Holidays On Ice is a terrific compilation and should be given as a gift to anyone who is less than enthused when December rolls around. David and his sister Amy are two of the funniest people on earth it seems. While there are a couple of stories in here that are less enjoyable than others, it is still superb comic writing and had me in hysterics while reading some parts of this collection. SantaLand Diaries is pitch perfect and ends on a hilarious note that sums up much of the ridiculous nature of the Christmas season. Front Row Center With Thaddeus Bristol is a brilliant idea executed to perfection as various children's pageants are picked apart without pity. My favorite in this collection is perhaps Season's Greetings to Our Friends and Family!!! which is written in such a similar nature to so many Christmas letters I've read over the years except for some of the more theatrical elements of course. The tone he writes with in that piece is dead on. An absolutely wonderful present to give yourself or anyone who deserves a treat at any time of year. I'm fairly irritated to see that it is being released again this coming holiday season with new stories included which seems like a ploy to make more money, similar to the Christmas shopping season exploits depicted in this book.

While I enjoyed this book (especially the final story), I did not find it as outright hilarious as his other books. Which is not to say it isn't funny. It just did not meet the very high bar the other books set.

I am very pleased with the book. The condition was perfect. It arrived on time. I would purchase from dealer again.

I've heard David Sedaris on NPR, reading his own stories aloud. This is my first purchase of one of his books, and my reaction was mixed. The first story about being an elf in a department store was hilarious, especially when read aloud. The other stories, so far (I'm almost through it) have been less successful but still well-written. I'm happy enough with it to purchase other of his books (I see three of them are on one of the top ten fiction lists now) and see if his writing style is one that I truly enjoy.

David and Tom Elsa are my favorite comedy writers and there books make me laugh hysterically! I cant wait for engulfed!

This is the first David Sedaris book I've read and I loved it. The stories had me crying because I was laughing so hard. I didn't laugh as much with the last 2 stories but they still made me chuckle. I really enjoyed Sedaris' sarcastic humor and the way he left me wanting to read more of his books. I plan on buying the rest of his books on my wish list!

i'm a longtime fan of david sedaris -- and sister amy sedaris. they both manage to make me laugh at their most surreal experiences and the clever manner in which they are able to paint the picture for readers. i wish they were more prolific writers so i could enjoy their talents more frequently.

A great book full of funny and sometimes touching stories. If you've heard David Sedaris read his stories on NPR and enjoyed it, you'll enjoy this collection!

The first essay in this collection, "SantaLand Diaries," had me laughing from start to finish. Sedaris' satiric humor makes for a very amusing read--perfect to calm those holiday-frazzled nerves. I finished this book in two days, and was sad when it was over.

Refreshingly clever and slightly twisted essays of poetic hyperbole and autobiographic fact about the holiday season. Best essays include (Dinah, the Christmas Whore) Sedaris' trip with his sister to rescue a prostitute from her abusive boyfriend, which restores his faith in the uniqueness of humanity during the commercialistic holiday season, and his various experiences while working as a department store elf (SantaLand Diaries). Grade: B+

A great short-read for anyone who is looking for some laughs. I'm a huge David Sedaris fan and although this isn't his best it sure has some hilarious moments.

A friend, feeling that my sense of humor would appreciate such a thing, loaned me a copy of Holidays On Ice by David Sedaris. I've heard quite a bit about Sedaris, but I've never had the pleasure of reading his work. Holidays On Ice did not fail to delight.

An exceptionally quick read, this book is a collection of mostly previously published material. It contains both fiction and nonfiction alike, and at times I seriously couldn't be sure to which genre some stories belonged. This ambiguity made things all the more fun.

Sedaris takes a rather sarcastic approach to how people treat Christmas, and while it may seem snotty and cynical, I found it painfully accurate in many cases, especially if you read between the lines.

While I wouldn't consider Sedaris as skilled a writer as McCarthy or Chabon in terms of technique, he certainly knows how to convey his humor through the written word, and I believe such aptitude is incredibly rare. He is one of the few writers I've ever experienced who had me literally laughing out loud as I read.

~Scott William Foley, author of Dr. Nekros: The Tragedian (Volume I, Episode I)

This holiday book by David Sedaris is a collection of sophisticated, sardonic, and quite superb stories. His style reminds me of Cleveland Amory (remember him? several years ago he wrote reviews for TV Guide--yes, this bit of information dates me)--somewhat crumudeonly, but very entertaining and funny.

