MAY 2011 - AudioFile
Comedian Patton Oswalt's book about the life of a comic is composed of bio-bits mixed with comedy routines that go on way too long. Fans of Oswalt's stand-up or his recurring role on “The King of Queens” will enjoy the work, though little of it is memorable. The title comes from the notion that all boys identify with one of three basic movie formulas: zombie flicks, stories in which Earth is a wasteland, or stories in which the hero leaves Earth in a spaceship. It's not a real deep premise. Oswalt, with slight assists from musician Michael Penn and R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe, does an amazing job delivering his work. He performs with a skill not often found when authors perform their own work. It’s too bad the material sounds like it was thrown together from old sketches. M.S. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine
From the Publisher
"Patton Oswalt...is one of those rare performers whose material translates into any medium without losing its sharpnessincluding, for the first time, print. . . . It is well worth it to join him on his odyssey."Washington Post
“Sharp storytelling and sardonic wit.... Oswalt populates these stories with expertly drawn characters, and infuses them with a limitless supply of cultural references and deft turns of phrase.” —Boston Globe
“A thoughtful, hilarious, quasi-memoir that puts the standard-issue comedy-routine-in-book-form to shame.” —SPIN
“A thoughtful, hilarious, quasi-memoir that puts the standard-issue comedy-routine-in-book-form to shame.” —SPIN
“Patton Oswalt is one of those rare performers whose material translates into any medium without losing its sharpness—including, for the first time, print.... It is well worth it to join him on his odyssey.” —Washington Post
"A very funny book by the Funniest Man Alive." GQ
AintItCoolNews.com
"Funny and occasionally heartbreaking . . . a cerebral and somewhat surreal tour through the thought processes of Patton Oswalt. It is an inspired and unique work, operating well outside the realm of the disposable comedy memoir."
GQ
"[A] very funny book by the Funniest Man Alive."
Dave Eggers
Fans of Patton Oswalt’s standup comedy have always known he was a born writer at heart, and now here’s the proof. This is a surprisingly affecting, sincere and daresay vulnerable collection of essays, all keenly observed, always very funny.
Joss Whedon
Funny, thoughtful stuff. Patton alternates the spit-take hilarity of a great stand-up with the quiet, mordant insight that clearly helped make him one. Which is amazing, ‘cause he’s an idiot.
Conan O'Brien
Patton Oswalt is a brilliant rarity; a relentlessly creative and original comic who is also a superb writer. If you don’t buy this book you are a fool and I will, I swear, fight you.
Judd Apatow
Further proof that Patton Oswalt is way funnier than I am, which is either high praise or an insult. Your call.
Library Journal
Readers expecting sf might find themselves lost in space with this latest effort from author-cum-actor-cum-comedian Oswalt (The Brannock Doom). His work defies the conventional notion of fiction with a potpourri of memoirs, script notes, poems, comic strips, a wine list, whimsical greeting cards, American history, and diary entries. In fact, it's nothing short of a postmodern update of Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. There's no connection between chapters, yet parallels can be drawn among the miscellany. For example, the act of cheating a theater manager by a teenager in a chapter titled "Ticket Booth" is echoed in a later chapter titled "The Victory Tour" about an agent doing the same to one of his clients. Readers will find Oswalt's narrative innovative and humorous, one laced with clever comments on life. VERDICT Those looking for a coherent story may not find this their cup of tea. For more adventurous minds, Margo Channing's quote from the film All About Eve may be applied here: "Fasten your seatbelt; it's going to be a bumpy night." But what a ride!—Victor Or, Surrey P.L. & North Vancouver City Lib., B.C.
MAY 2011 - AudioFile
Comedian Patton Oswalt's book about the life of a comic is composed of bio-bits mixed with comedy routines that go on way too long. Fans of Oswalt's stand-up or his recurring role on “The King of Queens” will enjoy the work, though little of it is memorable. The title comes from the notion that all boys identify with one of three basic movie formulas: zombie flicks, stories in which Earth is a wasteland, or stories in which the hero leaves Earth in a spaceship. It's not a real deep premise. Oswalt, with slight assists from musician Michael Penn and R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe, does an amazing job delivering his work. He performs with a skill not often found when authors perform their own work. It’s too bad the material sounds like it was thrown together from old sketches. M.S. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine