Russell Brand lost his mojo. His first memoir, My Booky Wook, was spectacular. Brand poured his heart, mind and mojo into it. And how much effort did he put into his second memoir? The title, Booky Wook 2: This Time It’s Personal, is telling.

The title indicates the book contains more of the same: more tales of drugged debauchery, more delightfully relatable insecurities, more beautifully extended comedic riffs. But it doesn’t. Brand phoned it in. Of Fantaisia, Brand writes, “I watched that film on acid—which, if you ask me, is the only way to watch it”—the exact observation unfunny high school juniors have made for decades.

The Details

Booky Wook 2

By Russell Brand

$27

Many pages are filled with dialogue from Brand’s radio show, usually prefaced with something like, “Look how incredible it was when I said this.” The story of Brand meeting Katy Perry was swell, but not convincing. Oh, I know it’s true, I just mean, the seduction didn’t seem that crazy or intense or meaningful. It wasn’t dramatic enough to make me believe Perry can actually tame Brand for life.

The book isn’t altogether bad. Brand’s Kate Moss story is awesome. (Yes, he slept with her.) And so is Brand’s incredibly insightful description of his My Booky Wook book/womanizing tour: “I felt like I was repaying a debt to the 15-year-old boy I’d been who watched life from the sidelines, blustering and shy.”