Review: The Bedwetter by Sarah Silverman

Title: The Bedwetter: Stories of Courage, Redemption, and Pee
Author: Sarah Silverman
Genre: Memoir, adult
Published: 2010
Source: Library

There isn't much of a summary to give here, just that it's a memoir of Sarah Silverman's life. It discusses her childhood, her road to becoming a comedian, life on the set of her show, and also... her chronic childhood bedwetting, of course.

My Thoughts: I'm a fan of Sarah Silverman and think she's pretty funny, but I was slightly disappointed with her book. While it was pretty entertaining at some points, I never laughed out loud or felt like I got to know her, two things I would expect from a comedian's memoir. Kathy Griffin's memoir, Official Book Club Selection, which I reviewed a while back, is the perfect example. I both laughed out loud on numerous occasions, and was happy to see Kathy getting more personal as well.

To me, it felt like this book was all about the shock factor more than anything else. It was pretty graphic and vulgar. I'm totally fine with these things, but only if it adds to the book and doesn't constitute the majority of the book. That said, if you're easily offended, don't read this book... but then, I'm guessing those that are easily offended aren't fans of hers to begin with. I also didn't like that most of the stories were quite short and felt more like snippets and partial stories to me. I would have liked more depth and detail, and it would have been nice if the book had been written in a more linear or coherent fashion.

On the positive side of things, I did enjoy some of the stories, and I did get to learn a bit about how Sarah began as a comic, and more information about her show. She delved a bit into her childhood which was interesting, but again, I would have liked to know more about her past and personal life - for instance, she didn't even bring up her relationship with Jimmy Kimmel. I also found it comical that she wrote a foreword, a midword, and an afterward and I like her ability to accept herself for who she is. Oh, and the cover... the cover is pretty damn funny.

If you like Sarah, give this one a go, but otherwise, read Kathy Griffin's or Chelsea Handler's memoirs - now those are hysterical.

My Rating: 3/5