American on Purpose by Craig Ferguson
September 28th, 2009Title: American on Purpose
Author: Craig Ferguson
Publisher: HarperCollins (2009)
I’m not particularly a huge fan of Late Night talk shows. I think Leno’s comedy is too safe and boring. I think Letterman has turned into an grumpy, angry man. I think Conan had a good show…then got really weird…then got super safe and distant once he move to 11:30 (and it doesn’t help that he is being completely undermined by NBC and Leno). Then there is Craig Ferguson. I’ve always had a soft spot for him. His late night show is OK. A lot of weird comedy…but I like that better than the safety of Leno’s. He seems like a pretty good guy, so when I saw he had a memoir, I thought it would be worth a read.
American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot by Craig Ferguson is the story of his life. It is, surprisingly, not really funny. It isn’t unfunny…it’s just not a book of jokes like I kind of expected.
Ferguson’s life hasn’t been particularly easy…though it seems a lot of it was his fault (and I’m sure he would agree with that). Growing up is Glasgow, Scotland sounds like a pretty tough place to be. I don’t think I would do very well there…plus I don’t have that awesome accent. I wish I did. Where was I? Oh, so Ferguson’s life was pretty rough for a while. A lot of sleeping on couches and not really doing anything with his life. Eventually he stumbled upon a stand up routine and it did very well. And to risk blowing the ending…he becomes successful.
The overriding theme of the book was his desire to come to America and to become an American citizen. Ever since he was a young boy, he knew America was the place for him. Just a short while ago, he was able to complete his goal and become an American citizen, which was pretty exciting.
The book as a whole was an interesting story about an interesting person. I like to know more about people, and I was happy to hear Ferguson isn’t a jerk. Of course, it was his own book…so maybe he is a jerk. But he doesn’t appear to be one. If you are a fan of the show…then I obviously recommend you read this. If you just like reading memoirs…this would be a good, pretty quick, read as well.
Rating: 4 out of 5
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