-
Survival of the Thickest
- Essays
- Narrated by: Michelle Buteau
- Length: 6 hrs and 34 mins
- Categories: Biographies & Memoirs, Entertainment & Celebrities
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Audible Premium Plus
$14.95 a month
Buy for $17.00
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
I Want to Be Where the Normal People Are
- By: Rachel Bloom
- Narrated by: Rachel Bloom
- Length: 4 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the charming and wickedly funny cocreator and star of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, a collection of hilarious personal essays, poems, and even amusement park maps on the subjects of insecurity, fame, anxiety, and much more.
-
-
MUST listen!
- By Kiarra on 11-17-20
By: Rachel Bloom
-
You'll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey
- Crazy Stories About Racism
- By: Amber Ruffin, Lacey Lamar
- Narrated by: Amber Ruffin, Lacey Lamar
- Length: 5 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Now a writer and performer on Late Night with Seth Meyers and host of The Amber Ruffin Show, Amber Ruffin lives in New York, where she is no one's first Black friend and everyone is, as she puts it, "stark raving normal". But Amber's sister Lacey? She's still living in their home state of Nebraska, and trust us, you'll never believe what happened to Lacey.
-
-
Great book
- By April White on 01-13-21
By: Amber Ruffin, and others
-
Little Miss Little Compton
- A Memoir
- By: Arden Myrin, Debby Ryan
- Narrated by: Arden Myrin
- Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Comedian and actress Arden Myrin delivers a hilarious and heartfelt memoir about navigating adulthood and her rise on the comedy scene despite an unconventional upbringing. From small-town Rhode Island to accidentally kicking Courteney Cox in the face on a soundstage in Hollywood, Arden's hilarious, inspiring, and honest story shows listeners how one totally unconventional upbringing might be the very thing one needs to thrive, all while showing up as your most outrageous, authentic self.
-
-
Excellent
- By kelinda on 11-16-20
By: Arden Myrin, and others
-
A Promised Land
- By: Barack Obama
- Narrated by: Barack Obama
- Length: 29 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the stirring, highly anticipated first volume of his presidential memoirs, Barack Obama tells the story of his improbable odyssey from young man searching for his identity to leader of the free world, describing in strikingly personal detail both his political education and the landmark moments of the first term of his historic presidency - a time of dramatic transformation and turmoil.
-
-
Obama is a great man, but is this book romcom?
- By Nooncaps on 11-24-20
By: Barack Obama
-
Little Weirds
- By: Jenny Slate
- Narrated by: Jenny Slate
- Length: 4 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
You may "know" Jenny Slate from her Netflix special, Stage Fright, as the creator of Marcel the Shell, or as the star of Obvious Child. But you don't really know Jenny Slate until you get bonked on the head by her absolutely singular writing style. To see the world through Jenny's eyes is to see it as though for the first time, shimmering with strangeness and possibility.
-
-
softness is earned and it is wonderful
- By Van on 12-09-19
By: Jenny Slate
-
This Is Just My Face
- Try Not to Stare
- By: Gabourey Sidibe
- Narrated by: Gabourey Sidibe
- Length: 6 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Gabourey Sidibe - "Gabby" to her legion of fans - skyrocketed to international fame in 2009 when she played the leading role in Lee Daniels' acclaimed movie Precious. In This Is Just My Face, she shares a one-of-a-kind life story in a voice as fresh and challenging as many of the unique characters she's played onscreen. With full-throttle honesty, Sidibe paints her Bed-Stuy/Harlem family life with a polygamous father and a gifted mother who supports her two children by singing in the subway.
-
-
yaaaassssss
- By asha moore on 05-12-17
By: Gabourey Sidibe
-
I Want to Be Where the Normal People Are
- By: Rachel Bloom
- Narrated by: Rachel Bloom
- Length: 4 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the charming and wickedly funny cocreator and star of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, a collection of hilarious personal essays, poems, and even amusement park maps on the subjects of insecurity, fame, anxiety, and much more.
