You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams: My Life in Stories and Pictures

by Alan Cumming (Narrator)

* Duration: 3 hours and 19 minutes *

A magical concoction of the mischievous, tender, whimsical, and debauched real-life adventures of Alan Cumming, told in his own words and pictures.

Alan Cumming is a genuine quadruple threat - an internationally acclaimed, award-winning star of stage, television, and film, as well as a 'New York Times' best-selling author whose real-life vivacity, wit, and charm shine through every page of his third book, 'You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams'.

n these forty-five picture essays, Cumming recounts his real-life adventures (and often, misadventures), illustrated by his own equally entertaining photographs. From an awkward bonding session with Elizabeth Taylor to poignant stories about his family and friends to some harsh words of wisdom imparted by Oprah that make up the title of this collection, 'You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams' is as eclectic, enchanting, and alive as its author.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Biography, Audiobook, Humor, Biography Memoir, Autobiography

3 pages, Audible Audio

First published September 13, 2016

About the author

Alan Cumming, OBE, is a Scottish-American stage, television and film actor. His roles have included Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler in X2: X-Men United, and Fegan Floop in the Spy Kids trilogy. He has also appeared in independent films like The Anniversary Party, which he wrote, directed and starred; and Ali Selim's Sweet Land for which he won an Independent Spirit award as producer.

His London stage appearances include Hamlet, Madman in Dario Fo's Accidental Death of an Anarchist for which he received an an Olivier award, the lead in Martin Sherman's Bent and as Dionysus in The National Theatre of Scotland's The Bacchae. On Broadway he has appeared as Mac the Knife in The Threepenny Opera and the Emcee in Cabaret for which he won the Tony in 1998.

Cumming has also written a novel, Tommy's Tale, contributed to many publications, and performs with his band I Bought A Blue Car Today on a regular basis.

Reviews

[Jennifer Masterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved the stories in this wonderful audiobook. The audio comes with a PDF of the photos that go along with this book.

My favorite story was when he took his friend to meet Oprah. I laughed and laughed! I loved all his stories.

Alan Cumming is awesome! I will have to listen to his first book and hopefully he will come back to Broadway so I can go all fangirl outside and get him to sign my Playbill! Lol!

Highly recommended!!!

[Malia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Alan Cumming's previous book, "Not My Father's Son", and when I got tickets to hear him speak, I felt I should read his new book, too. This book is much more anecdotal and filled with small snippets of his life as an actor/singer/activist, not as deep of moving as his other book. Still, Cumming has a great voice and seems like a cheerful, kind, thoughtful person, an impression which was only supported when I saw him yesterday. He is at times serious, at times cheeky and light-hearted, but always comes across as genuine. "You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams" is filled with his own snapshots, which aren't aesthetically terribly good art (imho), but do offer insight into his life and add lightness to this book. For any fan of Alan Cumming, this can only please, and if you ever have a chance to hear him speak, jump at it! He's a very personable speaker and his voice is auditory gold:-) Recommended!

Find more reviews and bookish fun at http://www.princessandpen.com

[Demi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again, I worship at the feet of Alan Cumming, godfather of all luxuriant bisexuals. When you open up a book with a story about Elizabeth Taylor's enormous diamond ring, how can you possibly go wrong?

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alan Cumming lives his life openly and unapologetic which, frankly, sort of seems like he'd be intolerable IRL, but his experiences make for really entertaining and thoughtful books.

[Jana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Want to spend a very enjoyable 3 hours & 19 minutes? Here's one way:

• Obtain a copy of Alan Cumming's latest book
• Obtain an audiobook of same
• Follow along looking at all the pictures whilst Alan narrates with his lovely, lovely voice.
• Justify that you purchased both of these items by sharing with your husband, son, and various friends.

*optional dog snuggling during the above

Thank you to my Book Cougar bud, Emily, for making me aware of this new publication by one of my favorite entertainers/humans!

[Maddi Farrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think we should all try to be more like Alan! Truly seems like the most magical and kind person.

[Nadia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this! Alan Cumming has a bright starry way and not only because he's a rock star of the arts.
He shows that being vulnerable and authentic is part of the life adventure. He's funny (of course) candid and oh so cheeky :)) A real treat to read and if you haven't started following him on instagram, ya really REALLY should!

[Shelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got this on audio and knew nothing about it before I read it.
Though I am familiar with Alan's writing, having read his previous work Not My Father's Son
I was surprised to find it is a book of mainly photos, Alans lifes through his photography and memories. But it was great to find a PDF cam with the audio, so I could look at all the photos.
As before, alan's writing is witty, memorable and full of emotion.
With an open heart to things and people he cannot stand and points of view he does not agree with. He does not judge nor does he praise. He is open and honest but most of all kind.

Very much enjoyed, if you liked his first you will love this.

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like books with personal photographs in them. There's a real intimacy when someone shares those kind of photos. Alan Cumming's You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams: And Other Stories is made up of essays and a lot personal photographs. Just a lovely book. He feels like someone I knew in a previous life or from an alternative reality. Next time, Alan.

[Lindsay Nixon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love him. I could listen to him talk all day. This book is a little like sitting with him at a cocktail party as he regales stories from his time in Hollywood plus a few personal ones. If you don’t want to be friends with Alan, this isn’t a great choice for you.

[JZ · Rating 2 out of 5]

He's a delightful narrator.

[Leanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love listening to Alan Cumming with his Scottish swag and his humor, and I was hoping this was as good as his last book, only funny. It is funny, but it doesn't touch the quality of "Not My Father's Son."

Alan's chatty voice is still enchanting, and you can't help but love him as he tells so many intimate stories, HOWEVER he suffers from a major problem of oversharing. I am pretty open-minded, and though I don't seek it out, I am willing to deal with raunchy details in an overall good story, but Alan sank to a level in a few chapters that just felt repulsive to me. I simply skipped the chapters, but I felt irritated and embarrassed like I had stumbled in on someone in the bathroom through no fault of my own, but because they didn't lock the door AND they don't care if you come right in. I still enjoyed the book overall, and I still like Alan Cumming, but man, I wish he were better at privacy locks!

[Brian Kovesci · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't really read a book in months. This was the perfect book to pick up; easy read about celebrities with plenty of picture. I love Alan Cumming.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Going into this book without any expectations nor knowledge about the author (though I knew he was an actor), I was pleasantly surprised and pretty well entertained throughout. I enjoyed the little tales and gossip, as well as the photographs, and found him really quite funny. I will look into any others he has penned.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this biography <3 He is such a quirky and lovely man ^^

[Miranda · Rating 5 out of 5]

playful, funny, thoughtful, heartfelt- I love Alan Cumming and enjoyed his anecdotes and observations of life, both deep and joyfully mundane!

[Andrea P · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE Alan Cumming - I love reading is perspective on life.

[Elyse · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked it but it was not as good as his first book. Fun anecdotes but I enjoyed learning about his early years more. This one was kind of all over the place. I enjoyed the photos, a lot of them were weird but props to him for sharing them all! Love listening to him talk anyway!

Read during Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon - July.

[Alaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Selfies with his dog. Pictures of his Crocs. Nekkid bewbs. This book is awesome.

[Corielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved Alan Cumming's autobiography, Not My Father's Son. It was raw and honest and heartbreaking. He tries to show some of that same emotion in You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams, but this one just did not do it for me.

Cumming apparently really enjoys photography, and even has a traveling show. He's a very talented man, no doubt -- his acting, his singing, his general wonderfulness. But his photography seems very amateurish. I say this with absolutely no ability to take artistic photographs on my own, so take my criticism with a grain of salt. But this whole book, which is billed as 45 novellas accompanied by his photos, reminded me of sitting through someone else's slideshow of photographs (I kept thinking of Rory & Lorelai's trip to Harvard), rather than an art collection. Some of the stories, particularly about celebrity encounters and his beloved dog, were very enjoyable. But his style of photograph leans towards the blurry, with the subjects falling out of the frame, and I got tired of it pretty quickly.
The Oprah encounter, which inspired the title, was definitely worth reading, though.

[SmartBitches · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lightning review at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

This is a memoir by actor, singer, dancer, all around awesome hedonist Alan Cumming (I fell for him in SpyKids, though you may remember him from Broadway’s Cabaret, or The Good Wife, or “This is Masterpiece Mystery”). It is mostly just vignettes of his life, from a cross-country trip with his dog to how he entertained Elizabeth Taylor at Carrie Fisher’s birthday party, augmented with pictures he’s taken.

It’s a beautiful book, and well-produced. I saw him speak in Cambridge in September (I got the copy signed for a friend who couldn’t make it, and he asked my name was and I have no chill at all). He was delightful, funny, and very kind, and the book is the same. Also there are many doggie pictures!

