Me Talk Pretty One Day
No, David Sedaris is probably not the "funniest writer in North America" as an enthused critic claims in the paperback edition of Me Talk Pretty One Day. But in this collection of essays, the author’s subtle humor brings to life what otherwise would be common everyday events. Readers can identify themselves with quite a few of them.
Sedaris’s stories in Me Talk Pretty One Day basically follow his adolescent and adult experiences in North Carolina, New York and Paris, but only two are related to the unusual title. A number of his stories have to do with his early home life and his father, who continually had important advice for his six children, all of whom "shared absolutely none of his interests."
So it was against his father’s wishes that David signed up for art classes in college. He and his close friends used drugs to help them come up with new artistic creations, most of which were too abstract to become acceptable. He later gave up drugs and moved to New York to do odd jobs. But most of his adult life was spent in France with his boyfriend Hugh.
In France David had two major problems: using or understanding the new language; and accepting himself as an American in the eyes of French people. Possibly this insecurity influenced his essay on fantasies. But David went beyond Walter Mitty in these illusions. As Mr. Science, he quickly cured cancer and AIDS, and then he invented "a pill that will allow you to drink seawater." In his next fantasy, he was a heavyweight boxer who was out to win the world championship. And last, he fantasizes himself having sex with the President. He was immediately found guilty, but later became rich and famous for the book he wrote about it.
David Sedaris enjoys informing his readers on the latest health studies, such as one which proves that "people who wear socks to bed are likely to live five hours longer than the rest of us."
Me Talk Pretty One Day was first published in 2000.