Calypso

David Sedaris is the author of twelve previous books, including, most recently, A Carnival of Snackery, The Best of Me, and Calypso. He is a regular contributor to the New Yorker and BBC Radio 4. In 2019, he was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He is the recipient of the Thurber Prize for American Humor, the Jonathan Swift Prize for Satire and Humor, and the Terry Southern Prize for Humor.

"This book allows usto observe not just the nimble-mouthed elf of Sedaris's previous work, but aman in his seventh decade expunging his darker secrets and contemplatingmortality...The brilliance of David Sedaris's writing is that his very essence,his aura, seeps through the pages of his books like an intoxicating cloud,mesmerizing us so that his logic becomes ours...The geeks really do inherit theearth."—Alan Cumming,New York Times Book Review
"The king of the humorous essay returns with abrand-new collection -- his first in five years. Sedaris fans will find plentyof familiar delights: His misanthropic charms and wry wit are as delightful asever, even if some of the subject matter has changed. From his new vacationhome on the coast of North Carolina, he writes about the concerns of health andaging, treating us to a story about the persnickety doctor who refused to lethim keep a noncancerous tumor that he'd planned to feed to a snapping turtleonce removed. We can only assume that the audiobook version ofCalypsowill bethe perfect travel companion during road trips and getaways this spring andbeyond."—Maris Kreizman,New York Magazine
"Age and family occupy beloved humoristSedaris's latest collection of essays. His observations feel sharper and oftendarker than in previous collections, as he ponders the inevitable breakdown ofthe human body, the shame attendant with illness and age, the nature ofaddiction, and the eccentricities of his family. Though middle age may havemade his shades of gray blacker, the wit and incisiveness that make Sedarismuch-adored remain."—Lauren Hubbard,Harper's Bazaar
"Killer...Sedaris is practically his own genre now...Whetherit's a compulsion or a decision, Sedaris isn't holding back anymore."—Rachel Manteuffel,The Washington Post
"Honest, reflective, and even tender...Eloquent and silly, Sedaris' collection could probably find unshakable life even in the dust kitties under the bed...He gets you laughing even as he gently turns you toward the darkness we all must face."—Caroline Leavitt, San Francisco Chronicle
"David Sedaris's new essay collection is the sharpest retort to anyone who thinks they know what our favorite curmudgeonly humorist will be up to next. His charming observational humor is still the engine, but there's nothing frivolous about it. In the wake of his sister's suicide, Sedaris grapples poignantly and satisfyingly (and yes, often hilariously) with death, the aging body, and just how far the bonds of family can stretch."—Alex Postman, Conde Nast Traveler
"David Sedaris's biggest strength as an essayist and a humorist lies in his remarkable power of observation, of detecting the humor and pathos is the everyday conversations most of us don't register. His attention and wit are as incisive as ever, but Sedaris brings a stronger sense of self to the pages ofCalypso...It's both warmer and bleaker than any Sedaris that's come before."—Laura Adamczyk and Caitlin Penzeymoog,AV Club
"If there's one thing you can count on in life,it's Sedaris to leave you giggling on the beach in both humor and horror. Hislatest collection of stories is a bit more serious than his previous, but evenwhen the Sedaris clan is at its worst, the humorist reveals their antics withhis characteristic wit in a way that manages to both soften and sharpen thedark truths behind the stories he tells."—Allison McNearney,The Daily Beast
"Sedaris is widely considered is widely considered America's leading humorist, and his new bookCalypsodoes nothing but burnish that reputation."—Nic Brown,Garden & Gun
"Laugh-out-loud funny, true and introspective."—Holly Silva,St Louis Post-Dispatch
"With this tenthbook, Sedaris demonstrates yet again what makes him the best American humoristwriting today: a remarkable ability to combine the personal with the political,the mundane with the profane, slime with sublime, and hilarity with heart."—Heller McAlpin,NPR
"The beauty of David Sedaris's personality-and whatkeeps his readers coming back for best-selling book after best-selling book-is hisunwavering dedication to a helter-skelter train of thought...Calypsois his most personal and open book yet, shedding light onhis late sister's struggle with mental health, his mother's addiction, and hisown experiences with the legalization of gay marriage, but it still findsplenty of room for laughs."—Seija Rankin,Entertainment Weekly
"Calypsois the most family-centered of his books yet and, although much of it is very funny, it's also his most melancholy as it addresses aging and loss...it ranges across a number of other subjects as well, often with Sedaris's trademark off-center, self-deprecating humor."—Colette Bancroft,Tampa Bay Times
"It's David Sedaris. You know you want to readit.Calypsois packed with plenty ofthe painfully funny laugh-out-loud moments you've come to expect from Sedaris.But it's also his most deeply moving work yet."—Elizabeth Entenman,HelloGiggles
"Sedaris hasn't lost his capacity for bemusedobservations of the people he encounters...But bad news has sharpened theauthor's humor, and this book is defined by a persistent, engaging bafflementover how seriously or unseriously to take life when it's increasingly filledwith Trump and funerals. Sedaris at his darkest--and his best."—Kirkus (starred review)
"If you're ever stuck in an elevator or airport,just pray for David Sedaris to appear. Time passes quickly with this nationaltreasure of a storyteller. ReadingCalypsois like settling into a glorious beach vacation with the author, whoseparents, siblings and longtime boyfriend, Hugh, feel like old friends tofaithful readers...While Sedaris is laugh-out-loud funny in his brilliant,meandering way, it's his personal reflections that will stay with you."—Alice Cary,Bookpage
"Sedaris collects 21 essays largely about family bonds and getting older in this hilarious yet tender volume...The author's fans and newcomers alike will be richly rewarded by this sidesplitting collection."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)