Billy Crystal, the author

700 Sundays
by Billy Crystal

I've always enjoyed Billy Crystal's humor, and I had missed his one-man show of the same name when it came through San Francisco last year. So, what inspired me to pick up this book? I was on my way to a conference and saw that it was probably a quick read. Indeed, it was a quick read.

The 700 Sundays that the title refers to are the number of Sundays that Crystal got to spend with his father before his father's death. It's a family memoir that is funny and provides some insight into what made Billy Crystal, Billy Crystal. It shows us his brothers, his mother, aunts, and uncles. We learn how his family was part of the legendary jazz movement in America, launching the Commodore Records label. At times, there are lines that are a bit gross, but Crystal keeps it all in good taste, focusing on his love for his family.

This book won't go down as one of the great memoirs by any stretch of the imagination. Yet, its informal style, its humor, and Crystal's humanity come through in the end. It's worth the brief time that it takes to read it.

J.K.