Places I Can't Return To

by Sean Bair-Flannery

Places I Can't Return To is a collection of true stories by comedian Sean Bair-Flannery. Each chapter is a place he cannot return to, usually because the people who live or work there warned him to never return. Or sometimes because those places are now in the bottom of a lake. The book intertwines Sean's own outrageous stories with funny asides on the history of these places. Like a travel book, if the author only stayed at places that have since been demolished. Or perhaps it's more like a memoir if the author was so drunk, he accidentally wrote a travel book.

363 pages, Paperback

Published September 30, 2022

Reviews

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My neighbor and friend, Sean Bair-Flannery, has written a hilarious and informative memoir mostly about his drunken exploits in Cleveland and Chicago. I laughed out loud on multiple occasions, not common for me, but Sean is a very funny human. He’s a great writer and storyteller because each episode had a larger-than-drinking life lesson, which I’d guess comes from his philosophy major and general intelligence. There are also a lot of very informative side notes about history and statistics, all described thoroughly and interestingly. I was initially wary of reading a book about mostly drinking because I have some alcoholics in my family and because my paternal grandparents were hit and killed by a drunk driver in 1996. But I was happy that none of the stories involved Sean getting behind the wheel. Anyone who has seen Sean’s stand-up or knows him from being a dad in Oak Park—or really anyone who’s looking to laugh and be shocked by some truly insane drinking escapades— should read this well-written, funny-as-hell memoir. Which is to say, everyone should read it.

[Paul Farahvar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been a fan of Sean's comedy for sometime and his stories at shows are so funny but the book provides details that a stand up show just could not do justice to. In addition to all the stories I have heard on stage for years, this book provided more insight into Sean's life dating back to youthful indiscretions to more recent drunken debacles as a father. I read about 20 memoirs and biographies a year and this is one of my favorites for sure. Highly recommend for fans of biographies and comedy and joy.

[JKC · Rating 2 out of 5]

How to say? I enjoyed this for about half. Then his glorification of drunken stupidity got old. (I enjoyed his mishaps - and even read some to my spouse, so I'm not saying there are not some gems in here). And I guess about a half a book is all I really needed to know about Cleveland - probably for someone from Ohio this would be a much better read than it was for me!

[Bjorn Skaptason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading Places I Can't Return To is like drinking with your craziest friend. It's a little scary, but you're all in, and the next day you're pretty sure you had a great time. If you could only remember.