Welcome to Pawnee: Stories of Friendship, Waffles, and ‘Parks and Recreation’

In this tender debut memoir, O’Heir reflects on playing office manager Jerry Gergich on the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation (2009–2015). Detailing his time on the show, O’Heir recounts auditioning for the role of Ron Swanson (which went to Nick Offerman), his elevation to series regular during season two, and his emotional last day on set. The most illuminating sections discuss the trials of working as a character actor, with O’Heir discussing how he once dragged himself to set while battling food poisoning for fear of getting cut from an episode, and how he reminded himself to “be content” with his supporting role even as he sometimes felt left out (not yet a series regular, he wasn’t invited on stage with the rest of the cast at the first season’s wrap party). However, the cast bonded as the series progressed, and O’Heir’s fond accounts of his friendships with his costars are perfectly aligned with Parks’ compassionate ethos. For instance, O’Heir remembers how star Amy Poehler convinced Entertainment Weekly to reverse their decision to exclude him from a cast cover shoot by threatening to withhold her participation, and how Chris Pratt regularly checked in on him to make sure jokes about his character didn’t get to him personally. Entertaining and full of heart, this is a must for Parks and Recreation devotees. Photos. (Nov.)