Holidays on Ice: With Six New Stories

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The first short story/essay is one of the funniest I've ever read, then they get blacker and blacker - but still very funny. However, as a bright side to my mother’s fickle mental state, she was brilliant and often savagely funny when lucid. I'm more likely to say, "You must be exhausted," or "I know a lot of people who would kill for that little waistline of your.

I was at the Magic Window for fifteen minutes before a man approached me and said, "You look so fucking stupid. He has some funny premises, like a fake holiday letter and a game of benevolent brinksmanship between wealthy neighbors. They closed the meeting saying, "I want you to remember that even if you are assigned Photo Elf on a busy weekend, YOU ARE NOT SANTA'S SLAVE. If you ever held an undignified job, this is somehow your story - even if you never (pardon the pun) stooped so low as to play an elf. Most of the managers are former elves who have worked their way up the candy-cane ladder but retain vivid memories of their days in uniform.They don’t actually care about being a Santa elf, they don’t get into it like the other embarrassing excited holiday elves do. I thought I'd better read it now during the holidays so I wouldn't have to wait another year to get to it--I can never watch Christmas movies or read holiday stories when it's not Christmas; it's depressing.

I have never read a David Sedaris book before but I understand him to be a very popular comedian and I usually enjoy very popular comedians.Its still pretty funny in many places, and does offer the occasional pause for reflection but its patchy. The opinions written in my original review below still stand, but I can't imagine a time when I won't have this on audio while I decorate . I don't know that I could look someone in the eye and exclaim, "Oh, my goodness, I think I see Santa! On the other hand, the fictitious Jesus shaves, left me unmoved, barely remembering the point of the story. And most importantly, David Sedaris’ odd and unique voice is a vital part of his work — his pieces are written to be performed, not read.

Sedaris's version of the holidays is a comfort in a world saturated with sentimentality during Christmas. However, I think for me it is because this is a "collection" of assorted stories on a theme, rather than a whole book, which left me wishing I'd started with one of his more complete audiobooks. It's beautiful, a real wonderland, with ten thousand sparkling lights, false snow, train sets, bridges, decorated trees, mechanical penguins and bears, and really tall candy canes. Of his other stories, there is really only one that is mildly memorable; the rest rely heavily on shock value which is not something that can successfully stand on its own in my opinion. Along with the dragging, carrying, yanking, pulling, swearing and crying that goes with getting my hoard from the basement to the various areas of my house also comes the annual re-listen to my Darling David telling me tales of Christmases past.I told Riley that … Santa was going to take away his TV and all his electrical appliances and leave him in the dark. He died long before the spin cycle, which is, I suppose, the only blessing to be had in this entire ugly episode. While several deal with Xmas, there’s one for Thanksgiving, one for Easter, and a couple for Halloween (as well as one general winter piece). His description of becoming a Christmas Elf at Macy's is a true guilty pleasure; scathingly unkind and screamingly funny. By continuing to use this site, you agree with the use of cookies in accordance with our linked policies below.

I think Sedaris thought he was being clever with these stories but really they were just sad and unfunny. If you don't love Sedaris you may not enjoy the rest of the collection Santaland by far outshines the rest. I understand that these stories have previously been published except for one, so I can see how that would be disappointing for those who wanted more original stories to read.When I was given a copy of HOLIDAYS ON ICE I knew what I was about to get into, so it sat on my shelves for a few months. And now I feel like I’ve got to find something else to bring whatever little festive cheer I had this year back. I might be distracted by their enthusiasm and Victoria Buchannon would lay her hand over mine and tell me that I'd better get used to being the center of attention. As for the "Front row centre with Thaddaeus whoever", I failed to see the point - I'm not sure that sneering at a kiddies' nativity play is in itself hilarious, and if it was meant to be serious, what was the author expecting - the RSC?