Thank you, Little, Brown and Company, for providing me with an advanced copy of this book through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

David Sedaris is one of my favourite authors, and I was thrilled when I received an advanced copy of this book. But unfortunately, I found this book to be disappointing, and I’m not sure how much more David Sedaris I’m going to read.

My issue with this book is that I found that in a lot of the essays, David Sedaris was a self-centred, grumpy old man. David Sedaris has always been a bit self-centred, you have to be a bit self-centred to churn out the sheer volume of material that he’s written about his life, but his ego really shone through in this book. He also came off as grumpier in this book. In the past, when he wrote about his family, it never felt mean, but some of the essays in this book came off as a mean-spirited. There were even moments when he portrayed Hugh as insufferable.

One of the topics that come up a lot in this book is the death of David Sedaris’ father. David Sedaris has always had a difficult relationship with his father, but you could tell that David Sedaris loved his father from the essays he wrote about him. In this book, David Sedaris writes some things that are quite cruel about his father. This might have something to do with grief or his way of processing things, but some of it was too mean-spirited for my taste.

There were a lot of moments in this book where David Sedaris was flaunting his success. Since I’ve read almost all of his other books, I know how many properties he owns and that he travels a lot. There was something about his writing in this book that made it seem like he was flaunting his wealth and success more than usual, though. For example, in one of the essays, he’s talking about how upset Hugh was that one of their properties was destroyed by a hurricane and David Sedaris just kind of shrugged it off and pointed out to the reader that he paid for the home, not Hugh.

I also had a bit of an issue reading about how David Sedaris would host dinner parties during the pandemic at the height of the lockdown. I also had a bit of an issue with how self-centred he was while discussing the black lives matter protests in New York.

There were moments in this book I enjoyed. I liked reading about David Sedaris going shopping with his sister Amy. I liked reading about his travels. I liked reading about his book tours and some of the jokes and stories he’s heard while travelling around on tour.

Overall, I didn’t love this book. I found David Sedaris to be just a bit too self-centred and grumpy, and I didn’t think this book had the same amount of charm as some of his others.

Unlike uproarious Calypso filled with somewhat breezy pieces, Happy-Go-Lucky is a collection of 18 thoughtful essays, filled to the brim with hot button issues, some displaying muted humor, some borderline hysterical, and some plainly disturbing, on a variety of topics such as gun ownership (Active Shooter), growing old and/or dying (Father Time, Unbottoned, Happy-Go-Lucky, Better Place, and Pussytoes), parental abuse (Lady Marmalade), student debt (A Speech to the Graduates), BLM protests (Fresh-Caught Haddock), and all matters related to the Covid-19 pandemic (The Vacuum, Smile, Beautiful, and Lucky-Go-Happy).

Reading some of these essays I wished at times that I could write like that. Sedaris is amazing with words! I hope he continues his successful streak. Happy-Go-Lucky is surely another winner.

Disclaimer: I received a digital ARC from the publisher, via Netgalley, in exchange for my honest opinion.

Don't read if you currently have COVID and prone to fits of coughing while laughing.

David Sedaris has done it again in Happy-Go-Lucky. His dry whit and brilliant humor shines during his pandemic filled days and his relationship with his father.

While I typically listen to his books (he reads) I could hear his voice the entire time. I most certainly will be buying the audiobook to add to my collection when it comes out.

With his trademark humor and unique look at the world, Sedaris writes about his relationship with his father, the pandemic, and grief. I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Happy-Go-Lucky.

I've been a fan of Mr. Sedaris for quite some time, and have read most of his books so I was stoked when my request was approved.

I can't believe Mr. Sedaris is nearly 70; it feels like I just started reading his books, and at the same time it feels like I've been reading him for years (which I have).

His humor and honesty shine once again in Happy-Go-Lucky; I love reading about his time with his siblings, especially with Amy.

They're so real and strange and goofy and weird and talented, and his blunt and honest observations about everything from COVID, to Trump and BLM, sometimes echo my own thoughts.

Mr. Sedaris, are you a mind reader?

No, you're just a great writer. That's much better, in my opinion.

As always, his essays are tragic and hilarious, sad and heartfelt, random like a Seinfeld episode, and deeply, deeply personal.

Sometimes, one (or more) of his recollections will make think, "Oh, yeah," and I'll put my Kindle down because it made me think about a subject in a new way.

Love the cover; creepy and hysterical and morbid all at the same time.