-
-
MUST listen!
- By Kiarra on 11-17-20
By: Rachel Bloom
-
You'll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey
- Crazy Stories About Racism
- By: Amber Ruffin, Lacey Lamar
- Narrated by: Amber Ruffin, Lacey Lamar
- Length: 5 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Now a writer and performer on Late Night with Seth Meyers and host of The Amber Ruffin Show, Amber Ruffin lives in New York, where she is no one's first Black friend and everyone is, as she puts it, "stark raving normal". But Amber's sister Lacey? She's still living in their home state of Nebraska, and trust us, you'll never believe what happened to Lacey.
-
-
Great book
- By April White on 01-13-21
By: Amber Ruffin, and others
-
Little Miss Little Compton
- A Memoir
- By: Arden Myrin, Debby Ryan
- Narrated by: Arden Myrin
- Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Comedian and actress Arden Myrin delivers a hilarious and heartfelt memoir about navigating adulthood and her rise on the comedy scene despite an unconventional upbringing. From small-town Rhode Island to accidentally kicking Courteney Cox in the face on a soundstage in Hollywood, Arden's hilarious, inspiring, and honest story shows listeners how one totally unconventional upbringing might be the very thing one needs to thrive, all while showing up as your most outrageous, authentic self.
-
-
Excellent
- By kelinda on 11-16-20
By: Arden Myrin, and others
-
A Promised Land
- By: Barack Obama
- Narrated by: Barack Obama
- Length: 29 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the stirring, highly anticipated first volume of his presidential memoirs, Barack Obama tells the story of his improbable odyssey from young man searching for his identity to leader of the free world, describing in strikingly personal detail both his political education and the landmark moments of the first term of his historic presidency - a time of dramatic transformation and turmoil.
-
-
Obama is a great man, but is this book romcom?
- By Nooncaps on 11-24-20
By: Barack Obama
-
Little Weirds
- By: Jenny Slate
- Narrated by: Jenny Slate
- Length: 4 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
You may "know" Jenny Slate from her Netflix special, Stage Fright, as the creator of Marcel the Shell, or as the star of Obvious Child. But you don't really know Jenny Slate until you get bonked on the head by her absolutely singular writing style. To see the world through Jenny's eyes is to see it as though for the first time, shimmering with strangeness and possibility.
-
-
softness is earned and it is wonderful
- By Van on 12-09-19
By: Jenny Slate
-
This Is Just My Face
- Try Not to Stare
- By: Gabourey Sidibe
- Narrated by: Gabourey Sidibe
- Length: 6 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Gabourey Sidibe - "Gabby" to her legion of fans - skyrocketed to international fame in 2009 when she played the leading role in Lee Daniels' acclaimed movie Precious. In This Is Just My Face, she shares a one-of-a-kind life story in a voice as fresh and challenging as many of the unique characters she's played onscreen. With full-throttle honesty, Sidibe paints her Bed-Stuy/Harlem family life with a polygamous father and a gifted mother who supports her two children by singing in the subway.
-
-
yaaaassssss
- By asha moore on 05-12-17
By: Gabourey Sidibe
-
The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl
- By: Issa Rae
- Narrated by: Issa Rae
- Length: 5 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
"My name is 'J' and I'm awkward--and Black. Someone once told me those were the two worst things anyone could be. That someone was right. Where do I start?" Being an introvert in a world that glorifies cool isn't easy. But when Issa Rae, the creator of the Shorty Award-winning hit series The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl, is that introvert--whether she's navigating love, work, friendships, or rapping--it sure is entertaining.
