You Better Not Cry: Stories for Christmas » (Bargain)

When Augusten Burroughs released 2002's Running with Scissors -- his memoir about growing up in the mother of all dysfunctional families -- readers didn't know whether to drop their jaws in horror or hold their stomachs from laughing. Whatever reactions he gets from readers, Burroughs's gift for dishing on all things stranger than fiction has made him a bestselling author.

With gimleteyed wit and illuminated prose, Augusten shows how the holidays bring out the worst in us and sometimes, the very, very best.

Publishers Weekly

With hilarious, heart-warming, and emotional Yule-tide tales, Burroughs revisits his childhood Christmases that seemed to bring out the best and worst in his family and friends. Burroughs reads with such ease and candor he seems more old friend than narrator. With his crisp diction, smooth delivery, and relentlessly funny material, Burroughs could easily have a new career as a performer, but for now, listeners can give thanks for this early Christmas present. A St. Martin's hardcover (Reviews, Jul. 13). (Nov.)

You Better Not Cry 1

And Two Eyes Made Out of Coal 35

Claus and Effect 49

Ask Again Later 77

Why Do You Reward Me Thus? 101

The Best and Only Everything 129

Silent Night 167