Paddle Your Own Canoe

this shit was gwine to be humorous.) Southwest of Joliet. My mom grew up in a family of four kids, born to Mike and Eloise Roberts, and they raised pigs, soybeans, and corn. My dad, born to Raymond Offerman and Marilyn Dames Offerman, grew up on a dairy farm with two siblings before moving into town as a teen­ager. They attended all the same Minooka schools that I eventually did, and married young. Dad was twenty-­four and Mom was nine­teen. Which seems batshit crazy to me these days.

Minooka is, surprisingly, only about an hour from Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, if there s no traffic. But it seems like it s fifty years distant, or at least it did in my youth. It was very bucolic and idyllic, like American Graffiti or Happy Days. Saturday night you would get together and buzz the gut in your jalopy, which meant drive past the five businesses on Main Street. At the time I was grow­ing up the population was 768. It s grown ridiculously ­it s up near twelve thousand now. It used to be primarily a farming community, but by now, the commuting suburban population has reached it and subsumed it. There are now many inhabitants of Minooka whom I would consider soft, and yes, that is a judgment.

My dad went to Illinois State University. I had always heard vari­ous legends of his prowess as an athlete as a young man, primarily in baseball and basketball. I wrote to him, asking for some facts on this subject for my book, because he has always been pretty humble about it to the point of being mum. Here is an excerpt of his reply:

Well, I don t know what you heard but remember it was a ver

had to take a long walk to soak everything in. We should all be so lucky to one day drink with this man, or at least purchase a table from him. ManCave Daily

Offerman s funny advice book offers practical tips about living more successfully, with the sort of dry and laconic delivery that comes through in his role on Parks and Recreation. Time Out New York

Uniquely honest and consistently hilarious Fans of Offerman may not be surprised by his candor, however this book is not specifically written for the fans. [It] will be enjoyed by many, specifically those who have the capacity and the will to wonder, and to want more out of life, while maintaining a degree of simplicity and happiness; just like Nick Offerman. Rare

A hilarious walkabout teeming with tasteful vulgarity, self-deprecating hilarity and a most humble wisdom bordering on sage-like. It s rare to find a memoir that is all at once touching, funny as sh*t, and capable of schooling you in basic modi operandi: like not being a total ass Newcity Lit

Offerman is a funny man But what is special about Paddle Your Own Canoe is the ability it gives Offerman to reveal himself as more than just the character he plays. He believes, and has always believed, in nonconformity. He believes in humility, honesty, hard work, and loyalty values he attributes to his parents and two favorite teachers. He believes those qualities are what truly define manliness, but that any person, regardless of gender, should aspire to them. Paddle Your Own Canoe is a delight. TheManual.com

You don t have to be able to properly work a table saw (I can t) or be in the market for a custom-made chair (I m not) to buy what Parks and Recreation star/woodshop owner Nick Offerman is selling in his memoir [a] modulated and admirable concept of what it means to live well and be a man. Offerman writes hilariously and honestly about boyhood chores and collegiate shenanigans, Chicago theater dues-paying and sobbing for, like, 20 minutes when receiving the call about landing the Parks and Rec job [he] offers a vivid look at how he charted the course for real happiness. It s nothing if not inspiring. RedEyeChicago