The Land and its People
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Little, Brown Book Group
Publishing:3rd Jun '27
£9.99
This title is due to be published on 3rd June, and will be despatched as soon as possible.
'Very little makes me laugh. I would say the one exception is anything by David Sedaris' GRAHAM NORTON
'Sedaris is the God of the comic essay... Sedaris' only rule: be funny or perish' LENA DUNHAM
In The Land and its People, his first new collection since Happy-Go-Lucky, David Sedaris reflects on what it means to be a foreigner, a brother, a lifelong friend. He tries on the role of carer after his boyfriend Hugh's hip-replacement surgery, and both succeeds and fails. He buys his sister a cape and discusses his brother with a jaded Duolingo bot. He walks dozens of miles with his friend Dawn and challenges her to eat a truck tire. Ever adding to his list of 'Countries I Have Been To', he rides a horse named Tequila in Guatemala, buys a bespoke priest's cassock in Vatican City, and goes on safari in Kenya without taking a single photo.
There is sadness here - scrolling through his address book, he realizes how many dear friends are now deceased - but also delight: he revels in authors' biographies, the malapropism that becomes a decades-long inside joke, and pair of well-made cotton underpants. He is bitten by a dog. A train passenger vomits in his face. A woman on the street late at night either sexually harasses him or doesn't. Look how hard it is to be alive!
Throughout these essays - at once acerbic and tender, playful and profound - Sedaris shows how much there is to marvel at when you keep your head up and your eyes open, observing with warmth and curiosity this fascinating human species and the lands we inhabit.
'Sedaris is the premier observer of our world and its weirdness' ADAM KAY
'Wonderful' IAN McKELLEN
'Unquestionably the king of comic writing' HADLEY FREEMAN
'The funniest writer alive today' JONATHAN ROSS
Most of the 28 essays in this collection are new, so clear your calendar and devote at least a day, if not a weekend, to savoring the inimitable Sedaris as he reflects on his long relationship with his partner Hugh, his indulgences (both monetary and cerebral) and the frailties of his beloved family members. Those who have followed along with the author's oeuvre (14 books, now) will appreciate the grace tempering his ever-sharp wit * Los Angeles Times *
Sedaris takes on the indignities and freedoms of aging - from competitive infirmity to care taking to underpants - with his characteristic élan. You'll find familiar faces and Sedaris's trademark off-kilter humor, as well as a poignant tenderness * New York Times Book Review *
His latest collection is replete with the wry wit, cringey awkwardness and earnest - but flawed - stabs at self-improvement * NPR *
A funny and heartfelt essay collection on friendship, family, and aging....Sedaris's wit and keen awareness of life's absurdities are on full display. These essays are among the best of his career * Publishers Weekly, starred review *
With his laconic delivery, Sedaris lures the reader into believing that the topic under discussion might be unremarkable, a you-and-me-in-this-together moment. But then, given Sedaris' worldview and world weariness, eventually a knotty twist or spicy dash is delivered with the realization that Sedaris' land is unparalleled, and its people are peerless. Sedaris fans will be queuing for this, craving new expressions of his signature wit and frankness * Booklist *
It's classic Sedaris: sharp, shameless, and strangely tender * Oprah Daily *
In his 14th collection, our premier comic essayist does what he does best...a welcome return to form for the much-awarded and much-loved humorist... These essays find the author back to thinking about his signature material... all in his signature key of delightfully petty and wonderfully peevish...Sedaris remains a national treasure * Kirkus, starred review *
A new David Sedaris collection is a publishing event * Literary Hub *
ISBN: 9780349144696
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
272 pages