-
-
Good comedy book
- By Bella on 03-10-17
By: Issa Rae
-
A Very Punchable Face
- A Memoir
- By: Colin Jost
- Narrated by: Colin Jost
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
If there’s one trait that makes someone well-suited to comedy, it’s being able to take a punch - metaphorically and, occasionally, physically. Told with a healthy dose of self-deprecation, A Very Punchable Face reveals the brilliant mind behind some of the dumbest sketches on television, and lays bare the heart and humor of a hardworking guy - with a face you can’t help but want to punch.
-
-
Incredible❗️
- By Jane on 07-30-20
By: Colin Jost
-
You Can't Touch My Hair
- And Other Things I Still Have to Explain
- By: Phoebe Robinson, Jessica Williams - foreword
- Narrated by: Phoebe Robinson, John Hodgman
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Being a black woman in America means contending with old prejudices and fresh absurdities every day. Comedian Phoebe Robinson has experienced her fair share over the years: She's been unceremoniously relegated to the role of "the black friend", as if she is somehow the authority on all things racial; she's been questioned about her love of U2 and Billy Joel ("isn't that...white people music?"); she's been called "uppity" for having an opinion in the workplace; and yes, people do ask her whether they can touch her hair all. The. Time.
-
-
Listening To This Audiobook Was A Good Life Choice
- By Rachel - Audible on 10-17-17
By: Phoebe Robinson, and others
-
Meaty
- Essays
- By: Samantha Irby
- Narrated by: Samantha Irby
- Length: 7 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Smart, edgy, hilarious, and unabashedly raunchy New York Times best-selling author Samantha Irby explodes in her uproarious first collection of essays. Irby laughs her way through tragicomic mishaps, neuroses, and taboos as she struggles through adulthood: chin hairs, depression, bad sex, failed relationships, masturbation, taco feasts, inflammatory bowel disease, and more. Updated with her favorite Instagramable, couch-friendly recipes, this much-beloved romp is treat for anyone in dire need of Irby's infamous, scathing wit, and poignant candor.
-
-
Lazy attempt at another book
- By CN327 on 04-24-20
By: Samantha Irby
-
The Meaning of Mariah Carey
- By: Mariah Carey
- Narrated by: Mariah Carey
- Length: 11 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It took me a lifetime to have the courage and the clarity to write my memoir. I want to tell the story of the moments - the ups and downs, the triumphs and traumas, the debacles and the dreams - that contributed to the person I am today. This book is composed of my memories, my mishaps, my struggles, my survival, and my songs. Unfiltered. I went deep into my childhood and gave the scared little girl inside of me a big voice. I let the abandoned and ambitious adolescent have her say, and the betrayed and triumphant woman I became tell her side.
-
-
Entertaining glitz glam smoke and mirrors - not the whole story.
- By Anonymous User on 10-04-20
By: Mariah Carey
-
Dolly Parton, Songteller
- My Life in Lyrics
- By: Dolly Parton
- Narrated by: Dolly Parton
- Length: 5 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Recorded Books Audio Original production of songs and stories performed by Dolly herself, Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics goes beyond the glitz, glamour, and rhinestones to the warmth, heart, and soul of a treasured pop-culture icon.
-
-
Interview without questions
- By Amazon Customer on 11-19-20
By: Dolly Parton
-
God-Level Knowledge Darts
- Life Lessons from the Bronx
- By: Desus, Mero
- Narrated by: Desus, Mero
- Length: 4 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Who could have predicted that, after a fateful meeting in a Bronx summer school in the 1990s, Desus and Mero would turn their friendship into an empire of talking to each other? And it’s no surprise — tuning in to them is like listening to the funniest, smartest people you know dissect a topic and then light it on fire.
-
-
It’s in the title.
- By Amazon Customer on 09-23-20
By: Desus, and others
-
The Best of Me
- By: David Sedaris
- Narrated by: David Sedaris
- Length: 13 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For more than 25 years, David Sedaris has been carving out a unique literary space, virtually creating his own genre. A Sedaris story may seem confessional, but is also highly attuned to the world outside. It opens our eyes to what is at absurd and moving about our daily existence. And it is almost impossible to hear without laughing. Now, for the first time collected in one volume, the author brings us his funniest and most memorable work.
