Calypso by David Sedaris

I'm having a really hard time starting this review. I do not enjoy writing bad reviews. I love books, I love to praise authors and look for the importance of a story, even if it isn't a five-star read for me. I purchased Calypso because I had heard good things about the writing style and humor in all of David Sedaris' work. As of right now, I'm not a fan and I don't know that I will ever read another of his books.

What I found troubling -

In one story early on, David introduces a woman, identifies her as Black, then immediately describes her tattoos as looking like they were "done at home with a sewing needle." Repeatedly throughout the book, uncomplimentary language is used to describe people of color (and only people of color). It's the kind of coded language used when a news station describes young Black men as "thugs." This kind of view shaping happens many times throughout.

In another story, we hear about a second-hand encounter of one of the author's sisters and the author's father. Many years ago they were walking home when they passed a Black man on the street who inappropriately exposed himself. The father in this story then turns himself and his teenage daughter around so they can pass the man again and laugh.

Later on, we hear some of the author's thoughts on the legalization of gay marriage, or more so, before the legalization of gay marriage and his annoyance at having to sit through heterosexual weddings. He says that gay people (not "queer" because he has no idea what inclusive language is) are often on the outskirts of these events, "working as Negro porters and showing people to their seats."

Hold up, Dave- I promise you, being a gay, white, financially well-off man at someone elses' extravagant wedding (AKA lavish party) is nothing like being Black at any point in history.

Next, we get to read about David's partner, Hugh, being transphobic. David buys some shorts and says, "Hugh hates this sort of thing and accuses me of transitioning." Almost immediately followed by David trying on a shirt that doesn't look quite right and Hugh says, "Maybe it will look better when you get your Adam's apple shaved off."

I'm going to skim over the section where he shames his own partner for the number of people he has slept with and says it's a miracle that neither of them has contracted AIDS.

The deal-breaker for me is a story in which the author is on a book tour and to make conversation, asks people what they say in their specific country when someone cuts them off in traffic. Someone tells him, "If you want to get creative you might say 'dirty typhus mongoloid'… is that the right word, mongoloid?" to which David Sedaris replies, "We would say 'someone with Down Syndrome."

Many years ago "mongoloid" was a term used to describe someone with Down syndrome. But this book was written in 2018 and this word has long since been deemed obsolete and insensitive.

Jokes are funny. Insensitivity wrapped in privilege and disguised as a joke is not funny.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why I don't think I will be reading another David Sedaris book, probably ever again. I want to say, I know a lot of the things written were meant to be jokes and to some people, they may be funny. But to me, they were not. Almost every joke was made in poor taste and I couldn't even enjoy the ones that were actually kind of funny because of everything that had come before.

I would also like to point out that these are just a few highlights. There is so much more in this book that was troubling to me, that was hypocritical, and that was just tasteless.

This is the word that keeps coming to mind and if I had to give a one-word review for this book, it would be that- tasteless.

I'm not telling you how to spend your money, but I think there are a lot of other books and authors that are far more worthy of our financial support in 2021.

As always, I am open to conversations and even a debate, but only if we can all remain mature and respectful. I never write book reviews to prove my point, only to share my thoughts and opinions.