Is This Anything?

Comedian Seinfeld (Seinlanguage) reflects on the absurdities of life in a laugh-out-loud volume that gathers jokes he’s written over the course of his 45-year career along with reminiscences on the lifestyle and craft of stand-up. “I was able to spend endless amounts of time on some of the silliest ideas you can imagine,” he writes. “And they’re all here.” Highlights include takes on such topics as air travel (“The closest thing we have to royalty in America are the people that ride in those little carts through the airport.”) and growing up (“How many times did your parents have to say to you, ‘Would you get up off the floor?’ Adulthood is the ability to be totally bored and remain standing.”). Throughout the sections of monologue-style jokes, which appear almost like a script on the page in stacked lines, Seinfeld inserts anecdotes from his career, such as remembering venturing to an N.Y.C. comedy club for the first time at age 20 (“every neuron in my little brain just lit up”); working on Seinfeld with producer Larry David and feeling like an “over-drained marathoner”; and doing “nothing” for two years after the series wrapped in 1998, before seeing Chris Rock perform and getting inspired to return to the stage. This sharply observed, life-in-gags treasure trove offers essential reading for comedy fans, from a master of the form. Agent: Christian Carino, Creative Arts Agency. (Oct.)