

This book contains a number of Sedaris' fictional stories and a handful of his non-fiction essays. I find this juxtaposition somewhat jarring, especially considering how both sections feature stories using first-person narration. Also, I was taken aback by the very blatant similarities between the

characters' life events and Sedaris' own life events (either mentioned in this book or in subsequent ones). For instance, in "My Manuscript," a fictional account, Sedaris has a character recall how his ill-fated guitar lessons were taught by a midget. Having read Me Talk Pretty One Day prior to this book, I remembered Sedaris retelling this story as an actual life event. I found it thus difficult to get into the short stories. Although some of them still made me chuckle, his humor here is sometimes too dark and/or too subtle. I enjoyed the memoirs section, but wish there was more of these essays rather than the fictional stories. Also, three of the stories are featured in Holidays on Ice, another book I had previously read. Overall, not as funny as some as Sedaris' later work, but still good for some relatively light reading.

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LibraryThing member kalobo

There's a meanness in this early short story work of Sedaris' that doesn't appeal to me. I like his newer books better.

Sedaris' view on life is wonderfully human and fallible. A great humorist.

LibraryThing member MsDonna

Sedaris puts onto paper those thoughts that your twisted mind tries to eliminate when you sleep. You know those nasty little things you sometimes think, and you immediately say to yourself how could I think that?
I enjoyed reading this book so much that I have to put it up for mooching so others can

enjoy reading it. That joy has already been shared by my fellow commuters, who would invariably look amused or alarmed when I would attempt to stop myself from laughing out loud while reading this book.

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LibraryThing member gazzy

Unsteady - the stories are solidly crafted, told with wit, but I really laughed only little.

LibraryThing member kyleblack

A great light read. Sedaris' wit is both cutting and friendly, offending only those that "deserve" to be offended by his commentaries on teenage drama queens, over-sensitive outcasts, losers turned Hollywood stars and the rest. Was a great break away from denser material I've been reading lately.

However, as much fun as Sedaris is to read, I still think listening to him read his own material is where it truly shines. Not that this detracts from his work.
The only downside to this book is the radical changes in tone and character make some stories shine above the rest and others seem repetitive and hammering home the point a bit too hard.
A/B(plus)

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LibraryThing member Crowyhead

The nonfiction portions (especially "Santaland Diaries") are hilarious, but I'm not a big fan of Sedaris's fiction; it's not subtle enough for my liking. So really, I'd give the nonfiction four stars, and the fiction two.

LibraryThing member marfita

It has taken me a lot of time to appreciate Sedaris's fictional stories. His (perhaps only slightly) exaggerated accounts of his family and his life are winners straight off, but I had a great deal of time appreciating the title story of this book and his other fictional accounts. I think hearing

him tell them has helped, as well as repeated readings. I had no real sympathy for 'Dolph that I have for David. If it were David waking up, head on the vacuum cleaner after an alcoholic binge, instead of the self-absorbed 'Dolph,I might have had more sympathy. It wouldn't matter if it were the same story, with David heckling a friend who is trying to stay off alcohol while resolutely ignoring his own alcoholisim, and other unattractive hijinks. Somehow I can forgive almost anything in Sedaris's past, but I draw the line at a fictional character. Hmm. Well, it must be my problem.

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LibraryThing member name99

I suspect I would hate or at least despise and look down upon David Sedaris in real life, but damn, he is funny.

(To be fair, when I wrote this review the only Sedaris I had read was this book in which he portraits himself as little more than an apathetic junkie. With the passage of time, he has

grown in his books to a somewhat more reasonable human being.)

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LibraryThing member name99

For some strange reason the audiobook of Barrel Fever does not include about half the stories in the book, while including a bunch of stories that are not in the book.
So I read the paper edition to fill in what the audiobook omitted.

LibraryThing member TanyaTomato

As always with Sedaris I either love or hate a particular story in a collection. That will never stop me from listening to them again and again though.

LibraryThing member amyfaerie

I don't think this is Sedaris's strongest book . . . but it's still Sedaris, so it's worth reading.

LibraryThing member oncefuturequeen

This was one of my least favorite books by Dave Sedaris, however, I still enjoyed it immensely. There's something special about his autobiographical stuff, and knowing that this collection was pure fiction made it a little less enjoyable for me.

LibraryThing member piefuchs

His first and his best - definately worth the read.

LibraryThing member woodsathome

Like many reviewers I found the inclusion of short fiction somewhat jarring. I bought this book after reading Me Talk Pretty Someday, and I guess I was expecting more of the same. Enjoyable enough, just not what I was expecting

LibraryThing member readabook66

I had to suffer through some lousy stories to get to the essays. They were worth it.
July 2007

LibraryThing member bibliophile26

Not my favorite of his books; Me Talk Pretty One Day and Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim were much better.

LibraryThing member ConnieJo

I've read all of the other David Sedaris collections at this point, and I have to say this one is my least favorite. I read the essays in the back first, and I liked all of them, though not as well as some of the others I've read by him. Most of the book is composed of his short stories, which I

wound up not liking much at all. Some are really good ideas, and I appreciate them, but I just did not like reading most of them. There were one or two really good ones mixed in though, and of course they made me laugh, but I much prefer his later essays.

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LibraryThing member EmScape

The fictional stories that comprise most of this book are just odd. I didn't find myself enjoying

LibraryThing member jesssh

I didn't like it as much as his memoir books but most of it was still entirely entertaining. As with many other Sedaris books, I generally prefer the audio book version, as his delivery fits so well.

LibraryThing member Ardwick

Pleasant series of stories about exaggerated characters and others from David's life and family including his time in France and working as an elf at Maceys

LibraryThing member rampaginglibrarian

this book contains Santaland diaries if you've never read that you are really missing out--if you don't know David Sedaris you are really missing out--if you don't like David Sedaris i don't know what to say.

LibraryThing member ngeunit1

This book can be a bit of a grab bag as far as the quality of each individual story. Some, especially including the last one (StanaLand Diaries), are excellent, and some are a bit more hit or miss. Though for the most part David Sedaris keep them interesting will some interesting (though Dark)

humor. It can at times become a bit depressing and down, but there are still interesting aspects to just about every one of the stories in Barrel Fever.

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LibraryThing member kayceel

Collection of short stories (I didn't read them all, but thoroughly enjoyed "Glen's Homophobia Newsletter") and essays. Includes "Santaland Diaries," in which he recounts the Christmas he worked as an elf at Macy's Department store in New York. VERY entertaining!

LibraryThing member melydia

I came to the conclusion long ago that while I love Sedaris's autobiographical essays, I simply do not like his fiction. After reading this, I think perhaps it's because he gets a lot more mean and tragic in his fiction. Without reality to temper his cynicism, the humor goes far past dark and into

discomfort. That said, the memoir essays were great as usual.

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LibraryThing member wenestvedt

This is a collection of a few essays published elsewhere. I believe it contans the piece he wrote about being a Macy's Christmas elf, which is the sole reason -- and sufficient, thank you -- that I bought it. (The story still wrings tears of laughter from my eyes whenever I read it.) If you like

his particular tone, you'll love this book: it's a little less pitiless than he's been since he start appearing in Esquire and on NPR so often, so it's a simpler joy to read.

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