Courage, Redemption, and Pee

Day 136 of the "What are you reading, and why?" project, and Mary is reading The Bedwetter by Sarah Silverman, who is very, very funny. The subtitle is Stories of Courage, Redemption, and Pee, and I am a little afraid to read it...in case I laugh so hard I pee.

A couple days ago, Nene commented that I was "erudite and cerebral." I bet he doesn't think so now.

Here is an example of Silverman's book marketing, at Amazon:

Dear Reader:

My name is Sarah Silverman. I was once primarily known for saying the word "poop" and getting paid above market rates for it. But those days are over, because I am now going to be known for having written a book. Why did I write a book, you might wonder? Because it just seemed like the right time to be getting into the publishing industry.

I'm kidding. Publishing is rotting like an abandoned possum carcass on the shoulder of I-95. I know that for a fact, because shortly after my book deal was announced, I kept hearing people lament the imminent demise of literature. These days there is only one reason to write a book: to be taken seriously. And that is exactly what is about to happen to me. I'm an author now! Like Ernest Hemingway and Fyodor Dostoevsky!

When I was asked to provide text for an author page, I decided to approach it in a scholarly manner, because that's what authors do. I looked to other author pages for inspiration, and I learned so much. For example, while Hemingway and Dostoevsky do not have their own author pages on Amazon.com, Paris Hilton does.

See, doesn't that want to make you read the book? And Sarah Silverman does have her own Author Page. Interesting to learn that she struggled with depression, in addition to the bedwetting thing. Funny people are so often funny with sadness in the background.

As the summer reading catalogue continues, I'll mention some books people are reading now that other people were reading earlier:

Ron--Contested Will: Who Wrote Shakespeare? by James S. Shapiro

David--Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

Judy--The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker

Melissa--A Widow for One Year by John Irving

Lisa--Last Night in Twisted River, also by John Irving

I'm pretty sure those books have some courage, redemption, and pee in them, too.