Rating: 
Summary: Humourous Reflections on Turning 65
Review: Less and less of what is self-labeled as "humor" these days causes me to laugh. Bill Cosby's "I am What I Ate . . . and I'm frightened!!!" is a happy exception. Many people claim that comedy is all about timing . . . which can be hard to do in a book. But with deft twists that I defy you to see coming, he takes you down a laugh-ridden labyrinth of all the foolish things people do about their health. What makes the humor especially powerful is that Mr. Cosby is frequently telling stories on himself. But at the same time you'll recognize yourself . . . and people he knows in these stories.The basic set-up is that Mr. Cosby is excited about turning 65 . . . because he can spend his social security check to secretly buy food that his wife doesn't want him to eat because it's unhealthy. She runs the check book on a tight leash (with frequent cross-examinations about spending), so this is a real boon. That happy thought is muddled, though, when Mr. Cosby goes to have a physical. He finds that he has the body of someone much younger than 65 . . . except for a sky-high cholesterol level and a partially blocked carotid artery (the one that takes blood to the brain). Suddenly, he has visions of all that unhealthy food he has eaten all over the years. Ugh! From there, Mr. Cosby takes you on a funny excursion into all of the other ways that our bodies run down hill (age, hair loss, joints that wear out and physical conditioning), the ways we rationalize "not" doing what we should (conveniently forgetting, changing our focus and simply making up crazy excuses) and the foolish ways that doctors try to overcome our self-destructive tendencies. Then, he looks around to see the bad habits that others have . . . and also rationalize (drinking, smoking and binge overeating), and finds similar room for humor. If you are like me, you can almost hear Mr. Cosby's voice as he delivers these wry witty commentaries on the human condition. What makes them so funny is that he's not exaggerating very much! People are really funny about their vices. All those who really love food will get the biggest kick out of seeing their obsession exposed. As one such person, he had me laughing aloud during many points in the book. The book also contains occasional illustrations by George Booth that add to the fun. My favorite is the one on the back cover of the dust jacket. To give you a flavor of the book, let me share a few quotes from the last chapter: ". . . three choices everyone has: Don't go to the doctor at all. Just ignore everything until one day your eyeballs roll up under your eyebrows, your body slumps forward, and you wake up in traffic in the back of a large, strange vehicle." "Why is she anemic? Well, from the blood tests it seems that she's lost three-fourths of her blood. They took her blood to find out why she's losing blood." One of the great beauties of this book is that each story builds on the previous ones . . . so new information creates humorous echoes in your memory that remind you of the rest of the book. The cumulative effect is marvelous. As I finished the book, I began to wonder why we are so perverse in harming ourselves. Sure, Mr. Cosby has provided lots of "excuses" but we're all smart enough not to believe our own excuses. Maybe we just want to be indulged like most of our parents did while we were little . . . but no one does any more now that we are grown. It that's the case, find your indulgence in less unhealthy ways. Remember, 65 is coming for most of us!
Rating: 
Summary: Not really all that funny
Review: OK, so I like Cosby, always have, but I did not find much in this little book that made me laugh.
Rating: 
Summary: I love Bill Cosby . . . but
Review: Sigh. I was hoping greatly to enjoy this book, but it is rambling and unorganized. A chapter may have a topic, but ten different other things are discussed within it. Bill really let us down here. Occasionally, it is humorous. That's the best I can say. It does not deliver what it promises; it's often actually boring. I'm sure it would not have been published anywhere without Cosby's name on it. Bill, I love you, but you need honest editors to help you with your books. This is like a very long freewriting exercise about the problems of growing older. I'm sure Bill can do better.
Rating: 
Summary: The Doctor Makes Us Smile
Review: Since childhood, Cosby has made me laugh. He's proven that humor can be funny and clean simultaneously. His facial gestures, his voices, his rolled eyes, all add to the comedic experience. In "I Am What I Ate..." Cosby tackles the issues of health and dying in the grand tradition of irreverence. Speaking from a platform of retirement age, he can get away with this--particularly when he's throwing barbs at himself. The sections on food and smoking had me laughing out loud. Interspersed, Cosby adds some wry insight to the indulgent American mindset. The writing is conversational and breezy. I could almost imagine that Bill Cosby was reading it aloud. And that's my only complaint. He wasn't reading it. He wasn't even in the room. Much of his humor works wonderfully in a live setting, but here it brought mostly smiles, few actual laughs. For a lightweight look at a heavyweight subject, this book is fun. I'd still rather see the man live. Please, Cosby, hold off on any funerals...we love having you around!
