I recently finished listening to Steve Martin’s memoir of his stand-up comedy career, Born Standing Up. He narrates the audio book, and his reading of his own story gives it a richness and authenticity of tone that can certainly not be matched by the written word. This book has a surprising sweetness about it and is now a new favorite. I was too young to have fully gotten him when he rose to fame in the 1970’s, but the era he describes is familiarly nostalgic for me. I laughed out loud multiple times at his stories. He persevered through 14 years of relatively modest success before finally breaking through. He is a true craftsman who committed to making remarkable, original work. I think I’m going to listen to it all over again.
Excellent Journey 
[…] I’ve posted previously about the Cal Newport book whose title was inspired by this Steve Martin quote. And you really ought to do yourself a favor and listen to Martin’s great audiobook, which I’ve raved about before. […]
[…] Standing Up by Steve Martin – $17.95. This audiobook is narrated by the author, making it even more awesome. Martin strums the banjo between chapters […]
[…] I’ve shared before that my favorite audiobook is Steve Martin’s Born Standing Up. He narrates his own story, which is immensely entertaining as well as instructive about what it takes to stand out in your field. […]
[…] my long drive yesterday I listened again to one of my favorite audiobooks, Steve Martin’s Born Standing […]