Stand-up books

Stand-up comics make good authors. I think it's because most of them write their own material. They also like to jot down their observations throughout the day. My friend Vanessa the Comedian is kind of like Harriet the Spy in that she never leaves her apartment without a notebook in tow.

I like these comics' books:

Martin, Steve. Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life. New York: Scribner, 2007.

"The writing is evocative, unflinching and cool. When Martin takes a scalpel to his life, what you feel is the precision of the surgeon more than the primal scream of the unanaesthetized patient...Born Standing Up is neither fanfare nor confession. It gives off a vibe of rigorous honesty. With lots of laughs." --Richard Corliss, Time Magazine

"Even for readers already familiar with Mr. Martin's solemn side, Born Standing Up is a surprising book: smart, serious, heartfelt and confessional without being maudlin." Janet Maslin, The New York Times

Handler, Chelsea. My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands. New York: Bloomsbury Pub, 2005.

"Offbeat and laugh-out-loud-funny essays... smart, funny, and quick read."
--Library Journal

"[Chelsea] just might be funnier than David Sedaris." --Dallas Observer

Rudner, Rita. Tickled Pink: A Comic Novel. New York: Pocket Books, 2001.

"A witty, droll foray into fiction for Rudner"
--Kirkus Reviews

DeGeneres, Ellen. My Point-- and I Do Have One. New York: Bantam Books, 1995.

TV comic DeGeneres's book spent 24 weeks on Publisher Weekly's bestseller list.

Newhart, Bob. I Shouldn't Even Be Doing This!: And Other Things That Strike Me As Funny. New York: Hyperion, 2006.

"More of a routine than a memoir, but full of the wry, understated self-deprecation that Newhart has perfected"
--Kirkus Reviews