Happy-Go-lucky

 

 

Happy-Go-Lucky by David Sedaris (2022 Little, Brown paperback 260pp)

First of all, I was suffering from Covid when I read most of this book so that may in no small manner affected the following opinions. I’m somewhat better now but its still taken me weeks to actually write this so I’ll be brief and to the point.

This may be the first book by Mr Sedaris which has somewhat disappointed me. This collection of essays and tales felt so familiar that I thought for second that I had started re-reading his previous work “Calypso” or something equally as unlikely. Late last year I had devoured his second volume of diary entries (“A Carnival of Snackery”) and I think quite a lot of the early part of this book is recycled and expanded from that book. Then we start on more tales of his family and their seaside property in the US – before and after its damaged by a hurricane. I don’t begrudge him writing about his family but it is getting a little tiresome to me now. Things improve when he discusses his ever-colourful father in his final days although it gets a little weird when he just about accuses the man of molesting himself and his sisters.

Tales of travel, hotels and shopping lighten the load somewhat but then he regales us about his life under Covid lock-downs and comes off sounding like a bitter old curmudgeon.

Not saying I didn’t laugh out load at some sections and he still can write brilliantly but, I don’t know, some of the magic was missing – maybe it was my Covid or his somewhat narrowed horizons during the period of writing. If you need a diversion its worth a read but doesn’t represent Sedaris at his best.