I really didn’t know how badly I needed a new David Sedaris essay collection until I finally got it. All it took was reading the first essay ‘Active Shooter’ to make me feel like I was catching up with an old friend I love but never get to see. Happy-Go-Lucky follows a theme of heavier than usual content, similar to Calypso, his last essay collection prior. All the classic Sedaris themes are there in all their cynical, snarky glory mixed in with the raw emotion of different stages of grief, embarrassingly honest moments of over sharing and the frustration of the Covid pandemic.

One of my only complaints is in Fresh Caught Haddock where he is talking about how, something along the lines of he’s nervous his favorite stores are going to get looted during the BLM protests and he won’t be able to buy anything when Covid lockdown is over, was a very on brand bratty Sedaris moment but it could come off really out of touch to people unfamiliar with his sense of humor. (Don’t worry, David, I’m sure you’re able to get your culottes or floor length shirt or whatever heinous sounding article of clothing you’re going for next.) Aside from that, the essay actually seems like a pretty self aware account of past racist mistakes and pointing out performative activism in other white people during this era. I also shuddered multiple times through the Lady Marmalade essay, very disturbing.

Overall, I think he’s still got it! My favorite essays were Active Shooter, Highfalutin, Themes and Variations, The Vacuum, Pearls and Happy-Go-Lucky.

Happy-Go-Lucky by David Sedaris
Expected publication date: May 31, 2022

Date read: April 9, 2022



In a more serious tone than in some of his earlier collections - but still with his own brand of humor - Sedaris tackles the issues of the past few years, from the pandemic, to the death of his father.

This is the first book by David Sedaris that I haven’t listened to the audiobook of (which he always reads himself). I still enjoyed this collection, but it’s not the same as hearing him read his stories. (I wasn’t about to pass up a Sedaris advanced copy, though!)

I also need to note, before I get into the stories themselves, that the cover of this book is horribly perfect. The old-timey clown picture is unsettling, but it kind of works, and was obviously done on purpose, because that’s who Sedaris is. But my reaction upon first seeing the cover on NetGalley was “No way, I’m not going to read a book with that creepy clo… oh, it’s David Sedaris! Yes please!” I mean, the cover definitely got my attention.

Now, I adore David Sedaris. I think his books - especially his earlier collections - are wonderful. Whenever someone asks me about trying out audiobooks for the first time, I recommend Me Talk Pretty One Day as a great choice. This collection still contains his trademark humor and wonderful tales about his family (Amy makes a lot of appearances in this one), but the topics are overall much more serious. There are a few essays dealing with his ailing/dying father, a few with the COVID pandemic, and a lot about just getting older. It’s still an enjoyable collection of personal essays, but I definitely wouldn’t recommend starting here if you’ve never read his books before. Because despite the title, this is not a happy book.

It must also be said, in case you’re unfamiliar with Sedaris, that his humor is not for everyone (although is any comedian’s humor really appealing to all audiences?) Sedaris is very politically liberal, and not afraid to mention politics in his work, although none of the essays are purely political pieces.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, as I have enjoyed all of Sedaris’s work up to this point. I like how he can make me laugh even when discussing serious topics; I found “Unbuttoned” - about his father’s illness - particularly funny. Not a great starting point if you’ve never read Sedaris before, but definitely one to check out if you’re already a fan. If you’re looking for a better place to start, pick up Me Talk Pretty One Day or When You Are Engulfed in Flames, on audiobook if possible.

Rating: 4/5 stars

Trigger warning: mentions of death/illness of a parent, suicide, sexual assault, prostitution, physical assault, depression, mental illness, and drug use

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

First line: It was spring, and my sister Lisa and I were in her toy-sized car, riding from the airport in Greensboro, North Carolina, to her house in Winston-Salem.

Summary: In David Sedaris’ latest collection of stories he tackles events like the pandemic, the death of his father and hurricanes at his beach house.

My Thoughts: As with most of his other books I was laughing through much of it. He can bring humor to such serious topics without being too vulgar. But when he talks about his father it just breaks my heart. He had such a difficult relationship with him and he does not hold back when he talks about it. I think through this collection I learned so much more about David than his previous books. It was a very small book and a quick read which I would highly recommend.

FYI: Some language and difficult topics.

I’ll be honest up front and state that I am a huge fan of David Sedaris, so I am predisposed to love everything he writes. But even so, I thought this book was brilliant! As is often true of his books, most of the pieces are hilarious, and a few others break your heart. As someone who is dealing with an aging parent, I found the parts about his father especially poignant. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I LOVE David Sedaris. I particularly love hearing him read and have seen him in person a few times. Happy-Go-Lucky is more utter hilarity - a new collection of essays which cover the pandemic, aging and the death of his father. Lots of old friends drop in like his sisters and Hugh. I could hear David's voice from back in the day when TAL covered his stint as a Macy's Elf throughout the essays like he was reading them just to me. If you are a David Sedaris fan, this is a great new entry in his life and legacy.
#LittleBrown&Co #HappyGoLucky #DavidSedaris

“The bullet I fired was so off the mark, my only hope was that my enemy would laugh themselves to death.”

