Spoiled Brats (including the story that inspired the major motion picture An American Pickle starring Seth Rogen)

Stories

By: Simon Rich

Narrated by: Simon Rich

Length: 3 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's Summary

Twenty years ago, Barney the Dinosaur told the nation's children they were special. We're still paying the price.

From "one of the funniest writers in America" (Jimmy So, Daily Beast) comes a collection of stories culled from the front lines of the millennial culture wars. Rife with failing rock bands, student loans, and participation trophies, Spoiled Brats is about a generation of narcissists - and the well-meaning boomers who made them that way.

A hardworking immigrant is preserved for a century in pickle brine. A helicopter mom strives to educate her demon son. And a family of hamsters struggles to survive in a private-school homeroom.

Surreal, shrewd, and surprisingly warm, these stories are as resonant as they are hilarious.

©2014 Simon Rich (P)2014 Hachette Audio

Critic Reviews

"… Spoiled Brats is vividly hilarious…” (Sloane Crosley, author of I Was Told There'd Be Cake and How Did You Get This Number)

“…each story in Spoiled Brats opens with a brilliant comedic perspective that only gets funnier, more fascinating, more surprising, and more insightful from there. First-rate comedy with a heartbeat…” (B.J. Novak, author of One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories and star of The Office)

3 ½ stars. Some clever ideas.

I didn’t laugh, but I smiled several times.

This has several short stories. Most or all of them are told in first person. My two favorites were: 1. hamsters in a lower school classroom. When Simon was assigned to feed them for the week, they knew death by starvation was coming. 2. “Sell Out” had an immigrant making and selling pickles. He was advised to hire help, but he didn’t want the expense, so he was told to use interns. He couldn’t believe he was getting 100 applications a day from college students wanting to work as slave labor for him.

Many subjects related to things kids in their 20's think about. And the dialogue sounds millennial because he uses the word “like” so much. For example he says “I’m like going somewhere.”

The author narrated his own book. B.J. Novak did this with great success. But I don’t think Simon Rich should do it. His east coast accent is too strong and distracts. Part of it might be his voice. Also, he also should have left greater pauses between stories.

Narrative mode: 1st person.
Genre: humorous short stories.

Great humor

If you like the preview, this book consistently delivers great content. Perfect for guys who grew up in the 90's

Hilarious

A collection of stories, some long and some short, and all worth a listen. To sum up, very clever and very funny. The longer ones are especially good, and I've found myself thinking back to some of the lines, because they're so funny. The humor is observational, and is both dark and whimsical. None of it is mean-spirited, though, and in fact, the stories are sentimental at times. Simon Rich was a good person to narrate, and listening to him is a little like listening to the funny kid in class, or the witty guy down the hall you wish you'd run into more often.

worth the read...very entertaining.

loved it. i purchased this book from the Dollar Tree ... what a hidden jewel

Simon Riich has a Wonderful Satiric Wit

Rich's stories are well laid out in a humorous, satiric manner. Loved the book.

The funniest thing I've ever listened to

So amazing. Laughed the whole time. Don't know what to do with my next book. Nothing will compare.

So funny

I loved it. It's too funny! Simon Rich is the best and I love his show.

Simon Rich is Phenomenal!

Simon Rich has a way of creating a book/story that is humorous and entertaining from start to finish. After I read "Man Seeking Woman", or "Last Girlfriend on Earth", I just had to have more. "Spoiled Brats" continued that trend and delieved even more. By far, Simon Rich is one of my favorite Authors (and narrators).