The Humorist Books Father’s Day 2025 Gift Guide
What do dads (fathers, if you’re fancy) love? Jokes. Comedy. Silly stuff. Being dads. Their cute little interests. We happen to specialize in those very things here at Humorist Books, and we’ve got great Father’s Day gifts at the ready for most any kind of dad… like your dad!For the history buff dad:
For the dad who loves being a dad:
Langley Powell and the Society for the Defense of the Mundane, by Jeff Giles
For the political dad:
Red Tie, Blue Tie, by Gary M. Almeter and Reese Cassard
6 Important Writerly Questions With… Shawn Carlow
Shawn Carlow has written for a lot of shows you enjoy — Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon — and now he’s written a collection of stories you’re going to really like. In People of the Titanic, he tells the stories of 30 doomed malcontents and oddballs who sailed on the ill-fated “Ship of Dreams” back in 1912. They weren’t all industrialists, innocents, and Leonardo DiCaprio, afterall.
While you wait for your copy of these (fictional, by the way) tales to download or to arrive in your mailbox, get to know the great Shawn Carlow, an agile author who pulled off nothing less than a high-wire comedy act.
1. Who are you? What are you doing here?
I’m a writer. I grew up in New Hampshire but I live in .LA. I’ve written a book that interplanetary travelers may one day study the pages of and conclude that the human race was worthy of extinction. Or they might laugh. I hope they laugh, understand why they’re laughing, and are even actually capable of that function.
2. Since “Where do you get your ideas?” is a terrible question, what made you want to write this book?
It went through a few iterations, each becoming longer and longer as time passed. Well over 10 years ago, it started as a standup joke that I told on stage about “the other heroes of the Titanic.” People usually know about the unfortunate captain who stayed at the helm of the ship, the band that kept playing as the ship went down, and the Unsinkable Molly Brown. I just tried imagining what other people could have been on board with them. A mime had to be there. And two brothers who ran a hot dog stand was a must.
Next, I thought of it maybe as a TV project broken into 10 segments.
And then the opportunity from Humorist Books came along to turn it into a book. Perfect.
3. How did you keep writing this book?
It wasn’t that hard. Once I’d started delving into this world, I found I enjoyed it quite a lot. Plus, I enjoy doing historical research and writing imaginative comedy.
4. Who is this book for, anyway?
People who like to laugh and who like history and like how things have changed, but also observing in a lot of ways how we’re very much the same.
And, listen, I don’t want to keep harping on the interplanetary visitors I spoke of earlier, but I would hope to have my consciousness downloaded one day so I could witness their reactions to my book in the distant future. Perhaps I could even win an interstellar prize from them that’s honest in a way that the Miss Universe Pageant is not.
5. Any darlings you had to kill?
Surprisingly few. The great majority of what I wrote is in there. Since it’s not one long novel but rather mini stories of the characters within, and occasionally how they intersect, I mostly just had to kill small bits where characters intersect and it didn’t make sense to the characters we’d already encountered.
6. What are you working on now?
A book of humorous short stories. My favorite story in the collection so far is about a young woman who brings her fiancé to visit her traditional grandmother — the kind who never stops feeding you — and it becomes a test of wills when it turns out the fiancé is a competitive eater.
Also, since that world has been so much fun for me, I’m partway through another 30 stories in the extremely imaginatively titled, More People of the Titanic.
People of the Titanic is now available in print and ebook formats.
Read an Excerpt from Shawn Carlow’s PEOPLE OF THE TITANIC
On April 10, 1912, the Titanic departed England, ultimately bound for America. It famously struck an iceberg along the way, and as the mighty ship went down, it took 1,500 people with it, most of them good-hearted, innocent people. But what of the jerks, losers, weirdos, and malcontents? They were also People of the Titanic. In this comical, fanciful— and completely hypothetical — depiction of life on the Titanic, Shawn Carlow (Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon) brings to the surface 30 stories of doomed souls who sailed upon that ship of dreams. Here’s one such yarn. Fellow passengers, behold the Detmer Brothers.
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The Detmer brothers, Andreas and Stefan, were German businessmen staying in second class who ran a hot dog stand on the First Class promenade deck of Titanic – the only sanctioned food stand on the entire vessel. If you were in first class, most of the grand ship’s food was eaten in the sumptuous café, saloon, or restaurant. A slightly less accommodating but still extravagant eating space awaited those in second; trash chutes served the third-class passengers, delivering the contents of wiped-off plates and leftover soup straight down to the lower decks, where the rabble waited eagerly with their open mouths and collection buckets.
