First Words

The full list of authors includes: Spalding Gray, Lynda Barry, Tom Bodett, Marion Winik, Rick Reynolds, Hugh Gallagher, Richard B. Stolley, Kevin Kling, Bailey White, Peter Mattheissen, Andrei Codrescu, Nora Dunn, Wallace Shawn, and Barry Morrow.

The explosion in storytelling festivals and one-person shows demonstrate that Americans are growing disenchanted with the mass media and returning to the simple pleasures of a well-told story. Here is a survey of great contemporary monologues, including excerpts from: Spalding Gray's Monster in a Box; Lynda Barry's "I Remember Mike" from The Lynda Barry Experience; Tom Bodett's "Crying" from Exploded; Marion Winik's "Women Who Love Men Who Don't Pay Their Parking Tickets"; Peter Matthiessen's "In Nepal"; and many more.