Openly Bob

Rating:
Summary: Way to Go, Smith!
Review: One of my favorites. Unfortunately, I -lent- my copy to a man I was not quite seeing, & he decided that I had "given" the book to him. Anyhow, the book is thoroughly entertaining, honest, straightforward & LOL hilarious! Read it!!

Rating:
Summary: Openly Bob will have you laughing out loud!
Review: Openly Bob has got to be one the greatest books I've read in a long time. Mr Smith deals with so many subjects, not just pertaining the the "gay" culture, so anyone can relate to it--be it the death of a parent or a birdwatching excursion in Central Park. He is better than Seinfeld at making "Something" from "Nothing."

Rating:
Summary: A clean-cut all-American gay boy can be funny? Yes very!
Review: The clean-cut all-American boy Bob Smith was probably an altar boy (as well as being an alter-boy). The son of a heavy-drinking New York State trooper and a devoutly Catholic mother, he grew up in Buffalo. The book begins and ends with visits to his hometown, accompanied by his life-partner Tom. They also visit Tom's parents in their Florida retirement home, survive a hurricane that strikes Provincetown and two bouts of couples counseling. Being a professional comedian, Smith finds plenty that is funny about these events and nonevents. Some of the quips fall flat, and he sometimes drives metaphors into the ground, but his enjoyment at playing with language is infectious, and even the outright jokes are usually based on keen perception of the absurdities of his own life and the society around him.

Smith's humor is genial, even when aimed at attitudes and behavior that deeply annoy him. Whereas David Sedaris sometimes strikes me as vicious (though I'm sure he'd label his extremes "Swiftian" and dismiss Smith as a gay Thurber), Smith's bile drains somewhere other than in his writing.My favorite chapter is the one that verges on talking about sex (something many other gay comics focus upon, but Smith all but ignores), "A Few Notes on Sex Education."

It seems that he comes by his optimism naturally, since his mother tells his sister "Just because you're coming home for your father's funeral, doesn't mean that we can't have fun."

The book is _not_ a string of one-liners. It is a collection of keenly observed essays on a number of facets of American life (in a range of places I've already enumerated). They are connected primarily by how Bob Smith sees and describes the world, but most of the book coheres around one monogamous gay couple and their extended families ("The terms 'immediate' and 'extended' are apt because my immediate family can cause instant mood swings and my extended family is better kept at a distance"). Although relentlessly breezy in style, the book is framed by a moving tribute to his parents.

Rating:
Summary: IF YOU DON'T LAUGH OUT LOUD, SEE A DOCTOR!
Review: This hands down one of the funniest books I've ever had the pleasure of reading. I've read it probably four times and I still laugh out loud! My copy is dog-eared, highlighted and underlined! This is truly one of those books you don't want to end. Everytime I read it I just want to invite Mr.Smith to dinner. All I can say is BUY THIS BOOK!!

Rating:
Summary: A great read. This man is a gay Dave Barry.
Review: This is one of the best collection of humourous essays which I have come across - gay or straight. Mr. Smith writes with humour and poignancy.

Rating:
Summary: I Read It Weeks Ago And I'm Still Laughing Out Loud!
Review: This is one of the funniest and most deeply moving books I have ever read by a gay male author. The writing is superbly droll, but never at the expense of the emotion or the story. The last essay, concerning the death of Bob's alcoholic father is very touching. I called my dad immediately after reading it and thanked him for his sobriety.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing...
Review: This is one of the funniest books I have read in a long time. At one point I was sitting in a cafe drinking coffee and reading it and I felt I had to leave I was laughing so hard. Bob Smith has a very accessable type of humor that is quite similar to Jerry Seinfeld or Ellen. Highly recommended...

Rating:
Summary: A Real Story
Review: Well guys,I was in LA..Weather was nice.I went to a bookstore and started to look at the gay section.I found a book named 'Openly Bob'.It was all strange for me first.To read the book,oh,I don't even like reading,then what if it's boring?Finally I bought it.I went to my room in campuse than started to read it..Wow,it was amazing,i was laughing out loud although i was alone in the room.It was strange for me.When I looked at my watch,I saw that 3 hours passed..God,how quick.Next day I finished the book..So guys,everyone has lived a part of this book,that's why,it worths to read.Just buy,then you won't even remember how u read it:)

Rating:
Summary: Bob's Funny if you read it out loud...
Review: Well, the funniest parts of "Openly Bob" are short quips that can make you laugh out loud. Unfortunately, the stuff in between isn't as engaging as you might like. Sometimes the filler is worth the laughs, and other times you may end up trying to find the humor in what you just spent ten minutes reading. Still, a light and funny read, worth checking out.

Rating:
Summary: Laugh-O-Rama
Review: When this collection of essays won the Lambda Award several years ago, beating out David Sedaris' wonderful "Naked," I was incredulous. "With whom, pray tell," I pondered bitchily, "did Bob Smith sleep to win that award?" Fast forward to 2000: I actually read "Openly Bob." NOW I KNOW WHY BOB WON: Because he wrote the funniest, the most insightful book of a gay man's life and times that I have read, including -- and I never thought I would write this -- Sedaris' "Naked" or "Barrel Fever." And, kids, I read everything. So, I heartily recommend Bob Smith's "Openly Bob" to all.