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The World's Largest Man: A Memoir
Harrison Scott Key was born in Memphis, but he grew up in Mississippi, among pious, Bible-reading women, and men who either shot things or got women pregnant. At the center of his world was his larger-than-life father - a hunter, a fighter, a football coach, "a man better suited to living in a remote frontier wilderness of the 19th century than contemporary America, with all its progressive ideas, and paved roads, and lack of armed duels. He was a great man, and he taught me many how to fight, how to work, how to cheat, how to pray to Jesus about it, how to kill things with guns and knives, and, if necessary, with hammers."
Harrison, with his love of books and excessive interest in hugging, couldn't have been less like Pop, and when it became clear that he was not able to kill anything very well or otherwise make his father happy, he resolved to become everything his father was an actor, a Presbyterian, and a doctor of philosophy. But when it was time to settle down and start a family of his own, Harrison started to view his father in a new light, and realized - for better and for worse - how much of his old man he'd absorbed.
Sly, heartfelt, and tirelessly hilarious, The World's Largest Man is an unforgettable memoir.
Harrison, with his love of books and excessive interest in hugging, couldn't have been less like Pop, and when it became clear that he was not able to kill anything very well or otherwise make his father happy, he resolved to become everything his father was an actor, a Presbyterian, and a doctor of philosophy. But when it was time to settle down and start a family of his own, Harrison started to view his father in a new light, and realized - for better and for worse - how much of his old man he'd absorbed.
Sly, heartfelt, and tirelessly hilarious, The World's Largest Man is an unforgettable memoir.
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Published August 1, 2017
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About the author
Harrison Scott Key
6 books625 followersHarrison Scott Key is the winner of the Thurber Prize for American Humor and the author of three nonfiction novels: How to Stay Married: The Most Insane Love Story Ever Told (2023), Congratulations, Who Are You Again? (2018), and The World's Largest Man: A Memoir (2015).
Harrison's humor and nonfiction have appeared in The Best American Travel Writing, Oxford American, Garden & Gun, Outside, The New York Times, Men's Journal, The American Conservative, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, The Mockingbird, Salon, Savannah Magazine, Reader's Digest, Image, Southern Living, Gulf Coast, and Creative Nonfiction, as well as a number of magazines that don't pay you anything at all, not even a little, but it was cool, because people who work at magazines are mostly poor, and helping the poor is a priority for Harrison, should he come under scrutiny.
Harrison has lectured, talked, read, performed, etc., around the world for audiences of 0 to 1,000, depending on how many of his mother's friends live in that city. He has spoken at book festivals, bookstores, conferences, variety shows, radio shows, and universities around the country, as well as retirement communities and at least one religious organization whose members were perfectly courteous up until the end. He has also performed comedy at venues around the U.S., if you include three or four different cities to be "around the U.S."
He lives in Savannah, Georgia, U.S.A.
Harrison's humor and nonfiction have appeared in The Best American Travel Writing, Oxford American, Garden & Gun, Outside, The New York Times, Men's Journal, The American Conservative, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, The Mockingbird, Salon, Savannah Magazine, Reader's Digest, Image, Southern Living, Gulf Coast, and Creative Nonfiction, as well as a number of magazines that don't pay you anything at all, not even a little, but it was cool, because people who work at magazines are mostly poor, and helping the poor is a priority for Harrison, should he come under scrutiny.
Harrison has lectured, talked, read, performed, etc., around the world for audiences of 0 to 1,000, depending on how many of his mother's friends live in that city. He has spoken at book festivals, bookstores, conferences, variety shows, radio shows, and universities around the country, as well as retirement communities and at least one religious organization whose members were perfectly courteous up until the end. He has also performed comedy at venues around the U.S., if you include three or four different cities to be "around the U.S."
He lives in Savannah, Georgia, U.S.A.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 18, 2026
My only warning for this book is that you shouldn’t listen to it while driving because it is so funny. Hilarious and heartwarming.
July 29, 2025
This book was a blast! Super funny and thoughtful at the same time.
Key is one of my new favorite humor authors.
Key is one of my new favorite humor authors.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews