From the Archive: “Naked,” David Sedaris

In 1997, after making his name as a contributor for “This American Life” and enjoying the success of his first book, “Barrel Fever,” David Sedaris published “Naked,” a book of essays about his difficult childhood in North Carolina, his struggle with drugs and the death of this mother. Despite the heaviness of the topics, it was a funny, charming book, and went on to become a best-seller. In this excerpt of the story “A Plague of Tics” (mp3, 4:17) from the Salon audio archive, Sedaris writes about the obsessive-compulsive behavior — licking light switches, counting his steps — that he suffered from as a kid, with his sister, Amy, providing voices for the other characters — “Git yer face out of my toadstool!” — throughout.