Yahoo Sports Danny Pellegrino's '90s-Filled Essay Collection Is Target's June Book Club Pick
"I am so proud of how the book turned out,” the author and podcaster says
courtesy of Sourcebooks
Danny Pellegrino’s essay collection, How Do I Un-Remember This?, has been selected as Target’s June Book Club pick.
The New York Times best-selling author is no stranger to the world of celebrity and pop culture. He shares his thoughts about Bravo TV shows weekly on his podcast, Everything Iconic with Danny Pellegrino, and sits down with stars to share their stories (recent guests include Pamela Anderson and Melora Hardin). Now, it is Pellegrino’s turn to speak, as he does in How Do I Un-Remember This?, out now in paperback from Sourcebooks.
“It was always a dream of mine to be able to do my own collection of stories, like my version of a David Sedaris book,” the author tells PEOPLE.
How Do I Un-Remember This? is a “heartfelt, laugh-out-loud collection of stories,” according to a statement from the book's publisher. The essays center around Pellegrino’s experiences growing up as a closeted gay kid in suburban Ohio, his career in podcasting and all of the ‘90s and ‘2000s pop culture that guided him along the way. His writing is personal and generously infused with nuggets of nostalgia, like the joy of The Nanny, jamming to Gloria Estefan and the importance of Dunkaroos.
courtesy of Sourcebooks
Pellegrino first moved to Los Angeles to perform stand-up and sketch comedy, where he joined the improv troupe The Groundlings. Writing his own material, alongside his work in celebrity memoir ghostwriting, provided the foundation he needed to narrate his own story.
“Once I had a footing in the publishing world through ghostwriting and then had a little bit of a following from my podcast, I was able to then go out and try to get this book made,” Pellegrino says. “[It] was…an uphill battle.”
Amid the stories of chaotic family vacations and momentous bachelorette parties are ones fueled by vulnerability. Pellegrino writes openly about topics like body image issues, mental health and navigating relationship hurdles. One memorable essay seamlessly weaves the storylines of losing his grandmother and going on a bad date.
“The things that I like the most in pop culture art are the things that make me cry and laugh sort of simultaneously,” he says. “So I try not to shy away from any of that stuff.”
Stephen Busken
Pellegrino is also vocal about his journey toward self-acceptance and his identity as a gay man. With current anti-LGBTQ+ legislation being implemented in the United States, How Do I Un-Remember This? plays an extra important role in encouraging empathy.
“I hope that maybe someone who hasn't looked at life through the lens of an LGBTQ person might be able to see things a little bit differently,” Pellegrino says. “I've found [that] people who've read the book [are] able to relate to these stories whether or not they're a gay man.”
Despite its long road to publication, Pellegrino is more than happy with the finished product.
“It was a challenge, but I am so proud of how the book turned out,” Pellegrino says. “It's really the exact kind of book that I wanted to make.”
Pellegrino is busy with his Everything Iconic podcast, where he is currently recapping The Real Housewives series, as well as recent television revivals like And Just Like That… (“There was a fun to that show,” he says of the original Sex and the City.) He also announced an upcoming tour and new book, titled The Jolliest Bunch: Unhinged Holiday Stories, which publishes October 24, 2023 from Sourcebooks.
courtesy of Sourcebooks
More than anything, Pellegrino hopes his story will reach a wide audience.
“I hope people read it and are able to relate to the stories,” he says. “I hope people will finish reading it and just feel better about themselves and about the world.”
How Do I Un-Remember This? is now available for purchase, with exclusive signed copies only available at Target.
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