His voice is guaranteed to make you moist especially you, fella , even in the saddest of moments. YouTube his standup first, if you don't like his humor you won't enjoy this much either. If you do, this book is great. He breaks the fourth wall a bunch, gives "directors cut" commentary and riffs with the actual people he's talking about in between chapters making this an immersive and rewarding listen.
I usually will read anything except gruesome hurting. This book beat me. I choose to not finish it. I found the JR high school humor and escapades boring and good for nothing. Wish I knew how to return for credit.
I find the book to be nonredeemable. Save ur time n money. I have listened to a lot of audiobooks but Doug's is one of the best. It takes the genre to a whole new level and makes it unique.
Also he is the most brilliant comedian living which makes it great too. What a great book. I had to turn it off multiple times so I wouldn't erupt into psychotic level laughter in my cubicle. It also genuinely brought tears to my eyes a couple times and caused me to reflect on my own life in a fresh way.
A beautiful love story. Great performances from everyone including Doug no matter what he thinks. I hope the Tom Konopka podcast stuff makes it into the next edition. Additional stories and laughter. Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Such a great book! Stories of mother visiting Vegas reminded me of Dostoyevsky's classic The Gambler, just a great listen! Especially parts spoken by Mr. Chad Shank were absolutely brilliant!
I read this book in analog form and now hope that more people follow Doug Stanhope's example by doing an audiobook that's more a director's cut than merely the author or a stand in reading. Hearing and in an odd way meeting the people in his stories was fascinating. The golden pipes of Chad Shank should soon be all over audible as well. I tried to like this guy and thought the bit about his mother dying was a sweet, if not exactly conventional story.
But then he lost me. The truth is that he was a disturbed kid with a pretty sketchy childhood. That he was able to turn it into a career as a comedian and not a serial killer is commendable. Maybe he turns it all around in the end.
But I doubt it. I listened to this earbook on an crowded, busy, loud, foul-smelling overnight sleeper train in China. It made the journey much more bearable, which made me much less keen on the idea of suicide.
I think this is ironic, given Doug's personal beliefs and the contents of this book, because I don't know what irony is. One part made me laugh so hard, I accidentally knocked a chicken burger off my bunk and onto the head of the guy below me. He was a Muslim, and I'm pretty sure the burger wasn't halal. I tried to apologise profusely, but as we didn't share a language I can only be so certain that he understood.
I listened to the final installments this morning as I lay awake in a hospital bed. It was an emotional experience. I am an avid fan of Doug's podcast and am used to his bleak no holds barred approach to comedy and life in general. This was that normal full frontal attack on your sensibilities plus the tender underbelly of a man who had a truly loving and understanding relationship with his mother.
Read this book or better still listen to Doug, Chad and co. Reading and chatting in between. Includes a lot of additional commentary not in the text, making it closer to some of Doug Stanhope 's podcasts than to a straightforward audio book. This book is the reason I downloaded Audible and I'm so glad I did!
Tragic, funny, sickening and beautiful. This is, without doubt, the most open, human and graphically honest, celebrity autobiography that will ever be written. Even if the author misremembered and stumbled through the entire book.
His friends were there to help him along. It somehow manages to stay laugh-out-loud-funny, poignant and interest all at once. Best innovative use of the audiobook media format ever.
Admirably honest, eloquent and funny AF. Well worth the time and money. It is more of an extended podcast than an audio book. I knew nothing of Doug Stanhope or any of his friends or his mother. When he is talking to his friends it is stilted, embarrassing I just loved this from the get-go. Funny, emotional, disgusting and honest - everything I love in a book! Stanhope' narration is hilarious, and the additional riffs are an excellent touch. Listen to this at once! This book is beautifully deranged.
It's a highlight reel detailing the life of a man who, for better or for worse, didn't let the millstone of life grind him into a normal, functioning, member of society. Far from it. His reluctance to conform has led him into some crazy, messed up but hilarious scenarios where, if you could play the same events back again, nine times out of ten he'd be dead or in jail.
This dude is a stuntman, hurling himself off the mountain of existence without a parachute, ricocheting off boulder and rock but always getting himself up, dusting himself off and going again - once more into the breach. Never in my life would I ever have thought that I'd be envious of man who was pissed on by a Mexican gangbanger but, as I sit here listening to this book, my small office cubicle seems a little more monotoned, my colleagues seem a little more vanilla and my life seems a little less lived.
I consider myself to be quite a dark humoured kind of guy but, at certain points in this book, even I was drying my teeth to chalk. Whether you're offended, entertained, or horrified by the antics documented admittedly loosely in this book, you'll have to concede that it's one hell of a ride.
Loved it - rambles away from the text of the book to great affect - truly astonishing life story. Just when you thought you'd found an unsurpassable curmudgeon, Doug ruins it with a nuanced, beautiful and complex take on the human spirit.
Disclaimer: I'd already read "Digging Up Mother" and passed it on to my millennial son who, although possesses an aversion to paper, has nearly finished reading it. If this is the first or only actual "book" he reads, I expect my contribution to humanity to at least get one tick on the right side of literature. Yeah, you read me Poindexter. As for the Audible version? It's more of the same.
