Dad is Fat by Jim Gaffigan

Overview from Barnes and Noble:

In Dad is Fat, stand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan, who’s best known for his legendary riffs on Hot Pockets, bacon, manatees, and McDonald's, expresses all the joys and horrors of life with five young children—everything from cousins ("celebrities for little kids") to toddlers’ communication skills (“they always sound like they have traveled by horseback for hours to deliver important news”), to the eating habits of four year olds (“there is no difference between a four year old eating a taco and throwing a taco on the floor”). Reminiscent of Bill Cosby’s Fatherhood, Dad is Fat is sharply observed, explosively funny, and a cry for help from a man who has realized he and his wife are outnumbered in their own home.

My thoughts:
I listened to this book last week and really enjoyed it.  For part of the time I was out and about around town for a long run and every time an essay would strike me as really funny I would laugh out loud and then wonder what people passing me thought.  Maybe something along the lines of how running had driven me crazy or that I must be delirious.  It did make me feel a tad crazy to be laughing while running, but the book got me through a long run.

I cannot picture living in a two bedroom apartment with five kids, nor do I want picture living in a two bedroom place with my own four children.  I could relate to some of his essays, not from the living in New York standpoint, or the comedian standpoint, but from the being out numbered by your children standpoint.  Whenever he talked about how long it takes to put on sunscreen I remembered how long it took me pre spray sunscreen.  That stuff has been a lifesaver because I am religious about sun protection and being able to spray arms and legs is such a time saver.  (I remember the first time I took my two-this was quite a few years ago- children out in the snow.  We had recently moved to a place where it snowed and I felt the need to dress a one and two year old in layers, with snow pants and boot and sunscreen on their faces.  I was a sweaty mess by the time we made it outside and then we only stayed out for maybe 20 minutes.  It took me longer to get them ready than the time we spent out there.)

You can tell Gaffigan loves his children and his wife and eating, he talks an awful lot about eating.  I will be hoping that he and his family find an apartment that they love that is slightly bigger than the one they are living in now, because I truly think they may be driven insane if they have to share such a small space for many more years to come!

Product Details

• ISBN-13: 9780385349055
• Publisher: Crown Publishing Group
• Publication date: 5/7/2013
• Pages: 288

Meet the Author

JIM GAFFIGAN is a stand-up comedian and actor with numerous film, television, and stage credits. He lives in Manhattan with his wife, Jeannie, and their five children in a two-bedroom apartment.