This is the one about Sedaris.

Posted June 22nd, 2008 by Mike Lawson

I just finished the new David Sedaris book When You Are Engulfed In Flames.

I think that my love for books is similar to other people’s love of music. When I start reading a novel by one of my favorite authors, I just kinda feel comfortable and good.

This new Sedaris is not nearly as good as Me Talk Pretty One Day, but it still had some good stories in it.

From the story “Solutions to Saturday’s Puzzle”

On the flight to Raleigh, I sneezed, and the cough drop I’d been sucking on shot from my mouth, ricocheted off my folded tray table, and landed, as I remember it, on the lap of the woman beside me, who was asleep and had her arms folded across her chest. I’m surprised the force didn’t wake her–that’s how hard it hit–but all she did was flutter her eyelids and let out a tiny sigh, the kind you might hear from a baby.

Under normal circumstances, I’d have had three choices, the first being to do nothing. The woman would wake in her own time and notice what looked like a shiny new button sewn to the crotch of her jeans. This was a small plane, with one seat per row on aisle A, and two seats per row on aisle B. We were on B, so should she go searching for answers I would be the first person on her list. “Is this yours?” she’d ask, and I’d look dumbly into her lap.

“Is what mine?”

Option number two was to reach over and pluck it from her pants, and number three was to wake her up and turn the tables, saying, “I’m sorry, but I think you have something that belongs to me.” Then she’d hand the lozenge back and maybe even apologize, confused into thinking that she’d somehow stolen it.

If you want to borrow this good read, let me know.