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David Sedaris is an auto-buy author for me. He brings a unique, hilarious view to even the most mundane aspects of life. This book was full of so many laugh out loud moments even though he tackles a lot of serious life moments. From his home being destroyed in a hurricane to his father’s death, the BLM movement to life in the pandemic - we get poignant observations, silly quips and biting commentaries on all aspects of these events and many more. We get more moments relating travel mishaps, beautiful moments on book tours and endless jokes. And yes, when I take my bra off… I’m in for the day! IYKYK

If you haven’t read a David Sedaris book yet, what are you waiting for? Read this one, read any of them. You won’t regret it.

Thanks to Netgalley for advanced access to this novel. All opinions above are my own.

I've been reading David Sedaris' work for about two decades now. This might not be my personal favorite of all time, but boy was it welcome in my life right now. He addressed so many topics that I've also dealing with in my life - covid, political burnout, death of a parent, dental work.. With so much isolation and restricting myself to my social bubble, it felt good to read about what are, in fact, universal struggles. I may have to listen to the inevitable audiobook as well, since I kept hearing David's voice in my head as I read this essay collection.

I enjoyed this book, but it definitely isn't my favorite of the author's catalog. Well written with a mix of humor and heartbreak, this book was good but didn't hit all the high notes that others did.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me a complimentary ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was another fantastic essay collection from David Sedaris. I started reading his collections when [book:Me Talk Pretty One Day|4137] was the buzzy title. With every collection, you learn more about the dynamic he has with both his family and his partner, Hugh. This collection was no different, but it dealt with heavy topics such as his father's passing and COVID. All the while, Sedaris keep his dry humor at the ready.

I would highly recommend this title for both old and new fans.

The newest collection of stories from David Sedaris. His writing style is great as always although I didn’t find quite the same humor in this collection as I have in others. Still witty, just less humorous.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3 Not-So-Lucky stars

With occasionally shoulder-shaking funny, sometimes clever writing, it was nice to ‘visit’ with David Sedaris and his odd-ball / weird family again. Some stories were sweet, tender, some sad, sarcastic. A favorite story was about crooked teeth and Invisalign braces.

Written during the pandemic, Sedaris’ essays bite with truth and sarcasm. “…if at any time during the meal a dinner guest used the word surreal to describe our current situation, or the phrase hunkered down, I would make a mental not to disinvite them from any future get-togethers. I hate the cliches that came with the pandemic, hated hearing the new normal. Oh, and heroes. At first the word was used for health-care professionals. Then for essential workers. Then we were all heroes.” David writes about his blue gingham mask, “The fabric was agreeable, but the straps, which were too tight, caused my ears to stick out and look like Pringles on hinges.”

Sedaris describes his dad, “the man who’d always found an excuse to skimp on others but allowed himself only the best.” “As long as my father had power, he used it to hurt me. In my youth I just took it. Then I started to write about it, to actually make a profit from it.”

Happy-Go-Lucky is a mixed bag. The ending was odd and abrupt. I haven’t read all of Sedaris’ books but enjoyed others much more than Happy-Go-Lucky. I think it’s good to mix the serious and the hilarious, that’s life. I found myself searching for those ROTFL moments Sedaris is known for and wanting more.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Some of this was great, incredibly dark and funny, and some of it was a little "Old Man Yells at Clouds", which to say really out of touch.

Every time I read a book by David Sedaris I can't decide whether I love him or hate him. As he's grown older and more wealthy I tend to roll my eyes at his problems more often, but in this book that's offset by the essays involving his father's death, which are heartfelt.

After reading Happy Go Lucky and the rest of Sedaris’s catalog over the years, I feel like I am one of the family. This was one of my favorite books of his, as his stories were even more humble and heartwarming. With nods to the political climate, the pandemic, and his dying father, Sedaris once again shows us the humor in the tragic and mundane.

I’ve been a huge David Sedaris fan for years. His dry wit shines in his latest book, Happy-Go-Lucky, which contains essays mostly focusing on navigating the pandemic and the decline and death of his father, Lou. There’s a poignancy in his writing this time around, some bittersweet longing for things to be the way they once were, something we all can relate to right now.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!