Among other things, Sedaris shares his take on Christmas pageants and working as an elf during the holidays.

Written in a totally different style, Christmas Gifts, Christmas Voices takes a look at how simple acts of thoughtfulnes came have a great impact.

At 134 pages, Holidays on Ice is one of the shortest books I have read. But it has taken me about 4 months to finish it. No, it isn't that the book was boring, it was just that, well, at 134 pages, I found that I could put this book down and attack other, longer, books.

Contents:
SantaLand Diaries
Season's Greetings to Our Friends and Family!!
Dinah, the Christmas Whore
Front Row Center with Thaddeus Bristol
Based Upon a True Story
Christmas Means Giving

"SantaLand Diaries" is worth the price of admission. This is David's diary of working as an Elf at Macy's SantaLand. Great inside look at working during the holidays at New York's Macy store. The other story that is a work of nonfiction is "Dinah, the Christmas Whore," where David talks about his sister's rescue of a woman during the holiday season. Extremely funny interaction at the Sedaris house, and David learns something about his family.

"Season's Greetings" is a very funny look at the tradition of sending out a letter to family friends recapping the year. A rather dysfunctional family, to be honest, and the ending has a nice twist. If you ever send out those letters, this letter is not one that you usually write. And that is what made it funny (and at times, laugh out loud funny). "Christmas Means Giving" gives a whole new meaning to the phrase. One-upmanship like you have never seen.

If you have kids, and you have attended the "Holiday Pageant," "Front Row..." is a nasty review of the children's pageant. But I guess that is what made this story so amusing - you may think it, but you would never say it. David lays it all out for you. Finally, "Based Upon a True Story," takes the whole reality TV/Made for TV genre to a new, lower, level. After reading those two stories, you realize that David can be dark and twisted.

I think that David is best when he writes about himself or his family. "SantaLand Diaries" and "Dinah" are the two best stories in the book, as he relates his own experiences for you. Reading this book during the Christmas season will bring a smile to your face and allow you to see the holidays in a whole new light.

A collection of real life and fictional satiric stories on Christmas. It's rib-cracking hilarious. My first encounter with David Sedaris was painfully and delightfully funny. I became a fan after reading this and this still remains my favorite book by him three books later.

Fantastic. David Sedaris does not disappoint with this collection of short stories. If you have an appreciation for sarcastic humor and dry wit, you will be doubled over with laughter in no time.

Huge disappointment. I have read three David Sedaris books previously and had found them laugh-out-loud funny. "Holidays on Ice" nearly ended up in the fireplace when I hit a particularly dark chapter. His humor has always been on the sarcastic side, which generally appeals to me, but I didn't find this book amusing. If I want to be horrified, I'll read Dean Koontz.

"This afternoon I sat in the eighth-floor SantaLand office and was told, ` Congratulations, Mr. Sedaris. You are an elf.'" This is one of the many hilarious quotes from David Sedaris' novel Holidays on Ice which contains six enlightening Christmas stories. Also known for his other hilarious books Me Talk Pretty One Day and Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, middle aged humorist Sedaris writes about his own experiences and thoughts on the Christmas season.
In the first essay entitled "SantaLand Diaries," Sedaris tells his about his crazy encounters working as an elf in the department store Macy's after getting rejected from UPS. He describes the shoppers and fellow employees with sarcastic humor. He tells about his various jobs that he works, and explains about the Magic Window position. He has to stand there and exclaim, "Step on the Magic Star and look through the window, and you can see Santa!" One day he gets bored of saying the same fifteen words over and over again, so he decides to mix things up a bit. "Step on the Magic Star and you can see Cher and Mike Tyson!" People start to get upset when they sacrifice their spot in line to see Santa to go into the Magic Star line. Needless to say, David Sedaris is never positioned in the Magic Star line again.
The next essay, "Season's Greetings to Our Friends and Family!!!" is a fictional story about the ridiculousness of long family descriptions on Christmas cards. "He's made the honor roll every semester and there seems to be no stopping him!!! A year and a half left to go and already the job offers are pouring in! We love you, Kevin!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" exclaims the narrator Mrs. Dunbar. Mrs. Dunbar's ideal world, however, soon comes crashing down when a stranger named Khe Sahn suddenly comes to live with them. As it turns out, Mrs. Dunbar's "perfect" husband had a daughter in Vietnam named Khe Sahn. As the story unfolds, Khe Sahn turns their world upside down.
"Dinah, the Christmas Whore" is another essay describing the bizarre world of David Sedaris. He tells how his sister Lisa brought her friend Dinah home one day four days before Christmas. He describes the humorous way in which his family reacts to her, and the questions they ask her about her interesting life in prison and about her experiences as a prostitute.
Another essay, "Christmas Means Giving," tells the fictional story about one family's competition with their neighbors, the Cottinghams. Every year, the neighbors try to out-do the other's Christmas deeds, and as you will see it gets pretty crazy as the families try to be the best and most "giving" in the neighborhood.
Holidays on Ice is a hilarious book of essays that will keep you laughing non-stop. I recommend this novel for anyone who wants a good laugh, young or old. I personally give this book two very enthusiastic thumbs up for its dry humor. Each sarcastic and humorous essay will make you want to read the next. By the way, this collection of essays would make a great Christmas gift!

