Mike Birbiglia may be the most honest and sensitive comedian working today. He occupies an odd space in the stand-up world with an act based on anecdotes rather than jokes. He is more Sedaris than Steven Wright, and seems more at home on This American Life than on stage. In other words, he is exactly my kind of comic.
In this interview on Fresh Air, Birbiglia reads from his book Sleepwalk With Me and talks with Terri about dealing with a sleep disorder that makes him act out his dreams. During one of these episodes, Birbiglia jumped through his hotel window while fleeing an imaginary attacker. As with most of Birbiglia’s stories, it is funny-sad, keeping you laughing just enough to live with the tragedy of reality.—John Michael Thornton
