April 26, 2004
Fans of Notaro's chronicles of the idiosyncrasies of her life as a 20-something (The Idiot Girls' Action-Adventure Club
) and new wife (Autobiography of a Fat Bride
) will cheer the arrival of this collection of all-new material updating them on the meticulously analyzed exploits of Notaro's mid-30s. Among these navel-gazing essays are the story of how, one day when Notaro had a cold, she blew bubbles out her nose upon meeting a new boss; a repetitive whine about the specific types of spam e-mail her sister sends her; details of her passing of some kidney stones; and even quotations from a "sucky" review of one of her books from Kirkus Reviews
. No event is too inconsequential for Notaro to recount at length; no relative, friend, or acquaintance too insignificant, and yet reading this entire collection front to back won't leave readers with a single memorable character or episode. Notaro is at her best when she broadens her horizons beyond the quotidian mishaps of modern life and sets herself apart from her corporate colleagues (during a brief stint as a newspaper columnist) and the baby contagion luring her friends, one by one, to the perils of motherhood (she is 30-something, after all). On the whole, however, Notaro's is a comic gift in search of a subject. Agent, Jenny Bent.