The book is not funny enough, not scientific enough, not journalistic enough... but an ok mix of all three. While it offers a warm perspective and strong concept it doesn’t quite do its job.

The science needed more science, the comedy more humour, the meeting with other conedians more interviews.

The last part of the book is much more interesting and comes with valuable insight and deep consideration. ( )

On the surface, it’s a book about stand-up comedy and comedians - but underneath that it’s really about all of us and what makes us what we are. Lovely written, getting more and more powerful with each page, and very funny. ( )

Robin Ince is an English comedian, but I have to admit not one that I'm familiar with. I believe he's done a lot on the live comedy circuit and the likes of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, but more latterly is known for his radio work. Nonetheless, I was looking forward to getting my hands on this fairly new release, as from The Times review it sounded really interesting, and the Amazon reviews - although only in double figures - were very favourable.

What did I think I was going to get out of this? Perhaps an alternative introspection on some of the most common human frailties, such as anxiety. However, I'm afraid I don't share the plaudits on the jacket cover. If I was a stand up comedian, then yes - no doubt I'd find this book particularly interesting, so perhaps that's where the fellow comedian glowing recommendations are coming from. Ince looks at many of the common emotions and characteristics that fuel comedians, such as how they find their creativity, the difficult marriage of the on-stage persona versus the real persona, and imposter syndrome. Whilst it was all well written, I have not been, nor am I planning to be any time soon, a stand up comic, therefore I can't say I overly care too much about why comedians feel the need to follow that line of work and their emotional issues (which - spoiler alert - are exactly the same ones the rest of us face). Would we devour a book on the human frailties of insurance underwriters? I therefore don't see why I should be any more interested in comedians just because some of them are well known and have bigger egos to polish.

I'm not sure who this book is for, beyond those employed in the arena of comedy (that's possibly where the 43 mostly rave reviews on Amazon come from). The last chapter was probably the strongest, in which Ince looks at death and grief and examines how comedians differ in their approaches to how they use comedy to deal with (or not deal with) the death of a close relative, but it wasn't enough to win me back.

2.5 stars - well written but just mind-numbingly uninteresting for large swathes for me. ( )