Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh

 

Description

Named one of the Funniest Sites on the Web by PC World and winner of the 2011 Bloggies Awards for Most Humorous Weblog and Best Writing, the creator of the immensely popular “Hyperbole and a Half” blog presents an illustrated collection of her hilarious stories with fifty percent new content.

In a four-color, illustrated collection of stories and essays, Allie Brosh’s debut Hyperbole and a Half chronicles the many “learning experiences” Brosh has endured as a result of her own character flaws, and the horrible experiences that other people have had to endure because she was such a terrible child. Possibly the worst child. For example, one time she ate an entire cake just to spite her mother.

Brosh’s website receives millions of unique visitors a month and hundreds of thousands of visitors a day. This amalgamation of new material and reader favorites from Brosh's blog includes stories about her rambunctious childhood; the highs and mostly lows of owning a smart, neurotic dog and a mentally challenged one; and moving, honest, and darkly comic essays tackling her struggles with depression and anxiety, among other anecdotes from Brosh's life. Artful, poignant, and uproarious, Brosh’s self-reflections have already captured the hearts of countless readers and her book is one that fans and newcomers alike will treasure.

This was a highly entertaining book that didn't take me very long to get through. I love Brosh's blog Hyperbole and a Half and it was like reading her blog in printed form... The pictures from both her book and blog are probably the best part, by the way. I found her writing about her experience with depression to be touching and explained in a way that it makes it easier for people who have never dealt with it to understand.

OK, I'll be honest. You could skip buying the book and read the blog for some of the chapters in the book, but the book is highly entertaining and when you want to read it you don't need internet access. Also, it's very colorful and doesn't require batteries to read it... unless you're reading it at in the dark by flashlight. And if you really prefer a digital version it's available on Kindle and other electronical versions. But if you like her blog you'll like this book.

Before I Die by Candy Chang

Published November 5, 2013

Description

What do you want to do before you die?

When artist Candy Chang painted the side of an abandoned building with chalkboard paint and asked her neighbors this question, she never expected it to become a worldwide phenomenon. Within a day of the wall’s completion, however, it was covered in colorful chalk dreams as people stopped and reflected on their lives. Since then, more than two hundred walls have been created by people all over the world.  This beautifully designed book is an inspiring celebration of these walls. Filled with our hopes, fears, humor, and heartbreak, it’s a reminder of our shared connections and a chance to ponder life’s ultimate question.

Candy Chang is an artist that (I think at least) brings people together with her interactive projects. This project specifically started as something for the community (in New Orleans) and it has since spread world wide. Some of the things people wrote were funny, some were sad, and some inspiring.

The book is filled with pictures and stories and, at the end of the book, it tells you how to make your own "Before I die" wall in your community. This is something that, with the help and resources, would be a great project for my town. While it's not the kind of book I typically read, it was a nice change and is something I'll probably leave on my coffee table and look at from time to time when I need some inspiration.

30 Day Book Challenge: Day 25

Day 25- Favorite Autobiographical/Biographical book

 

Steve and Me by Terri Irwin

 Description

When Terri Raines was twenty-seven years old, she took a vacation that changed her life. Leaving behind her wildlife rescue work in Oregon, Terri traveled to Australia, and there, at a small wildlife park, she met and fell in love with a tall, blond force of nature named Steve Irwin. They were married in less than a year, and Terri eagerly joined in Steve's conservation work. The footage filmed on their crocodile-trapping honeymoon became the first episode of The Crocodile Hunter, and together, Steve and Terri began to change the world.

In Steve and Me, Terri recounts the unforgettable adventures they shared -- wrangling venomous snakes, saving deadly crocodiles from poachers, swimming among humpback whales. A uniquely gifted naturalist, Steve was first and foremost a wildlife warrior dedicated to rescuing endangered animals -- especially his beloved crocs -- and educating everyone he could reach about the importance of conservation. In the hit TV shows that continue to be broadcast worldwide, Steve's enthusiasm lives on, bringing little-known and often-feared species to light as he reveals and revels in the wonders of our planet.

With grace, wit, and candor, Terri Irwin portrays her husband as he really was -- a devoted family man, a fervently dedicated environmentalist, a modest bloke who spoke to millions on behalf of those who could not speak for themselves. Steve and Me is a nonstop adventure, a real-life love story, and a fitting tribute to a man adored by all those whose lives he touched, written by the woman who knew and loved him best of all.

