You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams

My Life in Stories and Pictures

By: Alan Cumming

Narrated by: Alan Cumming

Length: 3 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

A magical concoction of the mischievous, tender, whimsical, and debauched real-life adventures of Alan Cumming, told in his own words and pictures.

Described by the New York Times as “a bawdy countercultural sprite” and named one of the most fun people in show business by Time magazine, Alan Cumming is a genuine quadruple threat - an internationally acclaimed, award-winning star of stage, television, and film, as well as a New York Times best-selling author whose real-life vivacity, wit, and charm shine through every minute of his third book, You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams.

In these forty-five picture essays, Cumming recounts his real-life adventures (and often, misadventures), illustrated by his own equally entertaining photographs. From an awkward bonding session with Elizabeth Taylor to poignant stories about his family and friends to some harsh words of wisdom imparted by Oprah that make up the title of this collection, You Gotta Get Bigger Dreams is as eclectic, enchanting, and alive as its author.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

Download the accompanying materials.

©2016 Rizzoli International Publications, Inc. Text © 2016 by Alan Cumming. Photographs © 2016 Alan Cumming. (P)2016 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"Alan Cumming's narration of his own collection of reminiscences bursts out of one's speakers with passion and verve.... Cumming's wit, good humor, and attention to just the right details in his writing and performance are more than enough on their own to keep listeners riveted." (AudioFile)

Perhaps Too Visual To Be an Audio Book

What I Liked: As an audiobook, this was a rather charming experience. Hearing Alan Cumming's voice as he relates these different stories makes it all feel like the natural discourse over the course of an afternoon over tea or maybe a few drinks depending on your fancy. A lot of the anecdotes can feel a little random in a strictly narrative sense but if you think about this as a conversation then it totally feels natural and organic. And I think that's sort of what he's going for.

And man, these photos are gems because they're not clean press-worthy photos but they are very much actual photos that he has taken over the years with different photographic devices. He proudly proclaims to love selfies and feels he was one of the those on the forefront of the movement even before smartphone cameras made selfies so easy. And a lot of his photos feature him in various states, forever leaving these impressions of him across time.

What Could Have Been Better: Again, this is not a great audiobook since a key part of the experience is visual and the book loses that to some degree. This is particularly true for how must of us utilize Audiobook services like Audible - which means listening while driving, commuting, walking or otherwise being engaged with other activities. We're not always in a state when we can look away from what we're doing in order to enjoy the accompanying photos in the PDF. It's a limitation of the medium, not the source material.

The book is very light and if you're looking for more "dirt" as it were given how a lot of people tend to review such celebrity memoirs. This not to say that Mr. Cumming only has good stories to share of course. But it's largely quite light and at times fluffy, which may be good or may be bad depending on your expectations.

His Voice!

I can listen to Alan Cumming talk all day and night! I love the layout of this book, short stories that let you get a small glimpse of Alan Cumming’s life and the celebrities he encounters.

A Stained Glass Window

First, I must admittedly state that I dearly love Alan Cumming and all his performances. As such a huge fan, I want to say that I believe this book is like breaking apart a large stained glass window. As you pick up each tiny glass fragment, you look at that one part of Alan's life. Fascinating. Since I am not the original glass artist, once I have reassembled all the pieces, the result does not look like Alan's entire life, but it is a very interesting look at this part. I'm sure I'll return many times to listen to a handful at a time of these chapters and I hope you do as well. This book is a beautiful, colorful stained glass window and with Alan producing the illumination (after all, he's a star) you'll enjoy the moments of pleasure, if not total reverence (like me) of basking in his light. Pick up the pieces and get started enjoying!

Quick bawdy laugh

I found this book to be a fun romp thru a few of Alan Cummings most cherished and funny life stories. Very quick and easy to read.

Meh

Love Alan Cumming, but there was nothing about this book that stands out. I would not recommend to a friend. So my final response is Meh.

now I know why...

I absolutely adore honest and truthful living. Once again a choice is made and Alan Cumming is the wonderful incredible human result.

Hilarious

Thank you for sharing! Hilarious, surreal & yet somehow relatable stories & anecdotes about life as an actor. Fun!

Enjoyable

I laughed and I cried and then I listened to it again. It was fun to listen to.

I thought this was a self-help book!

This was a pretty entertaining book! I must admit, I thought it was going to be self-improvement book, but it was actually an autobiography of the experiences that Alan Cumming, a gay broadway actor, had during his life.

Really entertaining book, with some decent life lessons along the way.

Alan does a great job of performing the narration.

Brilliant storytelling

Alan Cumming is delightful... and of course there's his yummy accent! Fun, poignant, witty, dishy, and endearing, but never overbearing or heavy. Definitely recommend!