archive

Portlandia

A Guide for Visitors

In a travel guide format similar to those by Fodor's or Lonely Planet, this companion to the quirky hit comedy show on IFC describes the humorous stores, restaurants and other landmarks as well as the unique residents who populate the city.

News and Reviews

• New In Paperback Nov. 12-18

Fiction Ruined My Family

A deeply funny and bittersweet memoir of having grown up in an eccentric family of faded wealth and gentility in which the father's failed dreams of being a writer put the family in the poor-house, drove the mother to weepy alcoholism and provided author Jeanne Darst with a highly unusual approach to life — and a wicked sense of humor.

News and Reviews

• New In Paperback Nov. 5-11

Man Seeks God

My Flirtations With the Divine

After a health scare, an atheist travels the world searching for an experience of the divine, from meditating with Tibetan lamas in Nepal and unblocking his chi in China, to studying the Kabbalah in Israel.

News and Reviews

• New In Paperback Nov. 5-11
• 'Man Seeks God,' Finds Wayne Of Staten Island

One for the Books

A leading humorist and author of the bestselling Closing Time presents an offbeat analysis of his own eccentric reading style to explain why he avoids acclaimed books, reads several things simultaneously and refuses to lend out his books.

News and Reviews

• Reading 125 Titles A Year? That's 'One For The Books'

Bossypants

The breakout star of Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock gives a humorous account of her life, as well as behind-the-scenes stories from her hit shows.NPR Bestseller

News and Reviews

• Tina Fey: '30 Rock' Star And Creator Moves On
• New In Paperback Jan. 9 - 15
• Tina Fey On Life, Motherhood, Writing And Comedy

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)

The writer and actor best known for her role on The Office shares observations on everything from favorite male archetypes and her hatred of dieting to her relationship with her mother and the haphazard creative process of The Office's writers' room.NPR Bestseller

News and Reviews

• New In Paperback Sept. 17-23
• Mindy Kaling On Diets, High School And Other American Pastimes

How To Be A Woman

Piecing together common-sense observations with scenes from her own life, a major media personality in the U.K. sheds new light on feminism, discussing the reasons why female rights and empowerment are essential issues for both women and society itself.NPR Bestseller

News and Reviews

• From Puberty To Pop Culture: What It Means 'To Be A Woman'
• Not A Feminist? Caitlin Moran Asks, Why Not?
• Laughing Matters: Five Funny Books With Substance

F In Exams

The Very Best Totally Wrong Test Answers

Humor writer Richard Benson collects hilariously wrong test answers.NPR Bestseller

News and Reviews

• NPR Bestsellers: Paperback Nonfiction, Week Of Aug. 4, 2011

How To Be Black

Drawn from more than 30 years of living and redefining blackness, an editor at The Onion presents this tongue-in-cheek guide to being black that pokes fun at the so-called experts, purists and racists who think they know what black people believe, do, stand for and like.

News and Reviews

• Talking About What It Means 'To Be Black'
• Baratunde Thurston Explains 'How To Be Black'
• Baratunde Thurston Explains 'How To Be Black'

We Killed

The Rise of Women in American Comedy

An oral history tracing the careers and achievements of comediennes from the past half century challenges opinions about why women cannot be effective comedic entertainers and includes coverage of celebrities ranging from Joan Rivers and Lily Tomlin to Mary Tyler Moore and Tina Fey.

News and Reviews

• 'We Killed': Women In Comedy, From Stand-Ups To Sitcoms

Abe Lincoln's Dream

While on a tour of the White House, a schoolgirl finds herself in the Lincoln bedroom, face-to-face with the great president's ghost. Together they set off across the country to answer Lincoln's concerns about the nation.

News and Reviews

• In A 'Dream,' Lincoln Checks In On State Of The Union

America Again

Re-Becoming The Greatness We Never Weren't

The political satirist, comedian and host of The Colbert Report puts his signature humorous spin on health care, the economy and food, promising that this book will single-handedly fix an America that is broken and has lost its way.NPR Bestseller

News and Reviews

• Colbert: 'Re-Becoming' The Nation We Always Were

The Dangerous Animals Club

The celebrated character actor presents a spiritually inquisitive collection of personal reflections that explores life's great mysteries and the art of stagecraft during encounters with famous film directors, ghosts, pygmy hippos and more.

News and Reviews

• Tobolowsky: An Actor's Life 'Low On The Totem Pole'
• An Invitation To Join 'The Dangerous Animals Club'

Seriously ... I'm Kidding

The stand-up comedian, television host, bestselling author and actress candidly discusses her personal life and professional career and describes what it was like to become a judge on American Idol.NPR Bestseller

News and Reviews

• New In Paperback Oct. 1-7
• This Time, Ellen DeGeneres Is 'Seriously' Kidding

That Is All

Jon Hodgman invents trivia and facts about everything from the occupations of 700 mole men to the anticipated end of human history in 2012.

News and Reviews

• New In Paperback Oct. 1-7
• John Hodgman And Robert Siegel Consider 'All' Things, Some Of Them Rather Dubious

Sleepwalk With Me

And Other Painfully True Stories

The comedian offers a humorous memoir about first love, denial, sleepwalking, and the perils and pitfalls of being himself.

News and Reviews

• New In Paperback Sept. 10-16
• Mike Birbiglia, 'Sleepwalk'-ing On The Big Screen
• Spending The Night With Sleepwalker Mike Birbiglia

I Hate Everyone... Starting With Me

The comedienne humorously lashes out at the people, places, and things she loathes, including ugly children, dating rituals, First Ladies, funerals, hypocrites, overrated historical figures, Hollywood, and lousy restaurants.

News and Reviews

• Joan Rivers Hates You, Herself and Everyone Else
• Joan Rivers Hates You, Herself And Everyone Else
• Joan Rivers Hates You, Herself And Everyone Else

I Could Pee On This

And Other Poems By Cats

Francesco Marciuliano, author of the comic strip Sally Forth, gives voice to the thoughts and feelings of cats in this collection of poems attributed to felines.NPR Bestseller

News and Reviews

• A Cartoon Tribute To Cats, And The Poets Who Loved Them

Go the F- - - to Sleep

A bedtime book for adults portrays the trials and tribulations of a parent whose little angel just won't nod off.NPR Bestseller

News and Reviews

• New Children's Book For Adults: 'Go The [Expletive] To Sleep'