Synopses & Reviews
Prepare yourself for a journey through the world of Patton Oswalt, one of the most creative, insightful, and hysterical voices on the entertainment scene today. Widely known for his roles in the films
Big Fan and
Ratatouille, as well as the television hit
The King of Queens, Patton Oswalt—a staple of Comedy Central—has been amusing audiences for decades. Now, with
Zombie Spaceship Wasteland, he offers a fascinating look into his most unusual, and lovable, mindscape.
Oswalt combines memoir with uproarious humor, from snow forts to Dungeons & Dragons to gifts from Grandma that had to be explained. He remembers his teen summers spent working in a movie Cineplex and his early years doing stand-up. Readers are also treated to several graphic elements, including a vampire tale for the rest of us and some greeting cards with a special touch. Then there’s the book’s centerpiece, which posits that before all young creative minds have anything to write about, they will home in on one of three story lines: zombies, spaceships, or wastelands.
Oswalt chose wastelands, and ever since he has been mining our society’s wasteland for perversion and excess, pop culture and fatty foods, indie rock and single-malt scotch. Zombie Spaceship Wasteland is an inventive account of the evolution of Patton Oswalt’s wildly insightful worldview, sure to indulge his legion of fans and lure many new admirers to his very entertaining “wasteland.”
Review
"It's not exactly a memoir, but somehow the individual shards form a believable portrait of a witty, vulnerable funnyman....Yes, the collection is slight, coming in at under 200 pages, but in that, it's like a great stand-up routine: Recount a few stories, riff on some topics, use only your best material, and then get off the stage. (Grade: B+)" Entertainment Weekly
Review
"To delve into the book is to take a tour of Oswalt's delightfully offbeat mind....Oswalt is a wonderfully descriptive writer, vividly evoking his zombielike coworker at the theater, a grim Canadian comedy club, and the wanderings of his teen imagination with sharp, sardonic prose." Booklist
Review
"Readers will find Oswalt's narrative innovative and humorous, one laced with clever comments on life." Library Journal
Review
"Patton Oswalt is a brilliant rarity; a relentlessly creative and original comic who is also a superb writer. If you don't buy this book you are a fool and I will, I swear, fight you." Conan O'Brien
Review
"Funny, thoughtful stuff. Patton alternates the spit-take hilarity of a great stand-up with the quiet, mordant insight that clearly helped make him one. Which is amazing, 'cause he's an idiot." Joss Whedon
Review
"Fans of Patton Oswalt's standup comedy have always known he was a born writer at heart, and now here's the proof. This is a surprisingly affecting, sincere and daresay vulnerable collection of essays, all keenly observed, always very funny." Dave Eggers
Review
"I don't know what's sharper, Oswalt's brains or Oswalt's tongue." Sarah Vowell
Review
"Patton Oswalt is among the funniest on-stage talking humans I am aware of, so it annoys me deeply that he is also an incredibly talented writer. It annoys me, but it does not surprise me. Every sentence in this book is funny (except for the sad ones), but it also brims with Oswalt-ian smarts and surprising poignancy." John Hodgman
Review
"Perfect — I can describe Patton's book the same way I describe his stand up — brilliant and prolific. I am slackjawed, amazed, and left feeling both inspired and fraudulent." Sarah Silverman
About the Author
Patton Oswalt has released three TV specials and three critically-acclaimed comedy albums. His most recent, My Weakness Is Strong, was released in February 2009. He is also well-known for putting together the “Comedians of Comedy” tour and television series, which has included comedians such as Zach Galifinakis, David Cross, and Eugene Mirman. Oswalt provided the voice for Remy the rat in Pixar's Oscar-winning Ratatouille, and spent nine years on The King of Queens. He has appeared in more than twenty films, including Magnolia, The Informant, and this fall's critcally-acclaimed The Fan, in which he played the leading role. A regular commentator on Countdown with Keith Olbermann, Real Time with Bill Maher, and Late Night (now the Tonight Show) with Conan O'Brien, Patton lives in Los Angeles, California.