I am so, so late to the party on this one, but nonetheless: I loved John Hodgman on Jon Stewart. I loved (still love) him as the stodgy PC to Justin Long’s faux-cool Mac. (Nobody else thinks Long is Trying Too Hard?)

But I couldn’t get more than a few pages through The Areas of My Expertise. I just couldn’t. The endless charts, the digressions, the asterisks. It was funny–I knew this in an abstract way–but it was not riveting, or even interesting.

Lo and Behold, there is an audio CD which I have had the pleasure of discovering just last night. The Audio CD is the whole book, read by John Hodgman (deliciously drily), with bonus cameos and musical interludes. It is a thing of beauty. Hodgman’s delivery is perfect. The jokes, which are all decent on paper, come to life on the CD.

I wouldn’t read this book any other way. And I do suggest you pick up this audiobook if you are unfamiliar with Hodgman’s book. It is crucial if you want to be prepared for the next hobo uprising.