- Redheadedgirl

[Sylvie · Rating 1 out of 5]

"...a curvy ass and ample tits equal Woman." No, this is not a quote from Donald Trump. It's from European born and bred, self-proclaimed lefty Alan Cumming. I've stopped at the midway point in the book to say I'm crestfallen. In the late 1970s my friend Deborah was dating David Bowie and one day I was over at her house and Bowie was due at any moment. I left before he arrived for the precise reason that I liked him too much; the "him" that I felt from his music and films and I didn't want the veil to be lifted.
Before reading You Gotta get Bigger Dreams (if I had known before getting the book that the title refers to an Oprah quote it would've been the first red flag) I adored what I knew of Alan. I don't know if I'll be able to put the veil back. I'll begrudgingly finish the book and weigh in again.

Later on:
I challenged myself to finish the book. More dog, fewer celebrities, please. I am not impressed, in the least. The idol worship throughout is mind-numbing. gag.

[Maggie Tumenbatur · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the actor! And audible version of this book is pure delight..... Just made my day

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rollicking Fun! 3 Hours of listening to Alan Cumming' s Scottish Accent. 😍

[Mediaman · Rating 1 out of 5]

How can an actor who wrote such a great original memoir (Not My Father's Son) publish this simplistic junky "photo diary" that rehashes some very short stories mixed with his unprofessional photography work and his leftist anti-American bias? All the trust he earned in his first book is done away in this because he clearly doesn't understand the USA, its people, their freedoms or capitalism.

I won't waste much time on this because it's not worth it. I'll simply say one chapter alone is so infuriating he should be held accountable for his ignorance. In his American road travels with his dog, the author slams small towns in the Midwest, makes some factual errors, and spews his anti-conservative hate speech, proving that the guy is a total hypocrite. While non-stop promoting tolerance and equality for gays, he ends up also pushing intolerance of anyone who holds a different opinion and taking away their rights of free speech. How liberal and typical Hollywood, as well as totally un-American. He is worse than anything he thinks about those that won't support gay causes.

Cumming goes on a rant about radio talk shows that he listens to while crossing the country. At one point he says, when he is about age 40, that he has never heard the term "pro-life" before for those he calls "anti-abortionists." Since pro-life is the original term of those that objected to Roe vs. Wade, Cumming comes across as simply uneducated. He is within his own little elitist circle of overpaid and undereducated actors who listen to liberal news (which has required reporters to use the term "anti-abortion" instead of "pro-life"), read a one-sided liberal newspaper like the New York Times, and complain about flyover state voters in regard to guns, unborn children, and capitalism. Namely, he (like them) is against America's foundational beliefs (ever heard of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" Alan?).

He even lectures Americans (this guy who grow up in Scotland) on how there is no such thing here as "separation of church and state," calling the concept "the biggest con job in history." Idiot, take a basic history lesson in how the country was founded, why it rejected the Great Britain church/state marriage, and how the First Amendment is the ultimate statement on religious rights (as well as the free speech he seems to condemn). Mentioning God in public documents or Congress is not combining church and state, as he thinks it is. Individual citizens are not required to give up their faith when they are in public settings or offices. The actor doesn't seem to understand that God or religion isn't rejected by the Constitution or Amendments, the government simply can't establish a church or stand in the way of FREEDOM of religion...in order to not be like Great Britain! How does this guy not get that?

Oh, right, all his friends and media are liberal so he can't think any other way, right?

I had to stop once I read this statement: "I have always thought that a really big problem in America is the inability to accept or seek other points of view." HUH? Is this guy stupid? Compared to his narrow-minded monarchy? Americans constantly see other viewpoints, even tolerating dumb actors writing misinformation as he does. If anything, we have too many other points of view, which causes some of the confusion he seems to hold. Does he not see that HE actually is the problem in that HE fails to accept or seek other perspectives beyond his narrow-minded liberal perspectives?

If you want a classic case of leftist propaganda and ignorant opinions about our country, read this book. Otherwise, Alan Cumming needs to take his title literally--he needs to get MUCH bigger dreams that include understanding what life in America is really about.

[Paul Spence · Rating 3 out of 5]

You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams: My Life in Stories and Pictures is a collection of personal essays and photos by Alan Cumming. This review covers the Audible audiobook, which may not be the best version of the book to experience as the photos are only viewable as a separate PDF.