I loved The Crocodile Hunter and was really sad when Steve Irwin died. OK, "really sad" is an understatement. I was crushed, you guys. I had a ridiculous love for The Crocodile Hunter- I even paid to see the movie in an actual theater. That's dedication. Her story was very well written and touching. Her stories really told (in the way she talks about Steve) how much she loved him and what a kind man he was. Also, it was good to get to know her a little better since I was always so focused on what Steve was doing rather than Terri. If you were ever a fan of The Crocodile Hunter I would recommend this book.

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30 Day Book Challenge: Day 20

Day 20-A Book that makes you laugh

 

Let's Pretend This Never Happened

By Jenny Lawson

I first read and reviewed this book in the fall of 2012. This is what I said about it then and I still agree:

Jenny Lawson is hilariously damaged. I don't know how else to describe it. She shares a lot of stories from her childhood and how growing up with a father that brought home animals (alive or dead) has given her an appreciation for taxidermy (hence the stuffed mouse on the cover).

A good portion of the chapters come straight from her blog so I was a little disappointed that it wasn't all new to me. I didn't exactly mind re-reading old blog posts because they are still funny the second time around, but for $12 (kindle) I was expecting new material that I couldn't find for free on the interwebs. Even with that, I still enjoyed her (mostly true) memoir. I had moments where I laughed out loud and made my husband look at me like I'd lost my mind. That's how you know a book is funny... people look at you strange when you're reading it.

View the full book challenge

30 Day Book Challenge: Day 5

Day 5- A Non-fiction book that you actually enjoyed

 

 Winterdance: The Fine Madness

of Running the Iditarod by Gary Paulsen

Description

Paulsen and his team of dogs endured snowstorms, frostbite, dogfights, moose attacks, sleeplessness, and hallucinations in the relentless push to go on. Map and color photographs.

I read this book mostly because my husband suggested it and he rarely reads anything other than magazines, so I figured that if he liked it I probably would too. I typically don't read non-fiction, but I liked this book more than I thought I would. Mostly because there were some very funny things that happened to him while he was training his dogs. His training methods were trail and error... with extra error.

A good read if you are interested in sled dogs or want to learn more about the Iditarod. Gary Paulsen is one of my favorite writers and I wasn't disappointed with this book even though it wasn't my usual type of read.

To view the full challenge list click here

Let's Pretend This Never Happened (A Mostly True Memoir) by Jenny Lawson

Description

For fans of Tina Fey and David Sedaris—Internet star Jenny Lawson, aka The Bloggess, makes her literary debut.

Jenny Lawson realized that the most mortifying moments of our lives—the ones we’d like to pretend never happened—are in fact the ones that define us. In the #1 New York Times bestseller, Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, Lawson takes readers on a hilarious journey recalling her bizarre upbringing in rural Texas, her devastatingly awkward high school years, and her relationship with her long-suffering husband, Victor. Chapters include: “Stanley the Magical, Talking Squirrel”; “A Series of Angry Post-It Notes to My Husband”; “My Vagina Is Fine. Thanks for Asking”; “And Then I Snuck a Dead Cuban Alligator on an Airplane.” Pictures with captions (no one would believe these things without proof) accompany the text.

Jenny Lawson is hilariously damaged. I don't know how else to describe it. She shares a lot of stories from her childhood and how growing up with a father that brought home animals (alive or dead) has given her an appreciation for taxidermy (hence the stuffed mouse on the cover).

A good portion of the chapters come straight from her blog so I was a little disappointed that it wasn't all new to me. I didn't exactly mind re-reading old blog posts because they are still funny the second time around, but for $12 (kindle) I was expecting new material that I couldn't find for free on the interwebs. Even with that, I still enjoyed her (mostly true) memoir. I had moments where I laughed out loud and made my husband look at me like I'd lost my mind. That's how you know a book is funny... people look at you strange when you're reading it.

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank


My rating: 3 of 5 stars


For some reason I never read this in school, so I decided it was time that I did. I didn't expect great literature to come out of a diary of a teenage girl, but I did appreciate her insights.

Of course, anyone who is stuck in a house for that long is going to have times of bitterness and she coule occasionally be awful, but Anne did seem to be a sensetive soul. I was sometimes annoyed by her "poor me" attitude but, being a teenage girl myself at one point, I could understand where she was coming from.

Their struggles and fears were real and her writing ability was exceptional for someone so young.




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