Rating:
Summary: The Doctor Makes Us Smile
Review: Since childhood, Cosby has made me laugh. He's proven that humor can be funny and clean simultaneously. His facial gestures, his voices, his rolled eyes, all add to the comedic experience. In "I Am What I Ate..." Cosby tackles the issues of health and dying in the grand tradition of irreverence. Speaking from a platform of retirement age, he can get away with this--particularly when he's throwing barbs at himself. The sections on food and smoking had me laughing out loud. Interspersed, Cosby adds some wry insight to the indulgent American mindset. The writing is conversational and breezy. I could almost imagine that Bill Cosby was reading it aloud. And that's my only complaint. He wasn't reading it. He wasn't even in the room. Much of his humor works wonderfully in a live setting, but here it brought mostly smiles, few actual laughs. For a lightweight look at a heavyweight subject, this book is fun. I'd still rather see the man live. Please, Cosby, hold off on any funerals...we love having you around!
Rating:
Summary: The Doctor Makes Us Smile
Review: Since childhood, Cosby has made me laugh. He's proven that humor can be funny and clean simultaneously. His facial gestures, his voices, his rolled eyes, all add to the comedic experience. In "I Am What I Ate..." Cosby tackles the issues of health and dying in the grand tradition of irreverence. Speaking from a platform of retirement age, he can get away with this--particularly when he's throwing barbs at himself. The sections on food and smoking had me laughing out loud. Interspersed, Cosby adds some wry insight to the indulgent American mindset. The writing is conversational and breezy. I could almost imagine that Bill Cosby was reading it aloud. And that's my only complaint. He wasn't reading it. He wasn't even in the room. Much of his humor works wonderfully in a live setting, but here it brought mostly smiles, few actual laughs. For a lightweight look at a heavyweight subject, this book is fun. I'd still rather see the man live. Please, Cosby, hold off on any funerals...we love having you around!
Rating:
Summary: Fat Albert Goes on a Diet
Review: The doctor tells Cosby he has to lower his cholesterol. No more fatty meals, no more salty snacks, and while we're at it, no more cigars. Cosby has a few things to say about this disturbing turn of events. This reads like a Cosby monologue, almost stream-of-consciousness, whatever's on his mind. It's funny, but mostly in a low-key way, not like a stand-up routine with lots of laughs. He reminisces about the old days, when he ate whatever he wanted, such as four buttery croissants for breakfast, with jam and extra butter on each one. He talk about his new regimen of sensible portions. Sure, the doctor tells him, you can still have pepperoni pizza, but just one slice. And only every three months. The funniest bits include the story of his mother, who was quite resourceful at hiding her favorite forbidden food, porkchops, from her grown children, who were trying to keep her on her diet. Another funny book from the Coz.
Rating:
Summary: Lauged and Laughed
Review: This book is the best! So human and so funny/I felt like Cosby told me the story in person. A great gift for anyone...andin particular anyone needing to change theie diet!
Rating: 
Summary: Humor with some seriousness...
Review: This is a short little book that covers Cosby's thoughts on growing old, having your body wear out, and how we're obsessed with wanting to be healthy without making any changes to our lifestyle. While he's trying to be humorous, I think he's trying to make some serious points about our society. Such as, how people who are smokers will go to incredible lengths and discomforts to be able to have a cigarette. Or how people who need to change their eating habits will play mental games to try and avoid it (or ask for drugs to erase the effects of the bad food). Too much of it rings true... If you have a chance to read it, I would recommend the book. Don't know that I would go out of my way to buy it, but having a library a block away makes some things much easier... :-)
Rating:
Summary: Hey, the guy is as sharp as his appetite...
Review: Well, his partially blocked carotid artery has not impaired the quickness of his wit for skewering the ironic quirks of the human species, Americans in particular. The skit-like chapters are clever as always and include his trademark self-deprecating jabs. Unfortunately I was hoping that he would have us all laughing hard enough to actually confront some of our death-defying dietary and addictive choices, but he's not quite there. As a Christmas gift you may want to accompany it with your favorite low-carb book. Let's hope it keeps a few million Americans laughing right into their New Year resolutions.
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