Microthrills: True Stories from a Life of Small Highs [Mass Market Paperback]

Wendy Spero (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 31, 2007

Raised in Manhattan by her overprotective sex-therapist mother (who wore "nine inches of shoulder pads"), Wendy Spero has always sought excitement in microthrills, the small, strange highs that give her life meaning—from finding a strip tease video of her grandmother to selling knives door-to-door. As a little girl, Spero passed the time sniffing fruit-scented markers and breaking up arguments between her imaginary friends. As an adult, in her first office job, she formed an unusual relationship with her boss that involved as much marijuana-smoking as it did mentoring. Called "a profoundly funny human being" by Time Out New York, Spero is now a comedian living in L.A., grappling with such grown-up issues as trying to kick her addiction to eating candy in bed and learning how to drive.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Every day for comedian and writer Spero is an endless stream of microthrills: intense gratification gathered from mundane pleasures like fruit-scented markers and squishy rubber keychains. Eschewing traditional ideas of fun-dangerous pursuits like roller coasters and bike riding-Spero nonetheless has exciting, zany experiences daily, whether showing her finger puppet collection to potential roommates or dealing with desperate e-mail from her jealous dentist. The drama began early for Spero, growing up with an energetic, anxious, fiercely loving mother: parting each frenzied morning involved "a tortuous good-bye ritual involving a lot of puckered-lip pecking and Eskimo nose-kissing," and her mother's late return from work each evening caused Spero to "pace in my Garfield nightgown, ranting about the dangers of the city to the balding night doorman who doesn't speak English." Spero has an impressive memory for the sensory details of her childhood; she longingly recalls her Halloween masks, "how the mouth portion got slightly sticky, and how I'd feel nearly suffocated by the fog of my candy-scented breath." Though her essays sometimes lack narrative structure, there's plenty of funny one-liners ("I have absolutely no memory of my mother against a natural backdrop, although I do recall her running in heels from furry bees in the park"), and Spero's down-to-earth, adorably compulsive voice delivers some priceless moments.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Never one for derring-do, comedian and actress Spero is content to inhabit a "small world brimming with tiny thrills." Fittingly, this series of vignettes prompts many pleasant chuckles but few gut-busting guffaws. Sure, she has a quirky family: a petite, sex-therapist mother, who sports nine layers of shoulder pads and with whom Spero long shared a tiny apartment on Manhattan's Upper East Side; an adoring grandfather, a dead-ringer for Albert Einstein, insistent upon videotaping her every dramatic inclination. Her habits are odd, too: as a child, she sniffed scented markers and removed her arm hair with Nair; as an adult, she continues a strangely intimate relationship with a sprawling collection of stuffed animals. Spero's juvenile tendencies carry over into her professional life as well: she regularly leaves Tootsie Roll residue on memos and sprinkles pink glitter on her boss' budget reports. This memoir doesn't reach the hilarious heights of David Sedaris, but it possesses a sweetness often lacking in today's comic fare. The book is inspired by a one-woman show of the same name. Allison Block
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Plume (July 31, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0452288436
• ISBN-13: 978-0452288430
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #794,023 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A window into a different life, August 31, 2006

By 

Adam Pisoni (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Microthrills: True Stories from a Life of Small Highs (Hardcover)

There are thousands of 'slice of life' books which range from traumatic to absurd. The life of Wendy as portrayed in Microthrills seems far more relatable than many of these. Amos claims she actually toned down her OCD for the book. Still, with as crazy as she seems, there are aspects of her neurosis that anyone can relate to. We're all a little neurotic after all. On top of being extremely interesting, this book is also extremely funny. Many times during my read I laughed as if I had been there at that moment and experienced what she had experienced, feeling the joy she felt at experiencing something unique and strange.

After finishing her book I had a general feeling that I needed to be more observant in life. Wendy shows us that no life is ordinary if you look at it through the right kind of eyes. Situations which we might perceive as painful or awkward can be seen as novel and humorous. We're surrounded by absurdity. Recognizing the absurd makes life that much more interesting.

I enjoyed the whole book, cover to cover. Unlike albums where there are only a few songs you REALLY like, I felt every chapter of this book was worth reading.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You'll laugh until you hurt, flip the page, and repeat, February 6, 2007

By 

Stephen G. (Oklahoma City, OK) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Microthrills: True Stories from a Life of Small Highs (Hardcover)

Wow. What a total and utter surprise.

After reading the rave reviews on Amazon I figured I would get the book and it would be a letdown. Good, but not 5-star good. Well, I was wrong -- and the reviews were right. Do yourself a favor and get this book.

You probably won't learn any life lessons that you can teach your children, but you'll close the book with an understanding of life in another person's shoes. There were lots of things I was shocked about (people live like that?!) and just as many things I identified with (oh my gosh, me too!!). As soon as I finished this book I forced my roomate to read it -- every 5 minutes there was a roar of laughter from the next room for the next few nights.

Its honest. Its funny. You'll want to read it all, and you'll be sad when it is over. I recommend it.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars side-splitting, honest and sweet, August 16, 2006

By 

Emma Sollars - See all my reviews

This review is from: Microthrills: True Stories from a Life of Small Highs (Hardcover)

This book is hilariously funny, honest and I enjoyed every second of it. Wendy Spero has a really unique ability to view some of life's truly bizarre events with joy and humor and reading this book, you couldn't help but share in it. She's also so gut-wrenchingly, heart-stoppingly funny that I laughed until I cried and then some. Read this book!