Comedian and actor Nealon (best known for his characters on Saturday Night Live
and his role on Weeds
) makes his print debut with comedic content so potent readers will surely demand future books. Nealon is a first-time father with his second wife, actress Susan Yeagley, and detailing the male point of view on pregnancy, he writes about the events that led to the birth of their son in 2007. The 53-year-old Nealon considers becoming a father while also anticipating death: “It wasn’t over for me yet, but I felt I was 'circling the drain’.” However, at age 34, Susan was still “pregnantable,” as he puts it. Thus the merry parental dance began. Beneath the jokes, Nealon swims in poignant undercurrents, discussing his relationship with Susan, recalling his childhood and reflecting on life in general. Digressions lead to such jests as: “Why do some people get their stomach stapled? What if you wanted to just lose a little weight? Could you paperclip your stomach?” Fellow humorists Benchley and Thurber would probably nod in admiration at Nealon’s ability to insert a bon mot or clever phrase into almost every paragraph of this very funny navigation from pregnancy to parenthood. (May)
