HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

Loading...

Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls

by David Sedaris

Other authors: See the other authors section.

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
3,4631603,670 (3.71)114
From the perils of French dentistry to the eating habits of the Australian kookaburra, from the squat-style toilets of Beijing to the particular wilderness of a North Carolina Costco, we learn about the absurdity and delight of a curious traveler's experiences. Whether railing against the habits of litterers in the English countryside or marveling over a disembodied human arm in a taxidermist's shop, Sedaris takes us on side-splitting adventures that are not to be forgotten.… (more)
Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

» See also 114 mentions

English (159)  German (1)  All languages (160)
Showing 1-5 of 159 (next | show all)
After a ripping introduction to the work of David Sedaris in 2021 via Calypso, his work has been hit and miss since then. Naked was a 2 star read, Me Talk Pretty One Day a 3 star read and Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim earning a mere 2 stars despite the catchy title.

I decided at the end of 2021 to put the brakes on my Sedaris tear for a while, knowing I'd probably come back to his oeuvre at some stage in the future.

Years later and enough time has passed that I now miss listening to a good Sedaris story told in his unmistakable lilting voice with his white gay privilege proudly on display. So it was, that I picked up Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris published in 2013.

Immediately better than the last 3 books from him I've read, I was soon chuckling to myself and enjoying his inimitable style of storytelling. Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris is a return to his droll sense of humour and genuine interest in other people that kept me engaged in Calypso.

Sedaris has previously written about health care in America and France and their differences, although I never tire of his content around dentists. Chapter 2 is entitled Dentists Without Borders and the reference to his 'good time teeth' and his doorbell response to being asked if he was okay was easily my favourite story in the collection.

The unflattering accounts that had me frowning with budding disapproval in Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim were thankfully absent here. This collection was more self deprecating and even included a few live recordings with audience laughter and applause convincing me I'd also enjoy seeing the author live if he plans another tour Down Under.

While I live in hope, part of me wonders if all of Sedaris' stories and anecdotes are true - did he really holiday in a nudist camp or have that strange encounter at the taxidermist shop? - or are they cleverly constructed fiction presented by a humourist as fact for our entertainment or his amusement?

Either way, I've found myself firmly back onboard the David Sedaris train and there are still plenty of collections and books to discover. What should I read next? ( )
  Carpe_Librum | Feb 22, 2024 |
I have a read a number of David Sedaris’s collected essay books and this one measures up to them all, with the added bonus of a series of vignettes, or fictional monologues, interspersed. The essays themselves contain his usual wacky, witty, wry observations about ordinary things he encounters in life, sometimes a metaphor for the slings and arrows of his life, and there were many. He remains at his best in these essays, his own voice shining through, using wit to lighten the heavy burdens of his search for himself, for love, for a functional family, and redemption; to reveal his own insecurities about his body and his health. ( )
  bschweiger | Feb 4, 2024 |
David is funny and a good story teller with a dry wit. Fun collection of stories and quips from his life. ( )
  travisriddle | Dec 25, 2023 |
More like a 2 1/2 for me. His writing is probably at the end of the line for me. I just don't find him nearly as funny as I used too. ( )
  cdaley | Nov 2, 2023 |
I listened to the audiobook version narrated by Sedaris himself. He is a good storyteller, the stories were engaging and mostly very funny. They were not extremely memorable, but I don't think that is a problem with this type of writing. I enjoyed the majority of the book and had quite a few moments where I had to laugh out loud while wearing my headphones, which must be strange to watch. It wasn't all equally funny, but I suppose getting teary eyed with laughter for hours on end must be tiring. ( )
  bramboomen | Oct 18, 2023 |
Showing 1-5 of 159 (next | show all)
We know this sort of thing won’t fix the economy, but for the moment, it’ll fix us.
 

» Add other authors

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
David Sedarisprimary authorall editionscalculated
Bird, AndrewMusicsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Burns, EmilyCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
Dedication
To my sister Amy
First words
One thing that puzzled me during the American healthcare debate was all the talk about socialized medicine and how ineffective it's supposed to be.
Quotations
I was in London during the inauguration and watched the ceremony on the BBC, which reminded me every three seconds that Barack Obama was black and would become America's first black president. At first I thought that this was for blind people, a little reminder in case they forgot. Then it became laughable: Barack Obama, who is black, is arriving now with his black wife and two black children, a group that will form America's first black First Family, which is to say, the first group of blacks elected to the White House, which is white and not black like them. (From "Obama!!!!!")
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (2)

From the perils of French dentistry to the eating habits of the Australian kookaburra, from the squat-style toilets of Beijing to the particular wilderness of a North Carolina Costco, we learn about the absurdity and delight of a curious traveler's experiences. Whether railing against the habits of litterers in the English countryside or marveling over a disembodied human arm in a taxidermist's shop, Sedaris takes us on side-splitting adventures that are not to be forgotten.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (3.71)
0.5 1
1 9
1.5
2 65
2.5 15
3 265
3.5 71
4 389
4.5 24
5 178

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 202,657,297 books! | Top bar: Always visible