Popular self-satirist Augusten Burroughs has penned another fun look at various things that he has experienced in his life with a series of humorous essays that look at everything from gay parenthood (of both kids and dogs) to his advertising career. You might recognize the name as being the guy who wrote and lived the tale Running With Scissors, which was made into the popular movie starring Annette Benning among others.

I listened to this one as an audiobook while riding back and forth to work, running errands, and other times spent in my truck. One of the great things about Burroughs' books is that he narrates them when they are turned into audiobooks. That means it comes with all the right emphasis. He is also a really good narrator so it works. That is definitely not something that can always be said about writers and poets.

I think Ray is a little shocked about Burroughs, though. Whenever I have the CDs going when he is in the truck he seems surprised about some of the language and content of the stories. Burroughs is one of those people who is very comfortable with sharing everything about himself ... the good, the bad, and the ugly. For some reason that shocks Ray. I am not really sure why since I never really think of him as being a prude. I think it is more because Burroughs is so willing to talk about this stuff frankly.

That is part of why I appreciate the books. Of course, a big part of it is that he is so funny. But the major part is that he seems so willing to be frank about himself, what he has done, and his reasosn for doing it. I thin that it is something that we all should be able to do more often.

I am already waiting for another of his books to come in at work so I can start listening to it.

I am secretly hoping he will run across this blog entry because I would love a chance to talk to him via email or some other way. We both seem to have the same warped sense of humor, and he might be able to talk me into actually sitting down and writing that book I always wanted to write. I would love to follow in his footsteps.