The Detmer brothers were well known for their antics when preparing frankfurters, catching them in hot dog buns behind their backs or through their legs. Many a hungry passenger marveled at the magical dexterity with which they performed, while also fervently hoping that their meal would not be dropped upon the deck, which most times it was not. Tom Cruise was said to have studied old newsreels of the brothers when he was preparing for his role in Cocktail.
The brothers have also been credited with inventing the tip jar — and placing money in it at the start of the day to make it seem like people were leaving money, even if they weren’t, because remember, it was mostly wealthy people up on the promenade deck.
The night of the sinking, the stand had been closed for several hours when the ship struck ice, but when their dark fate seemed certain, Stefan Detmer suggested to his brother that they serve warm hot dogs as comfort food to the worried passengers. And a few survivors later told of how, when the ship was in its final throes and tilting downward, the brothers were seen handing hot dogs to people sliding by and entreating them to “tell all your friends.” The futility in that gesture was obvious, but, still, you have to admire their gumption.
The two brothers’ bodies were never found after the sinking, but remnants of the hot dog stand washed up on a beach in Greenland and were used to make a memorial to the brothers that still stands in Germany. In Hamburg.
People of the Titanic is now available in print and ebook formats.
6 Important Writerly Questions with…Dewey Lovett
I got to talk with our newest literary breakout, Dewey Lovett, a very terrific stand-up comedian and author of the just as terrific Drinksgiving. What’s Drinksgiving? It’s a funny, twist-filled crime story about poor decision, unlikely friendships, disappointed relatives, small towns, beer, and the longest holiday weekend of the year made even longer. It’s the kind of novel you’ll read all at once because you’re so delighted and want to know what happens, and also the kind of book that would make a great host gift for whoever is having you over for Thanksgiving this year.
But let’s hear what Dewey has to say about it! Happy Drinksgiving, everybody!
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1. Who are you? What are you doing here?
Hello! I’m Dewey Lovett! I am a comedian turned novelist. I’m here because telling a story this long and twisting doesn’t work on stage. I’ve always wished there were more FUNNY books in the world — and I don’t mean comedian memoirs! I want more funny fiction, so I did my best to write the book I wanted to read.
2. Since “Where do you get your ideas?” is a terrible question, what made you want to write this book?
To answer the terrible question, this idea came from a Thanksgiving morning hangover when I wondered ‘what could be the worst thing that happened last night?’ I also wondered, ‘why aren’t there more Thanksgiving comedies?’ At the time that this idea came to me, I had been studying the craft of longform fiction for a while, so I was ready to go all out!
3. How did you keep writing this book?
I stayed committed to writing this book because it was FUN to write. I looked forward to it after work. Also, my husband was super supportive and encouraged me to spend time writing and committing to the bit. He has also written funny novels so it felt like two flavors of support in one: husband-support and funny writer-support. I needed both. If I ever continued to feel unmotivated I just pictured how cool it would feel later to say I wrote a novel.
4. Who is this book for, anyway?
This book is for people who want an easy, fun, upbeat read. It might even be for people who don’t like reading but want to try it. It’s meant to be consumable like a beach read without the romance. Maybe something to be read on the plane ride home for Thanksgiving? It’s also for people who love reading. I hope this book makes its way into rural and girl power book clubs.
5. Any darlings you had to kill?
I had to murder almost the entire first draft and I’m so glad I did. The story was originally one omniscient POV. Now it’s dual first person and the pace and mystery are so much better! I had to make so many sacrifices that after a while I didn’t care anymore. Every time I cut a joke, I added a better one somewhere else. There was one darling my beta readers said I NEEDED to cut but I loved it way too much so I rearranged the plot around it. To be clear, that is deranged writer behavior! But it made the ending feel soooo good and I have no regrets.
6. What are you working on now?
On top of doing lots of stand up comedy, I am happily working on my next novel! It’s too early in the process to give a proper synopsis but it’s another comedy set in snowy Rochester, NY. Once again I look forward to working on it every day!
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Gobble up a copy of Drinksgiving right now.