Holidays on Ice
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3.8 • 299 Ratings
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- $8.99
Publisher Description
David Sedaris's beloved holiday collection is new again with six more pieces, including a never before published story. Along with such favoritesas the diaries of a Macy's elf and the annals of two very competitive families, are Sedaris's tales of tardy trick-or-treaters ("Us and Them"); the difficulties of explaining the Easter Bunny to the French ("Jesus Shaves"); what to do when you've been locked out in a snowstorm ("Let It Snow"); the puzzling Christmas traditions of other nations ("Six to Eight Black Men"); what Halloween at the medical examiner's looks like ("The Monster Mash"); and a barnyard secret Santa scheme gone awry ("Cow and Turkey").
No matter what your favorite holiday, you won't want to miss celebrating it with the author who has been called "one of the funniest writers alive" (Economist).
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Leave it to David Sedaris to revel in the quirkier (and less savory) sides of the Christmas season. This slim anthology of new and republished holiday-themed stories by America’s beloved satirist includes the legendary “The SantaLand Diaries,” a hilariously deadpan account of Sedaris’ disastrous stint as a department store elf. Elsewhere, he affectionately satirizes humblebrag Christmas letters and haphazard elementary-school pageants, before upping the absurdity with a surreal short story about dueling neighbors trying to outdo each other’s holiday spirit. Sedaris zeroes in on real life’s weirdness, grabs it tight, and gleefully twists ’til we can’t stop laughing.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
FOR THOSE DREADING THE HOLIDAY SEASON, BESTSELLER SEDARIS (WHEN YOU ARE ENGULFED IN FLAMES) MAKES LIFE A LITTLE EASIER WITH THIS RE-RELEASE OF HIS UPROARIOUS ESSAY COLLECTION, NEWLY EXPANDED FROM THE ORIGINAL 1997 EDITION. SEDARIS GETS THE MOST MILEAGE OUT OF CHRISTMAS, FROM HIS STINT AS A MACY\x81FS ELF IN \x81GSANTALAND DIARIES,\x81H TO COMPARING AMERICAN AND DUTCH HOLIDAY TRADITIONS IN \x81GSIX TO EIGHT BLACK MEN.\x81H IN \x81GJESUS SHAVES,\x81H SEDARIS RECALLS A FRENCH CLASS IN WHICH STUDENTS TRY TO EXPLAIN TO EACH OTHER, IN BROKEN FRENCH, THE CONCEPT OF EASTER: \x81GON THE EASTER WE BE SAD BECAUSE SOMEBODY MAKES JESUS DEAD TODAY.\x81H THIS UPDATED VERSION INCLUDES \x81GTHE MONSTER MASH,\x81H POACHED FROM WHEN YOU ARE ENGULFED, IN WHICH SEDARIS SPENDS HALLOWEEN AT THE MORGUE; AND \x81GTHE COW AND THE TURKEY,\x81H A NEW STORY FEATURING THE SECRET SANTA WOES OF BARNYARD ANIMALS. LONGTIME FANS WILL BE HAPPY TO HAVE ALL SEDARIS'S HOLIDAY STORIES IN ONE VOLUME, AND THOSE WHO'VE MANAGED TO MISS THE LITERARY FUNNY-MAN COULDN'T GET A BETTER GIFT.
Customer Reviews
Always fun
Another fantastic blend of humor and memoir from David Sedaris. He has such a pleasant ability to tell life's stories in such a unique way, that you never get tired of reading them. In addition to his personal ordeals, he has a sprinkling of fictional holiday themed stories that do not fail to tickle. If this is your first Sedaris book, I think you will become a fast fan. I would recommend reading "When You Are Engulfed In Flames" as a follow-up to truly appreciate Davids gift of sharing life's lessons and inescapable realities.
Although they all are truly great stories, my personal favorite stories in this book are: Six to Eight Black Men, Christmas Means Giving and The Cow and the Turkey.
Holiday on ice
Funny stories!
Repeats
I am a huge David Sedaris fan. I have read most of his books, this being the last one to go. While there were some fresh stories within, at least half are told in his other works. I ended up skipping half of the book.