-
-
Almost No New Material
- By Lizardectomy on 11-05-20
By: David Sedaris
-
Girl Logic
- The Genius and the Absurdity
- By: Iliza Shlesinger
- Narrated by: Mayim Bialik, Iliza Shlesinger
- Length: 5 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From breakout stand-up comedian Iliza Shlesinger comes a subversively funny collection of essays and observations on a confident woman's approach to friendship, singlehood, and relationships. "Girl Logic" is Iliza's term for the way women obsess over details and situations that men don't necessarily even notice. She describes it as a characteristically female way of thinking that appears to be contradictory and circuitous but is actually a complicated and highly evolved way of looking at the world.
-
-
A delight
- By Haha917 on 03-28-18
By: Iliza Shlesinger
-
Bevelations
- Lessons from a Mutha, Auntie, Bestie
- By: Bevy Smith
- Narrated by: Bevy Smith
- Length: 8 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bevy Smith was living what seemed like a glamorous dream as a fashion advertising executive, blazing a lucrative career for herself in the whitewashed magazine world. She jetsetted to Europe for fashion shows, dined and danced at every hot spot, and enjoyed a mighty roster of lovers. So it came as quite a shock to Bevy when one day, after arriving at her luxury hotel in Milan, she collapsed on the Frette bedsheets and sobbed. Years of rolling with the in-crowd had taken its toll. Her satisfaction with work and life had hit rock bottom.
-
-
It gets greater now! Must listen!!
- By Toni Westley on 01-19-21
By: Bevy Smith
-
Everything's Trash, but It's Okay
- By: Phoebe Robinson, Ilana Glazer - foreword
- Narrated by: Phoebe Robinson
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
New York Times best-selling author and star of 2 Dope Queens Phoebe Robinson is back with a new, hilarious, and timely essay collection on gender, race, dating, and the Dumpster fire that is our world. Written in her trademark unfiltered and witty style, Robinson's latest collection is a call to arms. Outfitted with on-point pop culture references, these essays tackle a wide range of topics: giving feminism a tough-love talk on intersectionality, telling society's beauty standards to kick rocks, and calling foul on our culture's obsession with work.
-
-
Hilarious & Enlightening
- By M0m B00b$ on 11-01-18
By: Phoebe Robinson, and others
-
Take It Back
- A Novel
- By: Kia Abdullah
- Narrated by: Sartaj Garewal, Sophie Bentinck, Tania Rodrigues
- Length: 11 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Jodie Wolfe, a 16-year-old girl with facial deformities, accuses four boys in her class of an unthinkable crime, the community is torn apart. After all, these four teenage defendants are from hard-working immigrant families and they all have proven alibis. Even Jodie's best friend doesn't believe her. But lawyer Zara Kaleel does - and she is determined to fight for Jodie - to find the truth in the face of public outcry. And as issues of sex, race, and social justice collide, the most explosive criminal trial of the year builds to a shocking conclusion.
-
-
Very satisfying story
- By cindy on 12-15-20
By: Kia Abdullah
Publisher's Summary
From the stand-up comedian, actress, and host beloved for her cheeky swagger, unique voice, and unapologetic frankness comes a book of comedic essays for fans of Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me by Mindy Kaling and We’re Going to Need More Wine by Gabrielle Union.
If you’ve watched television or movies in the past year, you’ve seen Michelle Buteau. With scene-stealing roles in Always Be My Maybe, First Wives Club, Someone Great, Russian Doll, and Tales of the City; a reality TV show and breakthrough stand-up specials, including her headlining show Welcome to Buteaupia on Netflix, and two podcasts (Late Night Whenever and Adulting), Michelle’s star is on the rise. You’d be forgiven for thinking the road to success - or adulthood or financial stability or self-acceptance or marriage or motherhood - has been easy; but you’d be wrong.
