You’re Better than Me: A Memoir

Comedian McFarlane’s memoir follows her development from Canadian farm girl to mature comic trying to make it in Los Angeles in the late 1990s and early aughts. She describes the thrill of her first stand-up set as a “hit of crack,” followed by a less successful second time in which her boyfriend threw a beer bottle at a heckler. She bombs her first television appearance, getting rebuffed by her idol, Janeane Garofalo, in the process. After signing with the William Morris Agency, McFarlane is cast in a doomed sitcom and subsequently fired by the agency. She declares wryly, “There was nowhere to go but up,” before allowing that “technically, you could stay at the bottom forever.” McFarlane eventually lands an appearance on Late Night with David Letterman, followed by a spot on Last Comic Standing, and then an HBO special. Her romantic misfortunes include flings with a Rollerblading barista, an antisocial comic with a mat of back hair resembling “a hundred caterpillars... trying to get up over a wall of mashed potatoes,” and a Tom Cruise–obsessed nonworking actor with erectile dysfunction. Finally she meets fellow comedian Rich Vos, who later becomes her husband. McFarlane has guts, heart, jokes, and plenty of wise words in this hilarious journey through the dark heart of the entertainment industry. [em](Feb.) [/em]