Danny Pellegrino, comedian and podcast host, delivers a warm and humorous collection of stories about his childhood, including his experience coming out as well as building a career out of his love of pop culture. Many readers will find a kindred spirit when reading "I've never had a second glass of wine that didn't end with me on Allison Janney's IMBD page." Although Pellegrino (The Super Carb Diet, with Bob Harper) can't pinpoint when he realized he is gay, he does remember as a preteen recording The First Wives Club on VHS tape over his brother's copy of The Terminator and his love for Chris O'Donnell in Batman & Robin.
His rollicking tale of his family enduring an endless time-share tour for free vouchers to Florida theme parks is made even funnier by his frequent diversions, including why Diane Keaton, Alfre Woodard and Dianne Wiest should play superheroes in Marvel movies. In fact, every chapter in How Do I Un-Remember This? includes a "Detour," in which Pellegrino sidetracks his story for tributes and tirades on everything from late-1990s boy bands to The Nanny, Magic Mike and some of his favorite places to shop: "Marie Kondo wants us to get rid of shit, but I can only assume that's because she's never been inside of a HomeGoods."
Readers will laugh when he postpones flying home to his grandmother's funeral for what became a bad first date. But then, as an example of how his stories perfectly blend hilarity and poignancy, he reveals years of unprocessed grief. This is a winning collection of tales from an unforgettable voice. --Kevin Howell, independent reviewer and marketing consultant