In the best possible way. But now with extra added reflection! As supplied by people-that-were-actually-there first hand accounts, a voiceover cast worthy of whatever accolades there are for such things, all strung out and together by an increasingly and appropriately inebriated Stanhope. Chad Shank excels at co-narrating the story, his rich timbre perfectly suited for an audiobook format and no doubt a sirens' song for Killer Termites.
You may get a little teary-eyed, unless you're dead inside - but either way you will be entertained. Hand the man his freedom.
A long time coming, of course I'd recommend Digging Up Mother to a friend! Everyone should read this book, it should be in Universities across the world and worshiped as point of study for centuries to come.
That Stanhope guy, he was alright. I think I've listened or seen every recording available probably many Doug wishes weren't available , this is Doug more refined, more concentrated and obviously performed with a more collaborative approach from his standup material. Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry? It both horrified and sexual aroused me, I'm not sure in which order that happened.
This was an amazing story about Doug Stanhope's life. Not only did he read the book with a life long friend but he has a discussion with friends and people that were involved at the end of each or most chapters, making a perfect blend of story and podcast.
I will definately re listen to this! So when Bonnie's alcoholic, hoarding life finally came to an end so many weird adventures later in rural Arizona, it was inevitable that Doug and Bonnie would be together for one last journey.
Digging Up Mother follows Doug's absurd, chaotic, and often obscene life as it intersects with that of his best friend, his biggest fan, and the love of his life: his mother, Bonnie. And it all starts with her death - one of the most memorable and amazing farewells you will ever hear. This audiobook is no exception. In what he refers to as the "director's cut commentary," Doug forgoes the confines of a straight-read and creates a truly unique listening experience, going off-script to riff throughout its sections and bringing in a cast of colorful characters — childhood friends, his podcast co-host, and fellow comedians and musicians — to voice letters from teachers and guidance counselors, diary entries from his mother, and even old homework assignments.
Additionally, Doug has several of the folks mentioned in the book expound on and give their version of events and stories, often remembered quite differently.
The result is a wildly fun audiobook that's as distinct as the comedian's own brand of humor. The audio version of my book Digging Up Mother is now available on Audible! He has always made comedy out tragedy, and the tragically funny story, full of shock value but also of human heart, of her mother's assisted suicide in the hands of her own beloved son is one of his best recent "bits" - and it is expanded here into a fully biographical story.
It is a double biography of Doug and Mother. It recounts Doug's grow This "love story" between a mother and a son is raunchy, occasionally touching and persistently funny. It recounts Doug's growing up in the planetary orbit around her mother - and staying there. I'm not sure what one is supposed to take away from it all.
Stanhope doesn't reveal all that many details behind his comedy. All the stories are mostly about sex, drugs and alcohol in sad excess. Then again, I'm starting to get the feeling that IS what is behind his comedy, in all honesty That, and mother - equally depraved and deprived of a moral center. Although it's not the story of our generation, or even the best story that Stanhope has told, the book's insight into relationships, the pains of growing old, the cost of bad life decisions, etc. If only as a warning, the needy, selfish antics of these two kin-related F-ups are a saga worth telling.
And who better to tell it than one of the perpetrators? I'd give three stars for the contents of the book, which are occasionally aimless, but I'd easily give four stars for the excellent audiobook with its added commentary by the people who were there. This is one of the best audiobook productions, and also one of the least professional Jul 06, Matt Wainwright rated it it was amazing. I've been a big fan of Stanhope since I saw him in a dive comedy club in the late 90's.
I then saw him in a different dive, this time a bar in Since then, I've followed his career, bought his CD's and love his stand up. Definitely not for everyone, but he is an original and I'm definitely a fan. This book takes you through many emotions. Laughter, disgust, pity, sadness, more laughter and ultimately even though he didn't want the title, a love story.
This book is raw and cuts through the fl I've been a big fan of Stanhope since I saw him in a dive comedy club in the late 90's. This book is raw and cuts through the fluffy bull that most people leave out in a memoir. Not that everyone has experienced even a sliver of the depravity Stanhope has, but we all most have messed up families, regrettable memories and experiences that we wouldn't want to share. Stanhope does, and in doing so writes a fantastic book.
Apr 06, Adrienh1 rated it it was amazing Shelves: witty , my-favs , audiobook , non-romance. I absolutely loved this book. He would tell the craziest stories about his girlfriend Bingo. I've not laughed so loud in a long time. He has a unique morose sense of humor that is not for everyone. He masks his pain behind jokes that some folks just won't get.
I would highly recommend the audiobook. It adds an extra layer to overall story that just cant be beat. May 22, Pissdrunx1 rated it it was amazing. A real treat for the sausage army. Funny, touching and disturbing in equal parts. Aug 21, Jayson Barker rated it it was amazing Shelves: listened. If you're a fan of the fucked up comedy of Doug Stanhope, you'll love this book. Bonus for getting to listen to it. May 04, Tamsin rated it really liked it Shelves: audiobooks , autobiography , humour , Been listening to this audiobook on and off for a while.
