You're not alone if you've ever thought about how unfair it was that the Sedaris family had enough funny in their gene pool to create not one, but two hilarious offspring. Amy and David Sedaris have each been hugely successful independently, and the brother-sister duo have combined forces on a few occasions, collaborating on a number of stage plays. Their latest collaboration to hit Chicago is "The Book of Liz," which Chemically Imbalanced Comedy is presenting at The Cornservatory Theater (4210 N. Lincoln) until September 30th.

The Book of Liz is a satirical romp that manages to be bitingly funny while still offering a very sweet earnestness. Sister Elizabeth Dunderstock (played by a delightful Sarah Rose Graber) is a member of an Amish-like religious community whose prosperity depends on the sale of her famous cheeseballs (a nod to the cheeseball-making business of Amy Sedaris). She feels unappreciated by the members of the community, particularly by Reverend Tollhouse (Adam El-Sharkawi), so Liz decides to see what the outside world has to offer her. She gets along better than she ever would've imagined, but a potential career opportunity forces Liz to reexamine her values and decide whether this chance to succeed in the outside world is worth changing herself for. The play is surprisingly heartwarming, considering it comes from one author who coveted the apartment of Anne Frank and another who created miscreant Jerri Blank.

Sarah Rose Graber plays the title character with an unabashed enthusiasm that has you rooting for Liz the entire play. Her character's naivety has the potential to become annoying, but Graber's sweet nature luckily prevents that from ever happening. Adam El-Sharkawi as Rev. Tollhouse and Lina Bunte as Sister Butterworth each have notable moments onstage. Bunte adds a multi-dimensionality to the sexually-frustrated chatterbox Sister, while El-Sharkawi rises to the challenge of playing a stern task-master amongst a cast of comedic characters. The standout of the cast, however, was Brian Kash as Brother Brightbee. Kash's character is a self-important blow-hard who tries to resume the community's cheeseball-making duties. The audience loved every moment that Kash was onstage, appreciating his comedic timing and eating up his range of perfect facial expressions.

"The Book of Liz" plays Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 5 PM. Tickets can be bought by calling the box office at 773-865-7731 or online.

--Dyan Flores