Now, in Survival of the Thickest, Michelle reflects on growing up Caribbean, Catholic, and thick in New Jersey, going to college in Miami (where everyone smells like pineapple), her many friendship and dating disasters, working as a newsroom editor during 9/11, getting started in stand-up opening for male strippers, marrying into her husband’s Dutch family, IVF and surrogacy, motherhood, chosen family, and what it feels like to have a full heart, tight jeans, and stardom finally in her grasp.
What listeners say about Survival of the Thickest
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jessica
- 12-28-20
Enjoyable listen, unexpected moments
I didn't understand at first that it was a series of essays. Once I got that in order the book makes more sense. Some have complained that this book isn't cohesive, but it's a series of essays on different toys in her life. Michelle examines so many aspects of her life and I enjoyed sharing in the wisdom she has learned.
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- adriana p marin
- 12-23-20
Great book!
I laughed, I cried, I felt like I went clubbing with Michelle in Miami in the 90’s. What a wonderful book. I highly recommend it.
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jennifer L. Toppin
- 12-12-20
Hilarious and heartfelt
This book was excellent! I enjoyed it from the very beginning and didn't want it to end.
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- @audiblegirl
- 12-20-20
ABSO LOVEDDD IT!!!
So talented! Thank you for sharing your life. Best audio book I've listen to this year.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Maryka Lier
- 01-01-21
Hilarious, Warm-hearted, Irreverent
A wonderful listen and loved hearing it in Michelle’s voice. If you love her stand-up comedy, you’ll love hearing her in this medium. She’s is amazing in the wacky, funny moments and shines in the personal, vulnerable moments. I laughed, I cried, I renewed my commitment to flossing.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 01-19-21
LOVE THIS BOOK
Michelle Buteau is authentic; brutally honest and hilarious.... You will NOT regret purchasing this book.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Aissa2
- 01-18-21
Inspiring of The Thickest
It has been a long time since I have laughed so much. Felt such empathy and rooted for anyone. In spite of this Jersey girl's journey (New York City Diva) thoroughly enjoyed this and know I will be listening to it again several more times to come. What a funny bad boss! No one could possibly have narrated this to its funny, inspiring, and ultimately authentic end. Know many will take heart and equally many will relate. Just found this comic artist and glad I have learned more about her through this book of her essays. Definitely, I will be paying attention, hoping she comes somewhere near and of course will be watching places she can now already be heard and seen. We thick Sistas got to support each other. Enjoyed Michelle's contribution. A must listen to especially when you are in need of a hearty belly jiggling laugh. In spite of her toughness and bold self, sprinkled with a little tenderness, a boss b--ch telling it her way!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- MyWildIdeas
- 01-10-21
Inspirational. Raw. Hilarious.
This book is great. I heart Michelle Buteau and experiencing the audiobook with her as the narrator was the perfect way to spend holiday quarantine. It was just so incredibly real and honest and her perseverance was an inspiration. This book will make you love her even more. Highly recommend.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jade Buttweiler
- 01-07-21
Get Your Ear Holes Ready for a Ride:)
Kept me smiling throughout:) Love Michelle and I am inspired by her journey. She is not afraid to tell you it was not all sunshine.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Michelle M
- 01-06-21
So much fun!
Couldn't stop listening at many points! Many hilarious moments. I love the way Michelle tells a story. And this book has so many really honest personal moments, along with some heartwarming messages and some education. Definitely made me smile and laugh and gave me some hope about my hopeful future goal of becoming a parent!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Amazon Customer
- 12-18-20
funny, sad, heartfelt.
loved everything about this book Michelles delivery is perfect. I laughed cried and he'll year's with her throughout
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Anonymous User
- 12-14-20
Wonderful book from a wonderful woman
I highly recommend this book! I finished the whole thing in 1 sitting. I've been a fan of Michelle for years, and this book is incredible.