New Teeth

Stories

By: Simon Rich

Narrated by: Fred Berman

Length: 4 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

Laugh till you cry in this new collection of stories from the “Serena Williams of humor writing” (New York Times Book Review) about raising babies and trying to learn how not to be one.

Called a “comedic Godsend” by Conan O’Brien, and “the Stephen King of comedy writing” by John Mulaney, Simon Rich is back with New Teeth, his funniest and most personal collection yet.

Two murderous pirates find a child stowaway on board and attempt to balance pillaging with co-parenting. A woman raised by wolves prepares for her parents’ annual Thanksgiving visit. An aging mutant superhero is forced to learn humility when the mayor kicks him upstairs to a desk job. And in the hard-boiled caper “The Big Nap”, a weary two-year-old detective struggles to make sense of “a world gone mad”.

Equal parts silly and sincere, New Teeth is an ode to growing up, growing older, and what it means to make a family.

©2021 Simon Rich (P)2021 Little, Brown & Company

Critic reviews

"Rich presents parody, absurdity, observational wit, the sudden shift in a familiar premise, and a surprising touch of sweetness and charm throughout.... [New Teeth is] so consistently funny, so exceptional in its imaginative use of parody as to be near genius. A fertile mind provides many smiles in this entertaining collection - and more than a few out-loud laughs." (Kirkus, starred review)

Hilarious, Heartwarming and Heartbreaking

Fantastic set of short stories, must listen for any parent or future parent. I could not stop laughing then crying then laughing again at every story. So stupid and silly but also so heavy and thought provoking.

Performance by the reader was also really great and could have ruined the stories if he did not understand the beats, which I think he did a great job of hitting.

Comedy is a serious business.

A collection of short stories, NEW TEETH ranges from bittersweet to damn!! Each chapter asks the question, "What If?"
Sometimes poignant, "Raised by wolves," to sketch material, "Tips for Parenting", and "Clobbo." Simon Rich has the skill to deliver.

funniest book I've listened too

heard Simon Rich on Conan's podcast. this book is hilarious! the performances make each story come alive.

Brilliant

Brilliant is a very good way to describe this book I hope I now have enough word in this description

Super silly, but fun!

Super silly, but fun! Definitely need to put your 'taking things too seriously' attitude aside. Fred Berman was did a great job as narrator.

this one will split your sides you'll laugh so har

FUNNY! this was my first book from this author and I loved it. you won't be disappointed.

Oh. My. God. This is amazing

Heard Simon's interview on Conan's podcast. Bought it that day. All the short stories are great, but "The Big Nap" is seriously one of the best AND funniest short stories I have EVER heard. I've listened to that short story 3 times so far and I bought it yesterday. Glorious comedy. As a comedy writer myself, it's nice to see someone so talented do so very very well. Huzzah!

Impossible to Categorize

What a delicious grab bag of the sublime and the ridiculous. A story may rest on a corny joke, a superhero past his prime, or a psychological examination of the doctor who is jealous of the attention his wife pays to the “Elephant Man.” Yes. There are real historical figures in here. I could never predict what kind of story would come next: hilarity, horror, a blasphemous or ridiculous moment in the life of Babe Ruth, a girl who was raised by wolves dreads their visit with her “normal” family for Thanksgiving. I especially love the quite serious advice on how to handle the “REAL monster problem” when you talk to your children. But what can I say overall?

About 60% of the stories really work. I laughed out loud. I admired the author’s inventiveness. I recommend to anyone who loved the first five+ years of Saturday Night Live.

Another excellent one from Simon Rich

Enjoy it. Great writing; great performance. [and here are the additional words required for me to submit this review]

Uneven

Hot and cold…the shorter chapters/vignettes hit the strike zone with more regularity whereas the longer stories almost became a bit tedious and indulgent…like Simon lost his way. I ended a couple with the reaction “well, there’s 30 min of my life I’ll never get back”. Hard to enthusiastically recommend even though there are some true diamonds included. Good but not great.