I'm a huge fan of David Sedaris' books, but other than the "Santaland Diaries" and "Dinah" stories, I couldn't get into it. The other stories weren't funny, the pace was plodding despite the fact that these were short stories, and I was actually somewhat uncomfortable reading them.

I'd recommend most of his other books, just not this one.

I enjoyed the opportunity to read David Sedaris' stories, some of which I had read elsewhere. It is a good format to launch someone on 'the good ship Sedaris' but for those who have been initiated, it was all too brief in the newness arena. It rattles along very comfortably, like an old Chevrolet, but we do like the smell of a new car every so often, don't we?

Another collections of hilarious short stories by David Sedaris. All of them were hysterical. I loaned this book to many a friend and have yet to find an intelligent person who does not get this author! He is so well crafted at the art of writing, I laughed so hard I cried reading it!

This was my first David Sedaris book. While some of it was not as funny as i expected, Season's greetings was worth the price of the book for me. I thought it was hilarious. I did laugh out loud. I would recommend this book, especially around the holidays. I will read more of this author.

Really funny stories, interesting plots, my favourite was the story starring Khe San and Jocelyn.....what a hoot - highly recommend you buy this as a holiday book.

Witty - unique - always saying what we feel we can't

Santaland Diaries is one of the funniest things I've ever heard. It is currently circulating amongst our friends.

This product came quickly and in the condition the seller promised. I would recommend buying from this seller in the future.

I'm just thankful that I had the chance to see David Sedaris live so that I could have both his face and his voice in my head as I read his stories--that made them even funnier. If you love Sedaris on shows like This American Life, you'll just love the book.

Holidays on Ice is a book of short stories written by the very funny writer David Sedaris. Unfortunately, with the exception of the first story, these aren't that funny.

SantaLand Diaries recounts the author's experience as an elf working for Macy's during the Christmas season. His dry wit and excellent insight into the annoying holiday shopper make for a highly entertaining and occasionally laugh out loud chapter 1.

Season's Greetings to all our Friends and Family starts off promising enough. It is in the form of a family letter sent out to everyone the family knows that recounts the family's happenings for the past year. Everyone gets at least one of these each year and most people roll their eyes as they read it and mock the family that sent it. However this letter goes on and on for entirely too long and has a dark, twisted content that stops being humorous and becomes confusing and sad.

Dinah the Christmas Whore has a promising enough subject, but doesn't wind up being particularly funny or entertaining. Beth, David's sister, works with a woman who in addition to being a prostitute at night, trends toward extremely unsavory clients. Beth gets a frantic call from Dinah when she is beaten up by one of her regulars and the Sedaris family takes her in for the night. David tells the story from the point of view of the confused child who is surprised by the reaction to Dinah from the rest of his family. But the story never leaves the realm of odd into the world of entertaining.

The remaining three stories are dark and fairly humorless. There is a sense of irony in some when the author illustrates how out of touch with the season people are - the very same people that think they are in the throws of the Christmas spirit. But somehow the writing misses the mark, isn't funny, and borders on depressing. Me Talk Pretty One Day set the bar high for me as a fan of David Sedaris and I haven't been satisfied since. This isn't terrible, but not what I was hoping for either. You may want to simply read the first story and then put the book back on the shelf.

