Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time


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I feel like a Jerk, but I didn’t like it

The Pleasure of My Company by Steve Martin

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Steve Martin is a talented guy. He’s had a successful stand-up comedy and acting career since the 1970s; he’s written/co-written funny screenplays like The Jerk, Three Amigos, and L.A. Story; he’s published novels and written a Broadway musical; he’s an avid art collector and he plays a mean banjo; he’s won five Grammys, an Emmy, and a host of other awards. Throw in that stint performing magic on Main Street in Disneyland and you can say he’s lived a highly successful life. So, I feel kind […]

When a Coworker tells you “Don’t judge her, the book is for her dad” You don’t, but find your own copy.

A Wealth of Pigeons: A Cartoon Collection by Steve Martin

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I should have realized that even though Harry Bliss was the illustrator, the fact Steve Martin was involved would make A Wealth of Pigeons: A Cartoon Collection more of an adult book. I guess I assumed that it would be like several other actors, singers, artists who have ventured into “Children’s Land” with a picture book. Yet, I was not disappointed. Some of the jokes presented are funny, some hilarious and some fall flat. It is up to the reader which is which. The entire […]

What a wild and crazy guy

Born Standing Up by Steve Martin

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I love Steve Martin.  The first time my wife visited my house when we were dating, we watched The Jerk.  He is a damn national treasure.  I was interested in the reading this book for some time now, six years according to Goodreads, and it was not quite what I was expecting and yet I loved it all the same. This book seemed almost like Martin wrote it reluctantly and somehow I enjoyed that.  I suppose I expected Born Standing Up to be a typical […]

“I just believe that the interesting time in a career is pre-success, what shaped things, how did you get to this point?”

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I wasn’t planning on listening to this book right now, but then a sale happened and here we are. This book was on my to read list starting years ago, when I put together my Goodreads page at the same time as signing up for my first Cannonball Read (that would be number 4). I love listening to people tell me about their lives, whether it’s a friend or acquaintance on the sofa across from me, or if its someone’s memoir or autobiography. Steve Martin […]

Worth it for the pictures alone

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I read Steve Martin’s Shopgirl last year and didn’t really like it — the writing was good but I hated the plot and the characters. But I thought I would give his non-fiction a chance, and I’m glad I did. Born Standing Up tells of Martin’s (slow, painful) rise to fame as a stand up comedian, from his start doing magic shows as a teen and working at Disneyland, to sold out arenas every day of the week. “I have heard it said that a complicated childhood can lead […]

Shopgirl by Steve Martin

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Wow, I just really, really didn’t like this book. The more I think about it, the more I just really didn’t like it. There didn’t seem to be a point, and the main characters were all wholly unlikable, but not in a “love to hate them” kind of way. More like, “wait, why am I reading this again?”…. “A girl who is willing to give every ounce of herself to someone, who could never betray her lover, who never suspects maliciousness of anyone, and whose […]



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