“The best writer in the world told me that you can tell an interesting story about a boring person or a boring story about an interesting person, but you can’t tell a boring story about a boring person.
I’m not a huge fan of celebrity/comedy memoirs. Mostly because they violate that important rule. Many a comedian is hilarious and interesting now, but if they had a fairly typical upbringing, and if the way they write about it is somewhat matter-of-fact, there’s not a lot to be interested in.
Rainn Wilson had a very unusual life. I think he still does, but his childhood was unusual, as were his teenage years, his parents, his college, and so on. He’s definitely not a boring person.
And his story isn’t boring, either.
AND, he’s a good writer. He makes some really good jokes, usually at his own expense, throughout the book. Things are clear an organized even though the life story is chaotic and hard to follow, he does a great job laying things out in a way that makes sense and emphasizes what’s important, which keeps the book from becoming flat.
I think some readers are freaked out because of the stuff about the Baháâà faith, but don’t let that turn you away. I didn’t know anything about it, and its presentation in the book is pretty light until an appendix at the end, which you can just take or leave if it’s not to your taste.
This is a celebrity memoir that would be pretty damn good and interesting even if the celebrity writing it wasn’t famous. I think that’s going to be my new benchmark for these: Would I like this book if this person was completely not famous?
I did listen on audio, and I’d recommend it. “