Paddle Your Own Canoe
One Man's Fundamentals for Delicious Living
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4.2 • 340 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
Parks and Recreation actor and Making It co-host Nick Offerman shares his humorous fulminations on life, manliness, meat, and much more in this New York Times bestseller.
Growing a perfect moustache, grilling red meat, wooing a woman—who better to deliver this tutelage than the always charming, always manly Nick Offerman, best known as Parks and Recreation’s Ron Swanson? Combining his trademark comic voice and very real expertise in woodworking—he runs his own woodshop—Paddle Your Own Canoe features tales from Offerman’s childhood in small-town Minooka, Illinois—“I grew up literally in the middle of a cornfield”—to his theater days in Chicago, beginnings as a carpenter/actor and the hilarious and magnificent seduction of his now-wife Megan Mullally. It also offers hard-bitten battle strategies in the arenas of manliness, love, style, religion, woodworking, and outdoor recreation, among many other savory entrees.
A mix of amusing anecdotes, opinionated lessons and rants, sprinkled with offbeat gaiety, Paddle Your Own Canoe will not only tickle readers pink but may also rouse them to put down their smart phones, study a few sycamore leaves, and maybe even hand craft (and paddle) their own canoes.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In his first book, Offerman best known for his popular character Ron Swanson on NBC's Parks and Recreation opens up about his life and the values that he says have brought him prosperity and success. Each chapter of the memoir is accompanied with an essay outlining a relevant principle Offerman claims may lead the reader to a better life. The veracity of some of his statements may be called into question vegans will bristle at his position on meat ("eating red meat gives one character") and Millennials will not appreciate his dismissive attitude towards GPS devices and smartphones but Offerman openly admits on the first page that what works for him may not be everyone's glass of scotch. Whether or not the reader considers his advice worth following, it is thought-provoking, profane, and frequently hilarious, although the book sometimes detours into recommendations of well-known movies and plays; Parks and Rec fans may be disappointed at the small amount of material about the show, but getting to know Offerman through his stumbling courtship with Megan Mullally and Kabuki theater training is well worth the price of admission.
Customer Reviews
See AllDave Barry Like
I used to read Dave Barry, a comedic writer whose style was very similar to Offermans, straightforward with interesting analogies I would have never have thought of.
The book is delightful and has a readable rhythm that gets changed up ever so often so as not to be bored or mired in predictability.
The book was longer than expected which was a good thing, especially the parts when he has self realizations.
Pick it up it will open your world.
It is what it is
I really enjoyed the book and found it insightful and funny. If you have no idea who Nick Offerman is or what's he's about you may want to look into it before you read the book or write a poor review cause you did not agree with the authors philosophy on life in a book which he clearly states he is going to rant about life
Wish I would have read the sample.
It's about a guy who had all the ingredients to become a man, but LA just made another hippy with a mustache. Wish I could get my money back.