English Storytelling

Not long ago it occurred to Carol Leifer that she had to stop telling one of her favorite stories—seeing The Beatles perform at Shea Stadium—because it dated her. But then she thought: what’s that about? “I see now that when you deny your age, you deny yourself”, she says, “and when you lie about your age, you become your inauthentic twin. But most importantly, when you lie about your age, they win. (And of course by ‘they’, I mean the terrorists).” In When You Lie About Your Age, the Terrorists Win, comedy veteran Leifer tells hilarious stories about herself in her own voice.

In Planet Funny, Ken Jennings explores this brave new comedic world and what it means - or doesn’t - to be funny in it now. Tracing the evolution of humor from the caveman days to the bawdy middle-class antics of Chaucer to Monty Python’s game-changing silliness to the fast-paced meta-humor of The Simpsons, Jennings explains how we built our humor-saturated modern age, where lots of us get our news from comedy shows and a comic figure can even be elected president of the United States purely on showmanship.

There's no wrong way to be a woman. There are countless wrong ways to be a man. James Breakwell should know. He's tried just about all of them. Journalism. Pig ownership. Felony lawn gnome theft. Whatever masculinity is supposed to be, this can't be it. But can you really fail at something no one can quite define? Apparently. Now, in a series of funny, sharply observed, and occasionally poignant essays, everyone's favorite internet-famous father of four daughters lays down a lifetime of lessons in what it means to be a man.

After a friend real-talks Mindy into hiring a baby nurse, she finds the help she needs--and so much more--in this soulful essay by the acclaimed writer, actress, producer, and director. Becoming a new mother after losing her own, Mindy Kaling needs help--like someone to answer the questions What is a baby, and why don’t they have kneecaps? Enter Rose. The in-demand, dedicated baby nurse alleviates Mindy’s fears, from the minor to the profound.

In this laugh-and-cry-out-loud, memoir-esque exploration of selfhood, Zach Zimmerman dives into the pros and cons of retiring a Bible-Belt-dwelling, meat-eating, God-fearing identity in exchange for a new lease on life—one of vegetarianism, atheism, queerness, and humor. Whether learning to absolve instilled religious guilt or reminiscing over Tinder dates gone wrong, this book is a candid and hysterical look at one person's journey toward making peace with the past and seeking hope in the future.

From Rebecca Shaw and Ben Kronengold, the youngest comedy writers ever for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and masterminds behind the viral 2018 Yale graduation speech, comes a hilarious collection of short stories taking on coming-of-age, memes, sex, politics, relationships, and Goop, with satire, self-deprecation, and utter irreverence.

Lillian Stone—childhood evangelical, AOL girlfriend, and professional nail biter is always living on the edge of anxiety. From the pitfalls of a girl plagued by religious trauma, the incomprehensible yet unforgiving need for perfection, and a poorly-behaved twenty-pound beagle, Everybody’s Favorite is a refreshing story of what it means to pick yourself when the world is telling you otherwise.

Going back home was not exactly what Tim and the C&C gang expected. Trouble continues to follow them back to Gulf Coast Mississippi. Trouble...and a gnome...and an undead midget.

More than once, friends of Carl Reiner said, “You ought to write those things down.” And at the age of eighty, Carl finally did. In this funny and engaging memoir, Reiner recounts his show business life in short comic takes....

Many of us have been taught to read Scripture as a collection of information that needs to be categorized, systematized, and analyzed verse by verse, concept by concept. But the Bible isn't a jigsaw puzzle, and it wasn't written in just Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. It was also written in the language of story. And as with every good story, we get to meet colorful characters, unravel mysteries, and see the world from a different point of view. It all makes more sense when understood from the perspective of storytelling.

Crowded in the Middle of Nowhere: Tales of Humor and Healing from Rural America is a collection of humorous and poignant stories from a veterinarian in a small, dusty farming and ranching community in rural West Texas. Dr. Brock gives you an intimate look into his small-town and big-hearted perspective on life, animals, and their owners. His unique perspective and tales of doctoring beloved pets, cantankerous livestock, and occasionally their owners will make you smile, laugh, cry, and evoke every other emotion under the sun.

The first memoir by beloved comedian, actor, and writer Brian Posehn, hilariously detailing what it's like to grow up as and remain a nerd, with a foreword by Patton Oswalt. Brian Posehn is a successful and instantly recognizable comedian, actor, and writer. He also happens to be a giant nerd. That's partly because he's been obsessed with such things as Dungeons and Dragons, comic books, and heavy metal since he was a child; the other part is because he fills out every bit of his six-foot-seven-inch frame.

From the best-selling authors of The Power of Visual Storytelling comes the highly anticipated follow-up, The Laws of Brand Storytelling - the definitive, quick rulebook for how to use the power of storytelling to win over customers' hearts, minds, and long-term loyalty.

Business storytelling is the #1 skill you need to succeed in your professional lives amidst all the noise, competition and massive technological disruption. In this book, Sandeep looks at human evolution, behavioural psychology and the world of movies to identify the golden principles of storytelling.

The importance of stories hasn't gone down one bit as time has moved on. The way they are delivered has unimaginably diversified - the invention of writing definitely shook things up. Now two people didn't even have to be in the same room for a story to be passed between them. Today we have trillions of written words easily available to us just a click away.

That's Mental breaks down myths and misconceptions about what it means to be a millennial with mental illness in a darkly funny, but relatable way. In her new book, Rosenberg addresses the overlooked and offbeat issues of mental illness, shedding light on topics that are off limits, uncomfortable, or just downright embarrassing. This book details every challenging and awkward stage of Amanda's journey with mental illness and how she manages what she calls her "garden variety crazy."

Just in time for Christmas comes a collection of the very best holiday essays from the best-selling mother/daughter writing duo. Whether they're shopping for matching reindeer dog sweaters or having second helpings of egg nogg, Lisa Scottoline and Francesca Serritella will keep you warm with their humor and heart. So give yourself some holiday cheer in the midst of all the shopping, cooking, wrapping, and baking madness.… You deserve to get a little Happy and Merry!

Flula Borg's fascination with America and its "peoples" have warmed hearts nationwide. A frequent guest of Conan O’Brien, the German-born actor and multi-talented entertainer (think Sacha Baron Cohen's Borat crossed with Billy Eichner) fell in love with the United States upon his first visit as a young boy. Throughout his career, he has succeeded in regaling audiences with stories from his outlandish travel exploits while paying homage to his German upbringing, culminating in a personality that is supercharged and charmingly wholesome.

In Holding Space, Aminata Cairo presents her own, unique vision in the promotion of inclusion that far surpasses the standard diversity and inclusion approach. She grounds her work in indigenous knowledge, the blues aesthetics, holy hip hop, and Caribbean and black feminist theories. She engages her audience utilizing storytelling, with the ultimate goal of creating a new story, collectively.

Jonathan Paul is a 26-year-old Trinbagonian author currently living in San Francisco, California. Born and raised on the twin-island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, he grew up thoroughly enjoying the creative and performing arts: writing essays, performing poetry, acting, and playing the alto saxophone. He left Trinidad and Tobago with an Open Scholarship for his performance in the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations and attended Amherst College where he double majored in Mathematics and Psychology.