Theft By Finding: Diaries 1977 - 2002

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Staff Top Fives 2017

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In this first volume of David Sedaris’s diaries, we have a story told in fragments: a collection of thoughts that show the coming-of-age of a brilliant essayist, including the best and worst moments of 25 years of adulthood. Sedaris fans in particular will enjoy the hints about his other works, sprinkled throughout. While I had a hard time finding the narrative at first, I found that after the first 50 pages I was unable to put the book down for long! Recommended By McKenzie W., Powells.com

As a die-hard Sedaris fan, I'm in love with reading his diary. It's so interesting observing how he changed over 30 years and reading about the events that shaped his essays. The way he sees the world around him is fascinating, and he is so funny. Recommended By Amy W., Powells.com

Theft by Finding is charming, refreshingly unpretentious, and flat-out addictive. Sedaris said in the intro that he meant for readers to dip in and out of this collection of diary entries (the first of two volumes!), but I couldn’t put it down. His pared-down observations are equal parts dark and darkly comedic, concealing and revealing. Theft by Finding surpassed my very high expectations, and I'm already feeling impatient for part two. Recommended By Renee P., Powells.com

For nearly four decades, David Sedaris has faithfully kept a diary in which he records his thoughts and observations on the odd and funny events he witnesses. Anyone who has attended a live Sedaris event knows that his diary readings are often among the most joyful parts of the evening. But never before have they been available in print. Now, in Theft by Finding, Sedaris brings us his favorite entries. From deeply poignant to laugh-out-loud funny, these selections reveal with new intimacy a man longtime readers only think they know. Tender, hilarious, illuminating, and endlessly captivating, Theft by Finding offers a rare look into the mind of one of our generation's greatest comic geniuses.

"Sedaris' diaries are the wellspring for his cuttingly funny autobiographical essays, and he now presents a mesmerizing volume of deftly edited passages...Sedaris is caustically witty about his bad habits and artistic floundering...A candid, socially incisive, and sharply amusing chronicle of the evolution of an arresting comedic artist." Donna Seaman,  Booklist (Starred Review) 

"A master of incisive and comic cultural criticism....Theft by Finding reveals intimate details of this literary luminary's life and mind-all told with his singular sense of humor." Harper's Bazaar

"It's an astounding feat to stay funny-wildly, wickedly, ingeniously so-for more than 20 years. Yet David Sedaris has somehow pulled it off...with eviscerating wit and radiant humanity...Fans will no doubt delight in the entries that will turn into Sedaris's most beloved essays." O, The Oprah Magazine By Fiona Maazel

"The thrill of Sedaris's nonfiction lies in the absurd details of his memories, burnished with enough polish and comic timing to wonder how true they are (after you've stopped laughing). Now we'll finally have access to the raw material — fragments of the writer's personal diaries that you might recognize from the banter in his prolific and hilarious live readings." New York By Boris Kachka

"Sedaris fans will thrill to this opportunity to poke around in the writer's personal diaries, which he has faithfully kept for four decades and used as raw material for his hilarious nonfiction as well as his performances." Boston Globe By Paul S. Makishima

David Sedaris is the author of the books Theft by Finding, Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls, Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk, When You Are Engulfed in Flames, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, Me Talk Pretty One Day, Holidays on Ice, Naked, and Barrel Fever. He is a regular contributor to The New Yorker and BBC Radio 4. He lives in England.

In a time-honored Powell's tradition, we'll be releasing the 2017 edition of our Staff Top Fives on January 1. To tide you over until then, here's a sneak peek at some of our favorite new fiction titles...

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