The book starts describing Alan Cumming's first brush with photography. And while that instance go particularly far, it helped frame how much he came to love photography later in life. And thus the book goes through these different stories of his life with different photos as sort of touchstones or anchor points. They help give the story focus or at least some interesting prompts.

But beyond the photos, there are some great stories here and he shares many different parts of his life and many different interesting experience. We learn about his dog and of course his many celebrity stories and even some aspects of his life as a gay man in the public eye. And tim and time again we return to a charming photo that helps sort of mark that moment in his life.

What I Liked: As an audiobook, this was a rather charming experience. Hearing Alan Cumming's voice as he relates these different stories makes it all feel like the natural discourse over the course of an afternoon over tea or maybe a few drinks depending on your fancy. A lot of the anecdotes can feel a little random in a strictly narrative sense but if you think about this as a conversation then it totally feels natural and organic. And I think that's sort of what he's going for.

And man, these photos are gems because they're not clean press-worthy photos but they are very much actual photos that he has taken over the years with different photographic devices. He proudly proclaims to love selfies and feels he was one of the those on the forefront of the movement even before smartphone cameras made selfies so easy. And a lot of his photos feature him in various states, forever leaving these impressions of him across time.

What Could Have Been Better: Again, this is not a great audiobook since a key part of the experience is visual and the book loses that to some degree. This is particularly true for how must of us utilize Audiobook services like Audible - which means listening while driving, commuting, walking or otherwise being engaged with other activities. We're not always in a state when we can look away from what we're doing in order to enjoy the accompanying photos in the PDF. It's a limitation of the medium, not the source material.

The book is very light and if you're looking for more "dirt" as it were given how a lot of people tend to review such celebrity memoirs. This not to say that Mr. Cumming only has good stories to share of course. But it's largely quite light and at times fluffy, which may be good or may be bad depending on your expectations.

TL;DR: You Gotta Get Better Dreams is a charming little book and one that I wish I had first experienced as a physical book instead of an audiobook. But this Audible experience will allow you to feel somewhat closer to the work as you listen to him read his stories and that helps.

[Kelly Kurposka · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I am fascinated by Crocs. Not just the shoes themselves, but more the way, somehow, society has deemed it okay for everyone to think, and then voice openly, that they are ugly.
I suppose I worry about the sheeplike following of any belief. Religion and politics, to name but two, are topics to which people have fierce allegiances that they will unflinchingly defend, yet often these don't stand up to much scrutiny, if indeed much scrutiny is ever entertained. Crocs are much the same.
You need only drop the very name in some quarters and people will spew virulent hatred. I find it frightening. I think it's a form of fascism. We all feel comfortable in our collective hatred of the other. But in this case it's about colorful rubber shoes. Come on, people."

"I had no idea that people were really annoyed at being called 'anti-abortionists' by the liberal press (oh, and by the way, the press in America is all liberal), when in fact they wanted, and want, to be called pro-life. It reminded me of so many other ways the right are better at branding than we are. And we're supposed to be the arty clever ones who trick people with our insidious messages!"

"I don't actually think the most important thing is for gay people to be able to marry in exactly the same way a man and a woman can. Frankly, I don't think gay people should be so keen to ape a tradition that is so unsuccessful on a pandemic scale. But, what I do think is important is that gay people be able to register their relationships legally and get the same rights and benefits and for their families and partners that straight people do. And while we're doing that, we may as well have a great big party, so let's call it a marriage and shut up, okay?"

"Mark my words. If you ever think of running a marathon, go to the finishing line of one and just watch the array of battered humanity that struggles across your vision. It will be seared into your mind forever. And you will never want to entertain something so stupid again. I saw people collapsing, vomiting, pooping, crawling, all to the cheers and encouragement of their lunatic friends and family. I felt as though I was at a cult meeting and I was the only one who was not a member."

"I don't want to be that guy, but I have been taking selfies since the 1980s, people. Not that that's really a big deal, because let's face it, they are not a great achievement in the grand scheme of things and all I was doing was turning a camera and eventually a phone around so that the lens faced me and whoever else was in the picture, rather than pointing it out to the world and that does not require a degree in brain surgery, but... I'm just saying. I was having to accurately self-frame long before the selfie button was around. Ok, kids?"

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tony-winning star of stage and screen, Alan Cumming, follows up his 2014 memoir, "Not My Father's Son," with "You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams: My Life in Stories and Pictures," a fun, heartfelt, adorably catty collection of anecdotes and accompanying photographs from the entertainer's personal and professional life.