I found it to be an interesting insight into some of Doug's experiences and a well written darkly humorous insight into some very dark, not often talked about topics Been listening to this audiobook on and off for a while. I found it to be an interesting insight into some of Doug's experiences and a well written darkly humorous insight into some very dark, not often talked about topics Really good book, worth the read.
Apr 26, Scott rated it really liked it. Ever felt like taking a shower after reading a book? Aug 31, Mikhala rated it it was amazing.
Doug totally embraced the different medium and his voice is the same yet different for the book. Love love love!!!!!!!!!! He's a much better comedian than a writer and if you've seen his stand up a lot of the stories will be familiar.
It's still interesting to learn about him as a person and how he grew up thinking and acting in messed up ways just for laughs or to relieve boredom.
It sounds like I don't remember him making it explicit Doug had or has some kind of attention disorder which usually led to dumb decision making, but the best part is his lack of regret or care about it later. His mother, who is the ma He's a much better comedian than a writer and if you've seen his stand up a lot of the stories will be familiar. His mother, who is the main focus throughout the book, is just as messy with her life and he describes her several times as his best friend despite her being, quite often, the bane of his existence.
It's funny, tragic, and usually weird enough to be uncomfortable. He's like Hunter S. Thompson if he talked straight and told more jokes.
Jun 26, Stephanie Jackson rated it it was ok Shelves: did-not-finish. I made it through the first chapter a while ago and then I had to return the book to the library. That first chapter was memorable enough for me to pick up this book and try again. This book did not make me laugh but mostly just hurt and wonder about his really f--ked up childhood and young adult life. I am not the target audience. Aug 13, Curtis Meade rated it it was amazing. My wife have had this tradition when we go on long road trips that I read to her, and this year's trek across America's roadways was given a delightful boost from Digging Up Mother for sure.
I have enjoyed Doug's standup for many years, but it wasn't until I read this that I remembered My wife have had this tradition when we go on long road trips that I read to her, and this year's trek across America's roadways was given a delightful boost from Digging Up Mother for sure. I have enjoyed Doug's standup for many years, but it wasn't until I read this that I remembered an encounter with him many years ago when he did his act at the enlisted club at Mountain Home Air Force Base where I was stationed.
I approached him, and he listened patiently with a bemused grin as I breathlessly tried to engage him in a conversation about Henry Rollins, because he mentioned him in his act. He told me he'd only known about him from his Liar video, and clapped me on the back, when he probably should have told me to fuck off.
Anyway, it's a great read, showing his tremendous heart with an unwavering look at the ugly stuff too, and in such a way that will have you gut laughing when you're not crying, or dry-heaving. Feb 07, Lin rated it it was ok. Like Doug Stanhope's live shows very much but the book was just outright insane. In a negative way. The beginning of the book, when he tells the story of his mother's suicide, was very funny but it gets pretty lame going on.
It's merely a repetitive recital of terrible life choices and random anecdotes which stop being funny quite quickly. It cannot shock anymore and therefore loses it's "haha" factor when the vulgar language and the gross experiences just continue and continue.
Mr Stanhope should Like Doug Stanhope's live shows very much but the book was just outright insane. Mr Stanhope should better stick to stand up comedy and refrain from writing books. Nov 30, Priyesh Patel rated it it was amazing. Excellent book. Could almost hear doug read it to me.
Loved hearing about his roots and happy there wasn't huge crossover from his stand up. A crude yet strangely heartwarming book that begins and ends with suicide.
May 21, Ant rated it liked it. If you're a Stanhope fan, then you'll read the book regardless of anything I have to say. If you aren't, then it's probably a bit too personal to be of much interest. Jan 16, Ray Bruneau rated it it was amazing. So funny I laughed in public enough times to count as embarrassing.
May 28, Snags rated it it was amazing. Like Doug Stanhope's comedy? Read this book. Hopefully he writes many, many more Mar 26, Stephanie Ross rated it did not like it. I was definitely not the right audience for this book.
Mar 01, Aj Greenman rated it it was amazing. As brutally honest as anything I've ever read. Feb 12, Tirthankar Chakraborty rated it really liked it Shelves: favorites. This book is in a unique category for me for two reasons: 1. It is the first audiobook I have managed to finish listening to. It is the first piece of nonfiction I have read technically, heard about a nonscientist's life. Choosing audiobook over text wasn't really an explicitly deliberate choice.
I had just received an Audible gold membership with my Amazon student prime account and saw that I could get one audiobook for free.
I had been thinking about getting this book for a while and went ah This book is in a unique category for me for two reasons: 1. I had been thinking about getting this book for a while and went ahead and got it.
Basically, choosing the audiobook was the result of my recently acquired obsession with being frugal with the little money I have. In hindsight, I am very happy with my choice. The audiobook is narrated by a drunk, slurry Doug Stanhope that's the best kind, as he would be the first to admit and many of the other people in his life, with discussions that resemble an extended version of his podcast.
It is a far cry from the dreary monotone of the few audiobooks I have previously tried to listen to. The book is a journey into Doug's alcohol addled psyche and a twisted celebration of all the 'so-called' debauchery and perversion that defines his storied life, with a focus on his atypical relationship with his mother.
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