Sedaris has written a collection of holiday gems! Although the quality of story goes downhill after the first of the book, "The Santaland Diaries," it should be noted that this is only the case because his account of life as a Macy's SantaLand elf is the most hilarious retail story ever put on paper. Anyone who has ever worked at a busy store around the holidays will be unable to contain their laughter while reading this. I recommend you don't do it on the subway.

Other great shorts include "Front Row Center at Thaddeus Bristol", an account of Catholic School Christmas shows from the perspective of a grade school theater critic, and "Christmas Means Giving", where a wealthy family gives their limbs, major organs, and children to charity in an attempt to best their neighbors in philanthropy.

Holidays On Ice is a must have for the stressed during the holidays.

This collection of short stories is great for those cold holiday nights when you're curled up by the fire with a plate of cookies. The first story, "SantaLand Diaries", is by far my favorite. It's the tale of a Macy's Christmas Elf who witnesses the worst humanity has to offer in the form of overbearing, stressed-out parents, overexcited kids, disgruntled Santas, etc. I laughed so much that I almost spilled hot cocoa all over myself.
Some of the other stories are good, too. I liked "Dinah", which is a story about one of the author's sisters' less sophisticated friends, and "Front Row Center", which is a scathing critique of those lovely Christmas pageants we faithfully attend each year. "Seasons Greetings to Our Friends and Family" takes the form of the ubiquitous Christmas newsletter, but with an interesting twist. Honestly, the last two stories, "Based Upon a True Story" and "Christmas Means Giving" weren't my favorite, but that's not to say they weren't well-written ~ it just wasn't my sort of humor. But overall, a good, witty, gift book for the reader on your holiday list.

The lead story in this book is hysterical, and was definately the best of the group. The author has a great style, inserting creative names and products throughout his writing to make humorous points and help the reader laugh at some of the idiocies of the holiday season. I especially enjoyed both the lead story (about working as en elf in Macy's during the holidays) and the story about school Christmas pageants. Both left me laughing at the holiday and feeling cheerful about the season.
The remaining stories were not as enjoyable, and a bit dark, especially when dealing with the death of an infant and the plight of the poor. While amusing, they did not express the holiday spirit in a way I was looking for as I read the book on Christmas Eve. The last story I found somewhat tasteless, though it started well and had some exceptionally funny lines.
Overall, a book with very funny lines from a funny author, but not a "feel good" Christmas humor book like I had hoped for.

Holidays on Ice may be David Sedaris' finest collection. The humor here is concentrated by its theme and diverse in terms of point of view and varying shades of dark humor. I certainly enjoyed the rest of Sedaris' works, but I think having a general theme guides his essays the best. Me Talk Pretty One has a guiding topic, and Sedaris works hard to tackle it from his American childhood to his French adulthood.

But like Me Talk Pretty One Day, most of Sedaris' works trap the reader in both his mind and his body. I get bored with looking at the world from the perspective of David Sedaris, the man and author. This does not happen in Holidays on Ice. Instead, Sedaris channels his witty weirdness and gives the reader variety that is not generally available in his other collections. Maybe it's the precise choice of stories behind the success of Holidays on Ice. Perhaps Sedaris' other works would be more successful if they were more balanced.

Thus, I find Holidays on Ice to be Sedaris' best collection due to the concentration of theme, the variable points of view and perspectives shaping the essays/stories, the choice of works, and the brevity of the volume.

A couple stories are a little dark, but it's not a dark book. It's just hilarious. The stories are short, so if you don't like the one involving the baby in the clothes dryer, skip it and go straight to the critic's review of the school Christmas play, or the tale of rich neighbors taking their consumer competitiveness to new heights.

Reading this in December is one of my favorite holiday traditions.

Very good book but only buy it if you are looking for a book with a very strange sense of humor. In the first story he explains his job as an Elf at Santaland and describes his daily life. It is so funny, some of the things people do there are amazing and crazy at the same time.

Don't buy this book if you are looking for a nice book to read to your young kids or just sit in front of the fire reading a romantic book while it is snowing outside.

But if you are looking for something funny and odd at the same time, then by all means buy this book.

Another collection of essays from a brilliant wit who you know you love to read. It's like I've said in my reviews before. There's no need to review each book when I can just give the author a blanket endorsement and guarantee you'll love whatever you find by the guy. I love it when that happens. I may have annoyed Jan by laughing out loud too often. Sedaris is like that.

