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    Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid
    Unavailable
    Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid
    Unavailable
    Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid
    Audiobook (abridged)4 hours

    Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid

    Written by Denis Leary

    Narrated by Denis Leary

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    “Denis Leary snarls as naturally as most actors smile, says one critic of the writer and comic. In Why We Suck, Leary snarls to brilliant effect. With his patented highspeed ranting and killer comic instinct, Denis Leary has become a beloved antihero whose bracing invective and outrageous riffs have earned him a huge following.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateNov 18, 2008
    ISBN9781440656736
    Unavailable
    Why We Suck: A Feel Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid
    Author

    Denis Leary

    Denis Leary has appeared in more than thirty films, including the Oscar-nominated Wag the Dog, The Thomas Crowne Affair, and Ice Age, as well as the Christmas cult classic The Ref, and such indie favorites as Jesus’ Son and Suicide Kings. Leary was the co-creator, producer, and star of the critically acclaimed network comedy The Job. His one-man shows No Cure For Cancer and Lock ’n Load broke viewing records on HBO. Leary has also written for New York Magazine, GQ, Playboy, Esquire, and many other publications. He is the co-writer, creator, and star of the four-time Emmy and Golden Globe–nominated television series Rescue Me. He lives in Connecticut.

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    Reviews for Why We Suck

    3.5/5

    203 ratings21 reviews

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    • 3/5
      funny quick read
    • 3/5
      Very irreverent, very funny, non-PC, but does not leave you with a whole lot. Inconsistencies at some points can drive you crazy. On the one hand, there's a prolonged tirade on how horrible kids are, including making fun of parents who think their kids are special. On the other hand, an ode to helicopter moms and a demand that a mother has to stay home. One minute he mercilessly makes fun of women, the next he sounds so whipped it makes me want to barf (oh and don't forget the irony-free all-out Oprah infomercial). O-kay, whatever, I get that he's a comic, but damn, man, make up your mind! There are some truly hilarious moments- "mom's recipes" part was my hands down favorite; that alone is worth picking up the book. But, in the end, the book as a whole is too uneven to rise up to the level of my favorite humor writers like P.J. O'Rourke or even Dave Barry.
    • 4/5
      I laughed. A lot. and then i laughed uncomfortably when he mocked things I do, not just other people. I love that he's an equal opportunity mocker. No one is sacred!
    • 5/5
      It's like listening to a 4 hr Denis Leary stand up routine. Great!
    • 5/5
      Akin to his stand up comedy, but a bit calmer! Just as hilarious with more focus on stories.
    • 4/5
      I listened to this on a 10 hr drive and I was cracking up the whole time.
    • 3/5
      Amusing and offensive in equal measure. If this book doesn't piss you off at least 3 times you are probably dead. But the parts that don't hit close to home are at times hilarious. Some of the jokes are pretty tired by now, and some of them fall flat, of course. But enough of 'em are dead square skewering our national foibles to make this a worthwhile read.
    • 4/5
      Love him or hate him, Denis Leary is entertaining.

      There is plenty to love and hate in this book. He says it at the beginning. He plans on offending everybody. Except Oprah. He plans on offending her, but then falls in love. Everything about Denis is as advertised. It is one of the reasons I like him. He says that men only have a few things on their mind.. It starts with Sex and Food and it generally ends up with "Can I Hit That Thing?" meaning anything within an arm throw distance.

      I like how he takes all comers and gives it his full attention and both barrels.

      It was entertaining. I got my money's worth. Even if that was my library book money.
    • 1/5
      I'm abandoning this book. Not good. I agree with another reviewer that the subjects are tired and not even topical. I'm not wasting any more time on this one.
    • 3/5
      The other reviews hit all the high points here--it's more of the same from Leary; it's better spoken than read; it's a lot of rant rant rant without a lot of actual commentary. Still, it was an entertaining enough listen. I don't agree with a lot of what he said, but I can see where he's coming from on most of it.

      I was curious about this after I saw him interviewed on The Daily Show, and Jon Stewart asked about the "autism isn't real" debacle. Leary clarified that he wasn't saying "autism is completely made up," but that his point was more about the pathological need in today's society to label any kid who isn't a calm (but not too calm), smart (but not too smart) kid. Having listened to that section of his book, I don't understand why he needed to clarify that--it seemed pretty obvious to me that he was saying was that labels get tossed around like candy, and while, yes, autism and autism-spectrum disorders are real, there are the parents who seem to revel in their kids' diagnoses, to the extent that the parents will drag kids around from doctor to doctor until they find one who is willing to label their child "special needs." I'm not explaining it very well (in part because there's a whole long discussion of social issues here that I don't feel like getting into), but what it boils down to is that neither he nor I believe that autism doesn't exist, and he never once suggested that it doesn't--only that there's always someone willing to diagnose kids for things that, really, aren't problems the way some parents want them to be. (Please note that I am NOT lumping all parents-of-autism-spectrum-kids in this statement.)

