In this heartwarming and surprising ode to growing up, getting older and wiser and learning from your mistakes, SNL’s longest-ever-serving cast member shares hilarious yet poignant essays that offer any reader valuable advice on parenting, focusing on positivity and having fun in life. - (Baker & Taylor)

"When I Was Your Age is a hilarious, heartwarming and surprising ode to growing up, getting older and wiser, and luck, life, and learning from the school of hard knocks, from SNL's longest-serving actor, Kenan Thompson"-- - (Baker & Taylor)

“Kenan is a master storyteller with extraordinary stories to tell. I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”—Leslie Jones

When I Was Your Age is a hilarious, heartwarming and surprising ode to growing up, getting older and wiser, and luck, life, and learning from the school of hard knocks, from SNL's longest-serving actor, Kenan Thompson

Kenan Thompson is Saturday Night Live’s longest-ever-serving cast member and a star of such pioneering sketches as “Black Jeopardy” and is hugely beloved thanks to a tidal wave of nostalgic fans who grew up on early 2000s classics All That, Good Burger, and Kenan & Kel on Nickelodeon.

He’s also a dad (to two girls) in his mid-40s living in suburbia, and whose universal, relatable, family-friendly humor has created unbelievable appeal and engagement from fans from middle America to coastal elites. Becoming a dad sucked the cool right out of him -- and he's OK with that!

When I Was Your Age is packed with hilarious yet poignant essays that are aimed to offer any reader valuable advice on parenting, focusing on positivity, and having fun in life. Kids, new parents, fellow fathers, budding comics, and aunties who want to pinch his cheeks, can all learn from his biggest mistakes and most triumphant victories. There’s something for everybody here!

How does a kid from Atlanta survive the pressure cooker of 90s television and become a comedy icon?

• Behind the Scenes at SNL: Get a backstage pass to Saturday Night Live from its longest-serving cast member, from nerve-wracking auditions to working with comedy legends.
• Surviving Child Stardom: Kenan shares how he navigated the worlds of All That, Good Burger, and Kenan & Kel and made it out with his sense of humor intact.
• Relatable Parenting Advice: Laugh-out-loud tales and honest advice on raising kids from a dad of two girls who’s figuring it out one hilarious mistake at a time.
• Funny Stories & Life Lessons: From going broke and bouncing back to meeting his heroes, Kenan shares his most triumphant victories and biggest mistakes with his signature warmth.

Booklist Reviews

Thompson has been a TV stalwart for most of his life, first appearing in local commercials, then on Nickelodeon shows, and as Saturday Night Live's longest-running cast member, and more. Over the decades, he has accumulated a lot of stories to share, and share he does in his jovial, familiar way. Thompson reminisces about youthful escapades with his older brother, growing up in the church, on-set adventures as a teen actor who grew into a successful career as an adult without falling victim to the child-star syndrome, his upbeat approach to parenting his two young daughters, and, of course, his record-setting time on SNL. His narrative bursts with his excitement about showbiz that fans will relate to—Always Meet Your Idols does not disappoint—but it's his humility about lessons learned regarding Bill Cosby, his decision to stop playing caricatures of Black women, growing after breakups, and valuing healing friendships that makes this memoir feel even more down to earth. How long have we known each other? Thompson asks in his prologue. By book's end, readers will have the answer.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Actor and comedian Thompson is adored and his first book will be catnip to his many fans. Copyright 2023 Booklist Reviews.