If you laugh at children falling down this is the book for you. He may push it sometimes but isn't that what a good writer should do? Knowing he is half Greek, so am I, I was hoping for a good egg cracking story or roasting lamb in your backyard. Unfortunately there wasn't one. Santaland was my favorite.

This is a hilarious book. It made me laugh and laugh. That is the uniqueness of the "Holidays on Ice" book by David Sedaris. You may want to pity the characters, yet they are amusing in the way they deal with situations in the stories. It is easy for us to relate to the characters, because we have types like them everywhere around. I can understand why many people love this book too.

This book is highly recoomended. The Usurper and Other stories, Housekeeping, RunAway,The Union Moujik . One thing for sure is that if you are looking for suspenseful plot, twists in a story,

I generally like David Sedaris; in fact he's one of my favorites. But when his stories veer off into the death of children, almost gratuitously, I can't see the humor. This is, please note, the first book of his that I haven't enjoyed. But it's got a couple of gruesome episodes that jarred the joy out of me.

...David Sedaris was only famous for talking about Christmas. Santaland Diaries, heard on NPR stations across the country, is what gave him his first fame. This collection of stories came after his first book, Barrel Fever, and before the rest. This is back when he was still writing short stories, which he isn't really known for anymore. This book has a couple of short stories and, like the short stories in Barrel Fever, they're not really accessible to a wider audience. They're dark - baby murder dark. Definitely not something everyone can appreciate. But pick it up, maybe you'll like it. If you're the sort of person who finds the idea of a theatre critic reviewing children's holiday pageants bitterly, it's worth a try.

Perhaps listening to the audiotape intensified the smug, "aren't I hilarious?" tone of this book. Note: It is entirely possible that I am not clever enough to understand the humor of this book. Or even to IDENTIFY the humor in the book.

The story of the two families competing with each other - to the point of handing over their children to be abused by a beggar, and donating various organs - was the train wreck of the Holiday tales. (Although it may have been the story about the preacher, I can't say for sure because I gave that deadly tale five minutes to redeem itself before skipping it entirely. So, in fact, perhaps the story is not about a preacher. I'll never know. Neither should you.)

I think it's fair to say that the self-satisfied, condescending narrator of these tales simply couldn't bring himself to care about his characters. They're simply dimensionless, cliched props - the self-centered suburban woman, the socially competitive neighbors - that should immediately journey to Oz so that they can collect the hearts and brains of which Sedaris has seen fit to deprive them.

Speaking of hearts and brains, this book could use a hefty dose of those, too.

If you are looking for the literary equivalent of "It's a Wonderful Life"-this book is definitely NOT for you. However, if you appreciate slightly cynical and sardonic commentary on the holidays, you will most likely appreciate this set of short stories by David Sedaris. From Jim Timothy, the extortionist who preys upon a Pentecostal church, to Dinah, the "Christmas [...]" Sedaris packs his vignettes with unforgettable characters who will make you laugh-even though you know Clarence the Angel would disapprove. If you've had enough of family bickering and other such holiday treats, curl up with this offering and you'll find a kindred spirit in David Sedaris.

50 Book Challenge #6
BOOK REVIEW: Holidays on Ice
Author: David Sedaris

If you are looking for the literary equivalent of "It's a Wonderful Life"-this book is definitely NOT for you. However, if you appreciate slightly cynical and sardonic commentary on the holidays, you will most likely appreciate this set of short stories by David Sedaris. From Jim Timothy, the extortionist who preys upon a Pentecostal church, to Dinah, the "Christmas Whore," Sedaris packs his vignettes with unforgettable characters who will make you laugh-even though you know Clarence the Angel would disapprove. If you've had enough of family bickering and other such holiday treats, curl up with this offering and you'll find a kindred spirit in David Sedaris.

I was sitting on an airlpane reading this book and the gentleman next to me asked me if I was "OK". I was uncontrollably laughing. Even after trying to put it down for a few minutes and gaining my composure, it was a fruitless attempt because within seconds I was embarrassing myself again.

David Sedaris is absolutely the funniest author alive. All of his books make me laugh out loud & embarrass myself in public places, when I bring his books along. This one did not disappoint either.. FUNNY holidays tales that make the season brighter, or even out of season.. give you a healthy & hearty laugh.
I adore this man!

