Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sick in the Head | 2015 | Judd Apatow | Buy |
| 2 | Sicker in the Head | 2022 | Judd Apatow | Buy |
| 3 | Comedy Nerd | 2025 | Judd Apatow | Buy |
Sick in the Head started as a personal project: Apatow had spent years interviewing comedians as a teenager and young writer, taping conversations that sat in boxes for decades. The book collected both those early interviews and new ones, creating a document of comedy history alongside a record of how Apatow himself developed. Sicker in the Head continued the format with more recent conversations.
Comedy Nerd, published in 2022, added a third volume to what had become a loose series. The format stays consistent across all three: long conversations with working comedians about what they do and why they do it. Apatow doesn’t try to impose a thesis or draw broad conclusions. He lets the subjects talk.
The three books work well in any order, since each interview stands on its own. Readers with an interest in stand-up comedy or the business of entertainment will find more substance here than in most celebrity interview collections.