Based on a True Story: Not a Memoir

Other books are simply not as good

If you don't understand the author or his comedy this is still a good buy but not as a serious autobiography. It takes the unreliable narrator trope and turns it up to an absurd, hilarious and ultimately comedic effect. There's great prose and some nice aphorism as well as a rare surrealness to this book that leaves a strong impression.

A Christmas gift. He loved it and I was happy to give it.

Genuinely one of the funniest books I have ever read. The content is much more amusing if you are familiar with Norm's career and his video podcast series with Adam Eget although it is not required in order to enjoy this brilliant piece of work. I'm so glad I have discovered Norm and his work in recent times. Here's hoping book #2 comes out way in the not too distant future!

This book was not quite what I thought it would be. It was good, and funny, and surprising, and dark in parts, and moving in others, but not quite the Norm I was expecting. I couldn't always hear his voice. The voice I've grown to love through his standup and podcasts and chatshow spots. This was something else. A good story, well written, but slightly lacking. It didn't help that this was the last piece of Norm I had to experience, and that lent a little sadness to completing it. But all of that - the preconceptions of what it might be, the weight of finishing Norm's output - is my baggage. I can't think of anything actually wrong with the book. Maybe a little too silly in places. Maybe. Bears repeating: it's not a memoir.

Great work from a first time novelist. Norm is a genius across the board. He must write more. A profoundly funny, important comedy novel, beautifully written, clearly considered carefully, meandering delightfully like only Norm can (without ever losing focus), and all of it over too soon.

What you would expect from Norm...funny as hell and flashes of pathos that hide between the jokes. Highly recommend for fans new and old. The title is a clue to what to expect, this isn't your ordinary memoir but hilarious and a great read.

Unputdownable for me. Read it in a day. The funniest book i've ever read. God bless Norm Macdonald.

I had to go through blood and bones to get this book. Turns out it was available in nothern canada

Gogol canadiense

A funny story, well told in Norm's inimitable style. Not great enough that I will ever re-read it, though. Probably.

Everything is exhaggerated for comedic effect, but it also has some serious and very touching moments. Norm went all out in this one and what we have is a truly wonderful read. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll appreciate the few (very interesting) opinions Norm has on comedy, people, and life in general. Its only fault is the pacing: in 90% of chapters the reality-to-fiction ratio is perfectly balanced, in the other 10% it's a little too skewed towards made up stuff, which results in entire chapters (again though, not many) feeling "useless", like a waste of time: The cool story set in the present and the interesting flashbacks of Norm's past life are all suddenly paused. Those chapters didn't feel great. Other than that, it is a truly unique and wonderful work of art; one that's made with love by a very special man. Give it a read.

If you love Norm—and who doesn’t?—this is a must have. We all know Norm was a great speaker, conversationalist, and standup comedian. But it’s interesting to see Norm here telling original stories in a longer form, fictional prose context. Norm fought cancer to a draw before he could write more books; reminds me of that tragedy.