Party of One: A Memoir in 21 Songs (Paperback)

From former MTV VJ Dave Holmes, the hilarious memoir of a perpetual outsider fumbling towards self-acceptance, with the music of the '80s, '90s, and today as his soundtrack Dave Holmes has spent his life on the periphery, nose pressed hopefully against the glass, wanting just one thing: to get inside. Growing up, he was the artsy son in the sporty family. At his all-boys high school and Catholic college, he was the closeted gay kid surrounded by crush-worthy straight guys. And in his twenties, in the middle of a disastrous career in advertising, he accidentally became an MTV VJ overnight when he finished second, naturally, in the Wanna Be a VJ contest, opening the door to fame, fortune, and celebrityyou know, almost. In Party of One,Holmes tells the hilariously painful and painfully hilarious talesin the vein of Rob Sheffield, Andy Cohen, and Paul Feigof an outsider desperate to get in, of a misfit constantly changing shape, of a music geek who finally learns to accept himself. Structured around a mix of hits and deep cuts from the last four decadesfrom Bruce Springsteen's "Hungry Heart" and En Vogue's "Free Your Mind" to LCD Soundsystems Losing My Edge and Bleachers I Wanna Get Betterand punctuated with interludes like "So You've Had Your Heart Broken in the 1990s: A Playlist" and Notes on (Jesse) Camp, this book is for anyone who's ever felt like a square peg, especially those who have found their place in the world around a band, an album, or a song. It's a laugh-out-loud funny, deeply nostalgic story about never fitting in, never giving up, and letting good music guide the way. NPR Best Books of 2016: Staff Picks, Biography & Memoir, For Music Lovers, Funny Stuff, Non-fiction Categories