This is the sixth in a regular weekly series (every Wednesday) of 4 Audible reviews, broken down into the categories, which I selected for my first Audible blog (Dan’s Top 5 Reasons to Start Listening to Audible.co.uk) and subdivided, where helpful.
This latest one is ‘Autobiographies’, subdivided into ‘Comedians’. Links to where you can purchase each of the titles for yourself (via Audible) are available by clicking the relevant title or photograph. Enjoy!
‘Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood’ by Trevor Noah
Read by the Author
Trevor Noah is a superb stand up comedian. You might also have caught him on a few British panel shows, such as ‘8 out of 10 Cats’. He is probably best known, however, for hosting ‘The Daily Show’ on Comedy Central, since September 2015. Trump seems to provide him with endless rich material on a daily basis and Noah is superb at skewering the President’s buffoonery – do catch the clips on YouTube, if you’re not already familiar with his work (there’s a link here).
The title of this autobiography refers to the fact that Noah’s mother was black and of Xhosa ethnicity, whilst his father was white and of Swiss German ethnicity, so their relationship was contrary to the prevailing laws under Apartheid. Fearing that the government might take Noah away, since he was living proof of her ‘crime’, Noah’s mother kept him as hidden from view as she could manage in his early years. Rebelling against her restrictions, the mischievous boy went on to escape the cycle of poverty, in order to find a new life. Along the way, there are both amusing anecdotes of his early years under the protective wing of his fiercely religious mother and heartache, when, shockingly, his abusive stepfather attempts to kill her.
Born a Crime is an extraordinary story, brilliantly told by an excellent mimic. Enjoy!
‘So, Anyway: The Autobiography’ by John Cleese
Read by the Author
So, Anyway is the story of the transformation of a shy youth from Weston-super-Mare who becomes a comedy legend. It covers his early life with his nomadic parents; his amusing experience as a largely clueless teacher (I can relate!); his days at Cambridge and his fateful meeting with Graham Chapman, leading to their eventual founding of Monty Python.
Not since Brian Blessed’s Absolute Pandemonium (see my review here) have I laughed so much as I did listening to an autobiography. I loved that the editors kept in Cleese’s occasional ‘corpsing’, which always makes me smile. Indeed, one of the wonderful things about seeing the Monty Python reunion on stage a few years ago was Cleese corpsing in the ‘Dead Parrot’ sketch – even after all this time, it still cracks him up. It does me too!
Cleese is undoubtedly a cynic but he is an intelligent and extremely funny one. Even his mistreatment and general roasting of national treasure, Michael Palin, is an absolute delight. A treat!
‘Nerd Do Well’ by Simon Pegg
Read by the Author
I will admit to some disappointment. I’m a huge fan of Simon Pegg. I loved his sketch show, Big Train, and his situation comedy, Spaced, is, for me, one of the greatest sitcoms of all time. Here, however, he peppers his autobiography with a science fiction tale involving his robotic butler Canterbury, which I just didn’t need. Reading some of the Audible reviews, there are plenty of people that loved this element, so please don’t be put off by my viewpoint.
There are some decent anecdotes about his acting career and his foray aboard the USS Enterprise as the re-booted Star Trek’s Scottie. Yet for the tale of a nerd who landed his dream job, his story is, whisper it quietly, just a little bit dull. I suppose one cannot be judged for how one’s life story has panned out but there are some outstanding examples of autobiographies, which rise above the mundane to become the finest examples of literature. I’m afraid Pegg doesn’t come close.
It is as if Pegg, himself, were concerned about the ‘worthiness’ of relating his life story and felt compelled to add Canterbury et al to spice things up a bit. Personally, I would have liked a bit more depth to his personal excoriation and lot less of the overt robotic distractions.
‘Bonkers: My Life in Laughs’ by Jennifer Saunders
Read by the Author
I can’t remember a time that I have not adored French & Saunders but it was my friend and fellow shaman, Susan Earl, who recommended this book to me, when I was bemoaning writer’s block to her. The book was a real tonic to my frustrated ego. Saunders ably portrays the beautiful (&, it turns out, very funny) art of procrastination in the face of an impatient world who demand that she be funny. In particular, her elaborate attempts to avoid working on a screenplay for Goldie Hawn are comedy gold.
Despite taking a reconnaissance trip to India with Hawn and Ruby Wax, her proposed writing partner, the two comic geniuses singularly fail to deliver a single page to the Hollywood legend. Stop beating yourself up, I thought, and take a leaf out of Ms Saunders book!
Bonkers benefits, as every book does in this category, from being read by the author – the emotional moments are much more raw when rendered by the person who suffered them, the anecdotes much funnier, when benefitting from the author’s comic timing. Thus, we experience the highs of Saunders’ professional life in comedy and the lows of her battle with cancer, all the more poignantly because it is Ms Saunders who relates them.
Wonderful. One of my top picks!