I Know I Am, But What Are You?

Samantha Bee, a contributor to "The Daily Show," tells the story of her life using slapstick patter and caustic humor. Bee delivers her autobiographical vignettes with a steady intonation and snarky, offbeat comments that seem to be the punch lines to her stories. The stories, on such topics as camping trips and unusual lovers, poke fun at everyone and everything. Reminiscent of David Sedaris, Bee includes herself as a target of her humor. But what may be funny on TV falls flat in audio. Bee's sharp voice and cruel sense of humor make this a very different experience from "The Daily Show." M.B.K. (c) AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine

Starred review from June 28, 2010
Daily Show senior correspondent Samantha Bee offers colorful (and off-color) anecdotes from a childhood lived (at various points) with her bohemian mother, orderly father and stepmother, and devout Catholic grandmother. She also describes misadventures during vacation; a short-lived career in children's entertainment; her dislike of her tiny, rapidly aging hands; as well as the inexplicably numerous encounters she's had with strange men who expose themselves. Both the text and the dry, matter-of-fact narration are consistently sympathetic and engaging, and Bee's imitation of her 13-year-old self—ending every sentence with that typical rising inflection—is absolutely hilarious. A Gallery hardcover.