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'The Funny Thing is..." by Ellen DeGeneres
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Mueller 1Hannah Mueller
Ms. Piernicky
H/AP Language, Block H
23 March 2016
Book Review: The Answer to the Riddle is Me
David MacLean’s confusion began when he found himself alone in a train station in India. He had no idea who he was or how he got there. When he was found by an officer, he was completely disoriented. The officer, assuming he was drug addict, took him to a woman who told him the effects of drug abuse. But, as his symptoms worsened, they realized that he was much worse than they thought and decided to take him to the hospital. There was something seriously wrong with this man.
During his stay at the hospital, he found out that his memory loss and other symptoms he was suffering from were due to his anti-malarial drugs he was taking. He was injected with many vaccines to calm him down and to help get rid of his hallucinations. There were also many people who came to visit him to help get his mind off the situation. MacLean was also reunited with his parents who later took him home to help him put the pieces of his life back together.
As the book goes on, MacLean has a very negative tone. He is depressed throughout most of the book and doesn't seem to be very hopeful for his future. He continues to lose relationships with the people in his life and struggles to regain memory of his past and who he was. The book is fairly depressing to read. There isn't really a climax to the story or a happy ending that you long for after reading a series of heartbreaking events.
Mueller 2
The biography, however, is not just about one man’s depression. He also includes the history of malaria, the drugs developed to treat it and their side effects. This provided a necessary break from his sad story. His research was very informative and helped describe what he was going through. There have been many cases of people having these outlandish symptoms from the drug and have never recovered. This information gave the story some suspense, leaving the audience wondering whether or not he would ever get better.
Mueller 3
Work Cited
MacLean, David. The Answer to the Riddle Is Me: A Memoir of Amnesia. New York: First Mariner, 2015. Print.
Although the book is funny and quick it is also very random. The structure is very different than any other book. Every chapter is a new thought or opinion of Ellen’s. It keeps the reader on their toes and never ceases to surprise them with another random thought or funny joke. For people who like a solid plot with characters, a climax and a conclusion this book is not for you.
Ellen touched on a couple of deep subjects such as same sex marriage, gratitude, and her childhood. She shed some light on her life and personal experiences, but then she quickly covers it up with her witty humor to keep the tone comical. It was interesting to learn more about Ellen’s life.
I personally did not enjoy Ellen’s book because at times I wanted it to be more serious. She would be serious for a couple lines and then she would start joking again and contradict her prior statement. Sometimes I thought she rambled on a certain topic for too long. This lost my attention and I ended up skimming till the end of the chapter.
I would not recommend this book unless you are a die hard Ellen fan. I found it boring and not as funny as I expected. Even though I did not enjoy “The Funny Thing is..” I still am a fan of Ellen’s talk show and her stand up even though I am not as a big of a fan of her writing.