Hodgman's writing is tender, funny and completely relatable. I have spent zero summers in Maine, but I would after reading this, rocky beaches and all.

This book is a bit uneven. John Hodgman reminds me of your single uncle (probably your dad's youngest brother) that you can't escape at Thanksgiving, who thinks of himself as a bit more interesting in his youth than he really was, but who has enough money to spend to have stuff to talk about.

So the stories vary.

The pot stories are pointless. The whole point seems to be, see, I also smoked the pot. Alongside a story near the end about getting drunk after a college appearance. Okay.....

I started out liking one story about Maine but it ended up being a white privilege narrative about only being able to afford one summer cottage.

I don't know, I left with a bad taste in my mouth. I think this is partially his brand of humor, the kind where you get why it's funny kind of but you wouldn't actually laugh at it. Or perhaps this isn't the humor for me.

I rarely laugh out loud when reading. No matter how funny the book is. I have a fine sense of humor and I recognize comedy. I acknowledge it in my head, I just don’t laugh. But John Hodgman’s new book Vacationland, made me laugh aloud multiple times. In public. While eating soup at Mariano’s.

Having said that, Vacationland might also be one of the most melancholy books I’ve ever read.

It’s possible you don’t recognize John Hodgman by his name. If you saw his picture you’d probably know him. He was a corespondent on John Stewart’s Daily Show and identified himself as a PC in a long running series of Apple commercials. He was great on the HBO series Bored to Death. All the while he was appearing on television, he was also writing. Between 2005 and 2011 he published three books filled with made up trivia and long ridiculous lists, The Areas of My Expertise, More Information Than You Require, and That is All.

Now, he has left the list-making behind to reveal a little bit about himself. On the advice of comedian Mike Birbiglia, Hodgman staged a series of speaking engagements. In front of an audience, without a plan, he began to talk. He told stories from his life and whatever came up would form the basis of this book. He talked about his early life as a self sufficient only child growing up in New York. About the mouse and raccoon-overrun summer home on the edge of a bog in Massachusetts. About the experience of becoming a mid level television personality. And about finding a home among people he feared would reject him.

As a writer hitting middle age, themes of aging and other realities of the human existence (by which I mean death) keep turning up. Whether it’s intentional or not, almost every chapter touches on the idea of mortality. Take this passage about canned goods for example.

“When you get a can of soup, the date printed on the bottom is a distant future, impossible to reach. To hold a can of tomato soup now, two full years past that date, was like holding a betrayal. You were supposed to last forever, I wanted to tell it.”

If that’s not a metaphor, then I don’t know what is. Even the title Vacationland comes from a short chapter in which Hodgman describes the heartbreaking weeks leading up to his mother’s death from lung cancer.

So what about this book obsessed with mortality could make me publicly laugh out loud over a bowl of southwest chicken chili? It’s hard to say. Hodgman is a kind of wizard, able to express a cool conceitedness while at the same time being self-effacing. Self-aware of his own pretensions. He is able to turn a phrase. He is also able to extend a sentence past the length of reason. And I agree with his opinion of fudge. “Can we now all agree, as adults, that fudge is repulsive?”

We can. It is.

John Hodgman's work continues to mature and weave in complex social issues while remaining insightful and self-deprecating (in the most jovial manner possible). This is a book to read aloud and share with friends when the world needs to be taken down a notch or two.

This is extremely John Hodgman, and I like John Hodgman.

There is a LOT of "I know this is a rich white person problem to have, but..." and I appreciate that he's self-aware and up front about it, and overall I enjoyed the book, but after awhile it was like I GET IT YOU HAVE TWO VACATION HOUSES AND THAT'S STRESSFUL IF NOT RELATABLE.

There's also some moving stuff about anxiety and grief and the loss of his mother. And of course, as you would expect, a lot of wryly persnicketty humor.

This title has been provided by the publisher VIA NetGalley at no charge in exchange for an honest review.

Readers will recognize Hodgman from his work on the Daily Show, his portrayal of a PC in Apple ads, and a regular on public radio. After writing 3 almanacs of funny fake facts, he turns to a more personal (but equally funny) look at aging, family, and, of course, life in Maine.

In fact, if you've ever listened to public radio for any reason and enjoyed it...just pick this up. It's familiar and smart fare for the 'This American Life' crowd. Hodgman' perspective on Maine is a much-needed contemporary and honest take. As a Northern Mainer "from away", I found many of his anecdotes to be spot-on without becoming awash in stereotypes.

Plenty of snort-laughs, relatable, and surprisingly warm. I look forward to reading more from Hodgman soon.

'Vacationland' will be released by Viking Press on October 24, 2017 at booksellers big and small.

I unexpectedly really, really loved this book. It's an interesting mix of essays about aging with a mix of seemingly random (but never actually random) reflections on life. It's short with a dash of sometimes serious-ness that was needed to balance out the Hodgman-yness humor.

Plainly put, John Hodgman's <i>Vacationland</i> is great. It positively exudes Hodgman-yness. Yes, I had to check the cover repeatedly to make sure it hadn't grown an alarming goatee/mustache combination! Straight Talk: If you are a John Hodgman fan you will like this book; If you aren't, you wont. I am and I did and I regret nothing!

In John Hodgman fashion, this book is written with his sense of humor blended with the seriousness that affects all of us, white privilege. In the context of his stories, funny not only because of his writing style but also because of the way he lives his life, he makes sure readers know that he is aware he is fortunate, but also one that experiences sadness. Some people are destined to have more stories to tell; he's one of those people.

Anyone familiar with the "Judge John Hodgman" podcast will enjoy this collection of stories from Hodgman, a purveyor of what someone in the book calls "white privilege comedy". There are stories—usually in his typical wry, self-deprecating style—about accidentally acquiring an old wooden rowboat, about growing up an only child, about vacationing in rural Maine, and about a particularly adventurous speaking engagement at a college. Often funny, sometimes poignant, and always self-aware, this book will be best read by a fireplace with a fancy drink in hand.

If you like listening to John Hodgman's humor, you will love this book. His voice comes through loud and clear, poking fun at himself both in his bewilderment at being an adult and in his understanding of different cultures in what are seemingly similar states. Fun!