Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea by Chelsea Handler

Overview from Barnes and Noble:

When Chelsea Handler needs to get a few things off her chest, she appeals to a higher power -- vodka. You would too if you found out that your boyfriend was having an affair with a Peekapoo or if you had to pretend to be honeymooning with your father in order to upgrade to first class. Welcome to Chelsea's world -- a place where absurdity reigns supreme and a quick wit is the best line of defense.

In this hilarious, deliciously skewed collection, Chelsea mines her past for stories about her family, relationships, and career that are at once singular and ridiculous. Whether she's convincing her third-grade class that she has been tapped to play Goldie Hawn's daughter in the sequel to Private Benjamin, deciding to be more egalitarian by dating a redhead, or looking out for a foulmouthed, rum-swilling little person who looks just like her...only smaller, Chelsea has a knack for getting herself into the most outrageous situations. Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea showcases the candor and irresistible turns of phrase that have made her one of the freshest voices in comedy today.

 

My thoughts:

I arrived at the beach with books packed but without having splurged on my yearly beach read book.  There is a fun used bookstore by the boardwalk that has a few shelves of used books.  This book was more than I usually pay for a used book, but it really jumped out at me so it became this years book.  Before I start with my thoughts I must admit that I have never watched Chelsea's show.  I've seen her in a movie or two and in the pages of magazines like People, but not watched her comedy act.  I think I had just read good reviews of this and that is what brought it onto my radar.

 

This book is laugh out loud funny.  I laughed so hard in bed one night that I felt like I was choking and then on the beach I laughed when no one else was.  My kids kept asking me what was so funny and none of the funny parts were appropriate to share with them.  I don't know how many times I had to say it was just a funny book!

 

I don't know how Chelsea is in person or on TV, but on paper she comes across as very amusing.  Talking about her family, how she dated some guy just because she had never been with a redhead before, going to jail briefly for having used her sister's ID to get into a bar and more turned hilarious at her retelling.  At one point my husband asked me what was so funny so I handed the book to him and pointed out the passage I was on.  He didn't even crack a smile so I think it was one of those had to be there or had to have read it moments.  This was the perfect beach read!

 

Details

•Pub. Date: December 2009

•Publisher: Gallery Books

•Format: Paperback , 264pp

•ISBN-13: 9781416596363

•ISBN: 1416596364

Meet The Author

Chelsea Handler is an accomplished stand-up comic and actress, as well as the bestselling author of My Horizontal Life. She is the star of her own late-night show on E!, Chelsea Lately; was one of the stars of Girls Behaving Badly; has appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with David Letterman; and has starred in her own half-hour Comedy Central special. Chelsea makes regular appearances in comedy clubs across America and lives in Los Angeles.

Table Of Contents

CHAPTER ONE: Blacklisted

CHAPTER TWO: Chelsea in Charge

CHAPTER THREE: Prison Break

CHAPTER FOUR: Bladder Stones

CHAPTER FIVE: Big Red

CHAPTER SIX: Dining in the Dark

CHAPTER SEVEN: Dim Sum and Then Some

CHAPTER EIGHT: Barking up the Wrong Tree

CHAPTER NINE: Re-Gift

CHAPTER TEN: Jumped

CHAPTER ELEVEN: Mini-Me

CHAPTER TWELVE: Costa Rica