Understandably, the two subjects who are mentioned and appear most often are Cumming's husband, Grant, and his late dog, Honey. One of the book's early highlights is a weeklong road trip ("Travels with Honey") across the United States, including stops in Ohio, Iowa and South Dakota, where Cumming wittily recounts the abundance of fundamentalist radio stations broadcast from within our country's center.

A significant number of pages are filled with delightfully decadent images ("After Dark"), particularly at two New York City gay bars, Eastern Bloc and Julius's, where Cumming shares random names (and sometimes nameless), faces and figures from his nightcap adventures.

The most sullen yet profound entry is a selfie taken at the Cafe Argana in Morocco, the day after it was leveled from a terrorist attack explosion.

But if it's celebrity names and snapshots that you're looking for, there's plenty to feast upon, from the red carpet at the Oscars to the Great White Way.

His "Tempest" co-star, Helen Mirren, and friend, Natalie Merchant, are subjects because of their shoes, and a discarded edition of the New York Times memorializing Elizabeth Taylor on the cover reminds Cumming of a party at Carrie Fisher's home where he first met the silver screen legend.

Other noteworthy co-stars include Cyndi Lauper ("Threepenny Opera" on Broadway) and Chris Noth ("The Good Wife"), and his stories about Kylie Minogue, Liza Minelli, Gore Vidal and Ann Miller are equally endearing and entertaining.

The book's title is a direct quote from Oprah Winfrey, spoken during a chance encounter, the details of which are too precious to reveal here.

"You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams" does prolific justice to Alan Cumming's illustrious career and the whimsical personality of a true artist.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely adore Alan Cumming - as an actor, a professional, and an all-around fun guy. He truly lives up to his reputation as a spritely character - and though I am not half the let-it-go character he can be at times, I feel a slight kinship with him. His touching, poignant memoir, "Not My Father's Son" somewhat rocked my reading world a few years ago, and I had no idea in 2016 that he had released this fun book of essays, accompanied by his own personal snapshots, until I stumbled upon it in the New Books in the local library. My current 2017 Reading Challenge lists 'a book with pictures' as one of the books to read, and I knew I would be foolish to pass this one up.

As with "Not My Father's Son", Cumming does not disappoint with this book. It is important to note upfront that, though the subtitle of the book is "My Life in Stories and Pictures", this book isn't a biography following a linear life line. Instead, Cumming pairs his amateur - but some of them engrossing -photos with very whimsical, often touching, anecdotes and observances on life, love, and relationships. I particularly loved reading and looking at the pictures of his trip across America with his beloved dog Honey, and my heart broke when, chapters later, he posted yet another sweet photo of Honey and talked about her passing. His entire chapter on selfies - and his adamant standpoint that he has been doing selfies long before they became fashionable, young ones - is wonderful and hilarious. And the origin story of the title - "You Gotta Get Better Dreams" - in which he takes a close friend and Oprah fanatic to a dinner honoring her, then proceeds to deal with this same friend making every frenzied attempt to get a photo with her, is too funny.

Reading and paging through "You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams" was a pure delight, and a must-have/read for fans of Alan Cumming. It felt like spending an afternoon with a cherished, funny friend. Indeed, with each book I read of his, the more I humbly wish I were able to meet him and chat with him. I can only wish that I had thought to get out the audio version of this book along with the book - I can only imagine how fun and fascinating the experience would be. I may have to revisit this book and do so in the future.

[Tina Siegel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not really sure what to say about this book.

Let's start with the good. I'm a big fan of Alan Cumming. If you've ever seen him interviewed, you'll know he's charming and decadent and impish, and he loves a good time. He's also a natural story-teller. And my god, the stories he can tell.

Cumming has tales of everyone from Elizabeth Taylor to Sylvester Stallone to Nicola Sturgeon. Most involve him being cheeky, and getting away with it.

As far as that goes, the book succeeds. Cumming's exploits - the way he takes the piss out of all that's sacred and venerates pleasure - are deeply satisfying.

But do they deserve an entire book?

The short answer is no.

This is less a memoir than a collection of anecdotes thrown together as they occurred to the author. An as entertaining as those anecdotes are, as beguiling as Cumming is, neither necessitates a book. There's no through line, no cohesion, no intention - just a lot of fun.

So is it worth reading? Maybe. But if you're looking for a memoir, there are lots out there. Better ones. Drop me a line, if you're interested in recommendations - I've got several.