''I Was Told There'd Be Cake'' is a 2008 collection of essays by American writer and literary publicist

Sloane Crosley Sloane Crosley (born August 3, 1978) is an American writer living in New York City known for her humorous essays, which are often collected into books like '' I Was Told There'd Be Cake'', ''How Did You Get This Number'', and ''Look Alive Out The ...

. It was a ''New York Times'' best seller.

Reception

American author

Jonathan Lethem Jonathan Allen Lethem (; born February 19, 1964) is an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. His Debut novel, first novel, ''Gun, with Occasional Music'', a genre work that mixed elements of science fiction and detective fiction, ...

called Crosley "another mordant and mercurial wit from the realm of Sedaris and Vowell."

David Sedaris David Raymond Sedaris ( ; born December 26, 1956) is an American humorist, comedian, author, and radio contributor. He was publicly recognized in 1992 when National Public Radio broadcast his essay " Santaland Diaries". He published his first col ...

called her writing "sure-footed, observant and relentlessly funny." ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, no ...

'' called the book "witty and entertaining". The ''

Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...

'' said "this book about nothing is riveting to the very end". ''

The New York Observer ''The New York Observer'' was a weekly newspaper established in 1987. In 2016, it ceased print publication and became the online-only newspaper ''Observer''. The media site focuses on culture, real estate, media, politics and the entertainment ...

'' described it as "a funny book, and also a wistful book and a touching book". A ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...

'' reviewer noted that while the book featured "sharp, self-effacing humor", the book's style reveals the author as "too clever for her own good" and "not... very, well, nice", though that by the book's end, "we forgive her deceptions".

References

{{Reflist 2008 non-fiction books American essay collections