THERE'S NOTHING IN THIS BOOK THAT I MEANT TO SAY

Stand-up comic, mother of three, and recovered alcoholic, Paula Poundstone tells all in a frank stream-of-consciousness memoir. Poundstone uses the lives of historical figures, including Joan of Arc (" called by God and driven to drink" ), Charles Dickens (" a beloved novelist and incredible bookstore employee" ), the Wright Brothers (" flying planes and busing tables" ), and Sitting Bull (" a great warrior and a heck of a Ping-Pong player" ), as jumping-off points for her own story. While this makes for a lively structure, with funny one-liners, sometimes Poundstone gets sluggish and bogged down in her material. Overall, this is worth the chuckles but is too long and in need of a laugh track. M.T.B. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/ JUL 07]