Kim V. reviewed Friends Like These: My Worldwide Quest to Find My Best Childhood Friends, Knock on Their Doors, and Ask Them to Come Out and Play on + 54 more book reviews
Danny Wallace, the perpetual boy-man, is about to turn 30. For Wallace the big 3-0 symbolizes "Adulthood, Responsibilities, and Display Cushions!" And he's not sure he's ready for the transition. On the eve of his thirtieth birthday, with a stroke fortuitous timing, Wallace receives a box of childhood memorabilia. While perusing through his personal collection of 80's artifacts, Wallace discovers a long forgotten address book containing: "The Twelve" -- the names and addresses of twelve former childhood friends. Friends Like These follows Wallace's continent-hopping race to re-discover "The Twelve" before he turns 30.
Wallace is a gifted comedic writer who knows how to deliver a story for maximum laughs. The on-going saga of ManGriff, the man- animal, he creates to outprank a former prankster-friend is laugh-out-loud hilarious! But not every re-acquaintance with one of The Twelve ends on a jocular note. Some friends are profoundly touched by Wallace's re-entry into their lives while others are unwilling or unable to rekindle the childhood friendship.
Still every step and misstep along the odyssey to find "The Twelve" is notable. As Wallace reflects, "And those, small, lost moments â once remembered â can often mean more than you could ever guess. Like a forgotten joke, or a final hug, or a local restaurant's fourth anniversary. In the past few months, I had a whole host of new moments to remember."
Friends Like These is a humorous memoir with a life-affirming message!
Wallace is a gifted comedic writer who knows how to deliver a story for maximum laughs. The on-going saga of ManGriff, the man- animal, he creates to outprank a former prankster-friend is laugh-out-loud hilarious! But not every re-acquaintance with one of The Twelve ends on a jocular note. Some friends are profoundly touched by Wallace's re-entry into their lives while others are unwilling or unable to rekindle the childhood friendship.
Still every step and misstep along the odyssey to find "The Twelve" is notable. As Wallace reflects, "And those, small, lost moments â once remembered â can often mean more than you could ever guess. Like a forgotten joke, or a final hug, or a local restaurant's fourth anniversary. In the past few months, I had a whole host of new moments to remember."
Friends Like These is a humorous memoir with a life-affirming message!
Brittany H. (poohbritt) -
Reviewed by Bookish Britt for http://www.luxuryreading.com/
Remember when you were about knee-high and swore you would be best friends forever with whoever you'd bonded with over recess? Had those bracelets with two halves of a heart, pinky-swore, or did one of the various things to reassure your naïve self that no matter what, you'd always keep in touch. I know I did. With the help of social networking sites like Facebook, we are lulled into complacency that we've reconnected with our past BFF's. But Danny Wallace, author of âYes Man,â actually did the hard part of tracking down the friends in his elementary school address book and meeting the past with the present.
Right around when Wallace realized that his 30th birthday ways looming overhead, he realized that this milestone meant he had to be a man. He had to accept throw pillows (not for bottoms!), decorative coasters, and sausage of the month clubs. While he was sifting through a box containing his past: old drawings, photos, world cup stickers, ect, he decided that the best way to move forward was to look back. He had to track down his old friends and ask them to âcome out and play,â even if it involved 3 continents and correspondence as a furry. What follows is the hilarious and awkward quest that leads to Danny discovering that his friends had solved time travel, become famous German rappers, and are even part of the Fijian royal family.
I'm really not sure what I'd do if someone from 20-some-odd years ago knocked on my door to recollect our shared childhood. To top it all off, many parts of this book have those moments that are side-splittingly funny, but make you wonder how anyone gets into that situation. I won't give it all away, but if you've seen the movie âYes Man,â you will appreciate the humor. It also had its fair share of reflection on life in general, and the transition from âkidulthood,â when you eat Doritos and cup o' noodle, to being a full fledged adult. It is a serious memoir in a humorous light-hearted wrapper. A candy bar with a chewy caramel center.
Remember when you were about knee-high and swore you would be best friends forever with whoever you'd bonded with over recess? Had those bracelets with two halves of a heart, pinky-swore, or did one of the various things to reassure your naïve self that no matter what, you'd always keep in touch. I know I did. With the help of social networking sites like Facebook, we are lulled into complacency that we've reconnected with our past BFF's. But Danny Wallace, author of âYes Man,â actually did the hard part of tracking down the friends in his elementary school address book and meeting the past with the present.
Right around when Wallace realized that his 30th birthday ways looming overhead, he realized that this milestone meant he had to be a man. He had to accept throw pillows (not for bottoms!), decorative coasters, and sausage of the month clubs. While he was sifting through a box containing his past: old drawings, photos, world cup stickers, ect, he decided that the best way to move forward was to look back. He had to track down his old friends and ask them to âcome out and play,â even if it involved 3 continents and correspondence as a furry. What follows is the hilarious and awkward quest that leads to Danny discovering that his friends had solved time travel, become famous German rappers, and are even part of the Fijian royal family.
I'm really not sure what I'd do if someone from 20-some-odd years ago knocked on my door to recollect our shared childhood. To top it all off, many parts of this book have those moments that are side-splittingly funny, but make you wonder how anyone gets into that situation. I won't give it all away, but if you've seen the movie âYes Man,â you will appreciate the humor. It also had its fair share of reflection on life in general, and the transition from âkidulthood,â when you eat Doritos and cup o' noodle, to being a full fledged adult. It is a serious memoir in a humorous light-hearted wrapper. A candy bar with a chewy caramel center.
