This is Sedaris at his most exposed. Each of his flaws and character defects (vanity, snobbishness, self-involvement, self-loathing, and so on) are on display, paraded in a series of short essays on topics that trend toward the serious. As usual, many of the essays involve his family members. Sister Lisa makes an appearance as a heroic figure in Dinah, the Christmas Whore, and his quick-witted and sharp-tongued mother Sharon figures prominently throughout. ( )

As with all of Sedaris's books, this is a collection of autobiographical essays, mostly humorous. To be honest, this wasn't one of his better books. A lot of the stories felt simply too long and drawn out, as if they could have been split into two stories about two different things. I should also note that the stories are more sequential, so that things make the most sense when read in the order they are presented in the book. This wasn't a bad book, to be sure; I laughed in quite a few places. It just isn't as strong a set of tales as those found in his other books. Recommended for Sedaris fans, but if you're new to this author, you'd probably be better off trying out something else. ( )

In this collection of autobiographical short stories David Sedaris gives us a glimpse into his life as a boy and a young man starting out in the world of work. They are not in any chronological order, and can jump back and forth in time, but one thing they have in common is that they are all very funny, some hilarious. Yet they are not flippant nor slight in content, and underlying the humour one cannot miss the occasional anguish of a young man aware of his own shortcomings; for Sedaris writes self-effacingly and with candour, and his honesty only warms us to him.

Naked is a very enjoyable read, and at times very moving as hidden behind the humour, Sedairs opens himself up just as the title suggests. ( )

Very funny ( )

The mixure of outrageous description and insight with the wacky nature of life viewed through an off-kilter perspective make this essays enormously entertaining. Some of them are bleak and poignant, but mostly they offer dark, sardonic humor brimming over because of the crazy nature of humanity. Make sure you can laugh out loud where-ever you read this. ( )