Touré Discusses How Our Culture Very Publicly Birthed A Book Like *Go The F*** To Sleep*

Video

by Alex Alvarez | 6:01 pm, June 17th, 2011

» 14 comments

Writer and cultural critic Touré is, fun fact, also a dad, and he took some time away from desperately trying to get his two young children to go to bed to discuss a new book that’s making waves among sleep-deprived parents and disaffected youth alike: Adam Mansbach’s Go The Fuck To Sleep.

He noted that the book expertly expresses how, as a parent, you often “love your kid, but you hate your life” because rearing kids is so often a taxing, thankless job that offers little to no indication of how you’re faring until your child grows up to become, I don’t know. Anthony Weiner, maybe:

Many sociological studies have shown that parents are less happy than childless couples, which comes as a shock because we thought our kids would be little bundles of joy and then you find yourself sleep-deprived with poop on your hands and pee in your hair and you’re certain you’ve mess them up, they’ll never get into Harvard, and you’ve choked at the most important job you’ll ever have.

Touré also discusses how the book can be seen as part of what he calls the “Oprah-ization of America,” which sees people being open about the realities of life, parenting and episiotomies to the point of, say, uploading various photos of themselves giving birth in a giant tub onto the internet. (True thing I saw that cannot be unseen, on a website ostensibly about fashion.)

Watch Touré’s segment, via MSNBC:

Go the Fuck to Sleep, Parenting, Toure

http://www.facebook.com/people/Jim-Treacher/542957672 Jim Treacher

Wait. It doesn’t have anything to do with racism? Give back your paycheck, Touré.
Sean68

The last five minutes of the Dylan Ratigan show is the broadcast equivalent of the back of the bus.
OxyCon

Jim Treacher said:
Wait. It doesn’t have anything to do with racism? Give back your paycheck, Touré.

Beat me to it!
Refreshing to see MessNBC use Touré in a capacity other than “token Black attack pundit”.
And man does that dude look like Andy Samberg!
Big Eddie

Crabman !
Pablo

The book works because it’s…OMG…funny! In fact, the audiobook is a comedy milestone.

I’ve raised some babies, some easier than others. It is not easy. It can and will wear your ass out. I never hated my life because of it though. I might have hated thisveryminute, and I might have hated my wife, but the lil squirts are worth every minute of the aggravation.

Puppies can be a pain in the ass too, you know.
http://twitter.com/SailRabbits Magister

Pablo said:
The book works because it’s…OMG…funny! In fact, the audiobook is a comedy milestone.

After watching Frances’ embed of the both readings last night, I played the Samuel Jackson for the family and when it came time for bed, we all used it in the place of “good night”.

Oh, and Alex: Phil Donahue showed a water birth on his morning show back in the 70s and though I was just a kid, some of the imagery is still with me. I assume an internet version was even more graphic than Donahue’s “parental guidance advised”, so if it’s still true for me, you’ll definitely have a memory for life.
timzank

I don’t know what’s more sad, the fact that this ass clown actually gets paid or the fact he has reproduced.
murf

I Toure’ was gay
http://twitter.com/SailRabbits Magister

Unimportant correction: In my earlier comment, I said that the “Donahue” water birth episodes were in the 70s, but it appears they may have actually been in the mid-80s and while I wasn’t a kid at that time, I still have flashes of memory. Of course, I’ve also seen other things over the years, either directly from the birth of my children or from the preparatory readings/viewings for those events, so there’s a lot of indelibles that will be with me for the rest of my life, including the “Donahue” eps.
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Toure is short for “I’m a racist black gay man”
ToIdiotToure

I agree. Why is it that when something amiss is called to order that idiots like Toure` plays the racist card. Every thing is not about race Toure`. The fact is when you bring it up shows your racism and prejudice. The fact is the constitution puts a limit on who can be the President of the United States and that limit is being a “natural citizen”. Mr. Toure` how are we to know if a person is a “natural citizen” unless we verify it? What you espouse to the idea of “trust me”? I’ve seen your kind when it comes to a date with young ladies….It never turns out very good for them. The fact is the anointed one lied to us. He tried to put forth a cover which was so poor that a student from North Carolina clearly pointed out that the fraudulent paper he presented as a birth certificate was so full of holes that it looked like swiss cheese. There are certain presentations required in this country which when asked of you is required to show proof of your legitimacy: one is a drivers license. Purporting to be a “natural citizen” for the purpose of attaining the highest office mandates proof. If we did not have it…who knows…. any Hitler or Anti-Chirst, under your verification method, could claim to be a “natural born” citizen and become president…and who knows he may not even know our history and when asked how many states there are, he would say there are 57… the same number that exist in the Muslim world.
Anonymous

Paycheck? Are you suggesting this guy is supporting his family through his works of hate? Have you ever considered that this guy and his family may be supported by the taxpayers of New York?
Jan0

I wish I had a schtick like Toure’s “non-threatening token black pundit” to blur the fact that my writing sucks.