Truly the author's pen is mightier than the sword as he takes on Christmas, parents, children, evangelical Christians from Kentucky, television, Macy's, the result of a dalliance during the Viet Nam War, and "keeping up with the Joneses".

This short book is much funnier than his best-selling "Me Talk Pretty Some Day" as the author's humorous cynicism is at its best. One can't put it down for fear of missing some insight into the American psyche.

Three of the stories appear to be autobiographical (with obvious changes made to "protect the innocent") wherein the author "tells" the others in the guise of another.

Regardless, Sedaris pulls no punches and will have the reader in stitches, even if there's a little guilt attached to that feeling.

Quite amusing! Great author and great book!

David Sedaris gives holiday reading a whole interesting twist in this short-story collection. Holiday on Ice features six stories that vary from being darkly funny to surrealistically twisted. Christmas is shown in a whole different and satirical perspective in these short stories. I couldn't put them down and laughed myself numb with the hilarious passages and dialogue. I wished there had been more stories in this collection. My favorites are "Dinah, the Christmas Whore" (this story is somewhat autobiographical), "Season's Greetings to Our Friends and Family!!!," and "SantaLand Diaries." All six of the stories, three of which had been previously published, though I hadn't read any of them before, are incredible, but the aforementioned three are the ones that stand out the most to me. I loved Me Talk Pretty One Day and am glad I gave another Sedaris book a whirl. His style is quite similar to the works of Augusten Burroughs. They both write dark, satirical and surrealistic fiction. Are you in the bargain for cynical holiday stories? I cannot recommend Holiday on Ice enough! This is a not-to-be-missed holiday read.

David Sedaris, playwright and commentator for National Public Radio, gives us six seasonal tales in this slim volume of his short stories.

"SantaLand Diaries," the recounting of his days working as an elf at Macy's, is far and away the gem of the collection. Sedaris is hilariously funny as he hits on the universal truths and human patterns of behavior that make Christmas the beloved, harried season that it is.

The second story "Season's Greetings to Our Friends and Family!" begins in an equally funny vein posing as the Christmas letter from hell. What cheery news does the family who has seen a member murdered and another arrested for the crime write? Again, hilariously funny, but a rather dark turn at the end left an unseasonably bad taste in my mouth.

"Dinah, the Christmas Whore" continues this walk on the dark side as a young boy follows his sister to her secret life and they bring home a prostitute for Christmas. He gets a warm and fuzzy feeling knowing they have something no other family does.

"Front Row Center with Thaddeus Bristol" returns to a lighter version of Christmas as Sedaris takes the reader to a variety of elementary school Christmas plays. Mini actors that only a devoted camcorder-toting parent could love have us laughing even when we know we shouldn't. Anyone who has ever sat through one of these amateur productions will relate to his wry insights.

"Based upon a True Story" is the most cynical of the selections and hits at the materialistic baseness that lurks in everyone.

"Christmas Means Giving" takes the idea of outdoing your fellow man to the most bizarre of all limits and again, may not be the cheery Christmas feel-good story one is looking for.

This book is a riot. I was laughing so hard, I thought I'd need an oxygen mask to catch my breath. The SantaLand Diaries was by far the funniest thing I have ever read, and well worth the price of the book. The other stories weren't as hilarious as that one, but they were all funny and I'm glad I read them. This book is a great pick-me-up anytime of the year!

Holidays on Ice: Stories was my first exposure to David Sedaris, and this collection of 6 holiday essays is the funniest book, ever. With Sedaris, nothing is sacred about the holidays. He lampoons working at Macy's as a Christmas elf, holiday newsletters, school pageants, and excessive gift giving. Some of his humor is side-splitting, tears rolling down your cheeks funny. SantaLand Dairies, about Sedaris working at Macy's in SantaLand is the funniest and the longest story of the bunch. How Sedaris kept himself sane while parading around as an elf will have you laughing out loud.

Other stories are written with a deeper, darker, more satirical wit. One story, Seasons Greetings to Our Friends and Family, was a little too morbid for my taste. But all the stories are good, and all of them make us realize how over-the-top our Christmas celebrations have become.

I listened to this book on CD, which made it even more enjoyable as it's read by the author. Simply reading the book will cheat you out of hearing Sedaris mimic Billie Holiday singing Away In A Manger.

So in addition to the three or four other Christmas "classics" that I enjoy reading each year, I now have a new one to add to my list.