Inside Jokes
October 7, 2022
There are as many types of memoir as there are people writing them, but we’d like to encourage you to indulge in a funny one. Try one of these, or one you’ve been keeping an eye on yourself!
Failure Is an Option: An Attempted Memoir by H. Jon Benjamin
Benjamin’s attempted memoir is irreverent, edgy, and hilarious – just what readers will expect from the voice actor and comedian of Bob’s Burgers fame.
The Greatest Love Story Ever Told by Megan Mullally & Nick Offerman
The popular comedic couple trace the story of their relationship, sharing anecdotes, family photos, and secrets that reveal how they overcame considerable social differences through their shared values and mutual love of music and laughter.
So Close to Being the Sh*t, Y’all Don’t Even Know by Retta
Whether reminiscing about her days as a contract chemist at GlaxoSmithKline, telling ‘dirty’ jokes to Mormons, feeling like the odd man out on Parks, fending off racist trolls on Twitter, flirting with Michael Fassbender, expertly stalking the cast of Hamilton, or glamming it up on the set, Retta’s voice is unique and refreshing.
Dear Girls by Ali Wong
Comedian, writer, and actress Wong’s first book is a series of letters to her two daughters, who are currently toddlers. Luckily, the frame works well even for readers who don’t happen to be Wong’s daughters which, considering the girls’ ages (and perhaps the unfiltered approach), will mean all readers for the foreseeable future.
The Last Black Unicorn by Tiffany Haddish
The Last Black Unicorn is so much more than a side-splittingly hilarious collection of essays–it’s a memoir of the struggles of one woman who came from nothing and nowhere. A woman who was able to achieve her dreams by reveling in her pain and awkwardness, showing the world who she really is, and inspiring others through the power of laughter.
Stay Hungry by Sebastian Maniscalco
On the way from clueless rube to standup superstar, Sebastian Maniscalco was booed off stages; survived on tips and stolen food; got advice from mentors Andrew Dice Clay, Vince Vaughn, Tony Danza, and Jerry Seinfeld; fell in love; and stayed true to his Italian-immigrant roots. The one code that always kept him going: stay hungry, keep focused, never give up, and one day, you’ll make it.
My Squirrel Days by Ellie Kemper
The comedian and star of The Office and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt presents a collection of essays about her journey from Midwestern naïf to Hollywood semi-celebrity to outrageously reasonable New Yorker.
Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick
Actress Kendrick introduces her memoir by telling the reader not to take her stories too seriously. She asks her audience to agree that the following book is a conversation, possibly a tweet, but longer. Kendrick lives up to the bargain and delivers an engaging narrative of her life that can be devoured in one sitting.
Medallion Status by John Hodgman
Both unflinchingly funny and deeply heartfelt, Medallion Status is a thoughtful examination of status, fame, and identity, and about the way we all deal with those moments when we realize we aren’t platinum status anymore and will have to get comfortable in that middle seat again.
You’ll Grow Out of It by Jessi Klein
Klein offers-through an incisive collection of real-life stories – a relentlessly funny yet poignant take on a variety of topics she has experienced along her strange journey to womanhood and beyond.