      I'm guessing now's a good time for me to stop digging, before I REALLY get myself in trouble while trying not to offend parents of legitimately autism-spectrum kids. Or anyone else. And I've probably failed because I can't frame (or phrase) my thoughts on this issue coherently.
    • 4/5
      Very funny. Sometimes you have to remind yourself that this book is written by a comedian and not take everything he says too seriously. As a writer, Denis does not like to use commas (or many other forms of punctuation) so I had to re-read some paragraphs in order to read them correctly.Loved it!
    • 4/5
      I'm a huge fan of his and agreed with 98% of what he had to say in this book. It's really kind of a "rant" more than anything else. You can hear his voice as though he's speaking directly to you - and there are times when he just goes on and on because he's so excited and there are no punctuation indicators and no pauses and he keeps going and going and you have to almost catch your breath while reading . . . whew!! He's pretty much dead on, though, with his views on why/how the rest of the world views Americans the way they do. He does veer off in a few chapters on differences between men and women in general, but it's very funny stuff. I found that it was a book that I picked up and put down - had to do it in chapters, really; not a book you plow through in a day or two (at least not for me.) Look forward to chapters such as "Autism Shmautism", "Matt Dillon is a Giant Fag" and "We'd Hate You Even If You Weren't Black."
    • 4/5
      I would be lying if I said I didn't laugh out loud during this book. A lot. I would also be lying if I said my mouth didn't drop open a couple of times in astonishment. Denis Leary is not one for political correctness or skirting around issues. Whether he is talking about how Oprah can save the planet or that we should skip waterboarding and instead make terrorists listen to Clay Aiken, Hannah Montana and Celine Dion as torture, he has a lot of points to make. I would recommend this, but only if you don't take yourself too seriously. Remember, the subtitle of this book is A feel good guide to staying fat, loud, lazy and stupid.
    • 2/5
      Got tired of his rants. Some parts funny , but he tends to beat the dead horse.
    • 2/5
      Not PC at all, but really funny. Well, if you like Leary that is.
    • 4/5
      Ok so Denis Leary can be described by one or more of the following terms; egotistical, bitter, chauvinistic, jerk, A-hole, pungent, brash, harsh, narcissistic, big headed, self-centered, self-righteous, loud, rude, crude, annoying, sarcastic, well you get my point. But there is one thing Denis Leary is not, and that is funny. No wait a minute, scratch that he is funny, and there is more than a shred of truth in his long winded, vulgar mouthed, screaming with rage rants on everything from bratty kids to Oprah discussing orgasms. Whether you like him or not, one can’t deny the truth behind Leary’s satirical view of the world in which we live. If you can handle more than mild profanity and the occasional slang words for parts of the human anatomy (both male and female) then you will laugh at at least a few parts of this book. If you personally spew profanity and slang words for parts of the human anatomy on a semi-to-regular basis, then you will laugh on a semi-to-regular basis. Warning: If you fall under one or more of the following categories: male, female, young, old, single, married, homo sapiens, homophobic, homosexual, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Indian (Native American or otherwise), African (American or otherwise), blonde brunette, tall, short, skinny, fat, big boned, small boned, jelly fish, coward, proud, shy, outgoing, introvert, extrovert, burnt out, burned up, mentally challenged, physically challenged, strong, weak, rich, poor, funny, stupid, smart, clever, resourceful, witty, colorful, happy, sad, angry, or mad, you might be mildly offended by this book.P.S. If you enjoy Denis Leary, then I suggest listening to this title as an audio book which he reads personally, as it is much more funny to listen to than to read. Enjoy!
    • 4/5
      i thought i wouldn't like this. i usually hate rants. and this is a rant. but he doesn't hate everything or think he's perfect or just try to be outrageous. it's a rant with heart? or i have become a curmudgeon?
    • 3/5
      When I was a kid, Denis Leary's "No Cure For Cancer" show was the funniest thing I'd ever seen. I've always remained a fan since my first exposure to Mr. Leary, recently getting into his TV show, "Rescue Me". While this book was what you'd expect from Leary, I still found myself bored at times. Some of the subjects seemed to blend together but it still had its fair share of laughs.
    • 4/5
      If you like Denis Leary's ranting comedic style, you'll enjoy this book. I could practically hear his voice in my head as I was reading. Most surprising, perhaps, was the underlying tenderness throughout, especially in the stories about his parents, his brother, his wife & kids. The book isn't exactly a memoir, but certain chapters read like one, and added depth to what otherwise might have been a superficial comedic romp.Dr. Leary and I hold similar opinions about many things. For example:"This country has the attention span of a gnat on Non-Drowsy Sudafed." (209)."You know what kids learn when parents insist on making sure that everyone gets a trophy and everyone wins and nobody loses? They learn that losing doesn't suck. Which it does....You fall down you get up. That's how you learn how much falling down hurts and how much you never wanna fall down ever again." (98)"Personally--seeing Janet Jackson's left nipple on TV wasn't anywhere near as offensive to me as the four million ads for Viagra and Cialis and all the other "how to get a hard-on" pills that rolled out every other minute during the same game..." (69)In addition, I learned that Denis Leary is a published poet! (Check out the Fall 1977 issue of Ploughshares.) Leary touches on the idiocy of pop culture, parenting, prescription drugs, Oprah and Dr. Phil, the Catholic Church, and the many differences between men & women. He's honest about all of it, but (oddly) not at all unkind. Our hypocritical, self-centered, and rather self-destructive society has many faults, but Leary points them out not because he hates this country, but because he loves it. He wants to see us pull our heads out of our collective American asses and be groovy again.
    • 4/5
      A funny diatribe, Leary goes off on the differences between men and women, pets, Anna Nicole, Lindsay Lohan, and more. There is something here to offend everyone, and also something to make you laugh.
    • 3/5
      I was recovering from a broken bone and needed some laughs so i downloaded this on a whim. Equal parts amusing and troglodidic. His take on gender politics reads like a rehash of all those idiotic "she likes to shop/he likes to fart" emails I trash three of every week. Not a particularly original thinker is perhaps what I want to say. Still, the guy is funny.