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4.26 AVERAGE
4.26 AVERAGE
This book is heavy. Not as in dense, although it does go some pretty dark places. But heavy as in, it got painful to hold it up after a while. Just a warning.
Otherwise, it's trademark Allie Brosh. Occasionally sad, often hilarious, always worthwhile. If you're familiar with her work, you'll love it. If you're not, you should be.
Otherwise, it's trademark Allie Brosh. Occasionally sad, often hilarious, always worthwhile. If you're familiar with her work, you'll love it. If you're not, you should be.
Oh Allie Brosh. I really stretched out the reading of this book, because it's so rare anymore to see new work of hers, and I love it ever so much. A strong follow-up to her first book, 'Hyperbole and a Half,' and a satisfying read after the long hiatus from her blog, Allie Brosh had to dig deep to get this book out-- for several years, no one was sure if it would even be published. Of course she does not disappoint.
The funniest book I've read in a long time. I'm so glad she's back! Super relatable.
This was a tougher read than I expected. I don't mean it was syntactally difficult to understand, or had challenging themes or complicated plots. I mean, once I reached a certain point in the text, I didn't want to keep going.
While I respect the drive, and conceit behind this massive collection of stories, it doesn't read well as a book. It's too much. If this was five or seven years worth of blogs, spaced out to every few weeks, and then collected in two or three collections, they'd definitely be four or five star books. But the magic of Allie Brosh's writing is her point-of-view, and to truly appreciate it, you need to experience it in bits.
I loved [b:Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened|17571564|Hyperbole and a Half Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened|Allie Brosh|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1409522492l/17571564._SY75_.jpg|24510592], and when I first picked this up, I was so excited to be reading her work again. No, they're not all funny. Some of them are serious examinations of a very depressing part of her life. And those stories were just as good, and just as necessary as the ridiculous stories about her dogs from the previous collection. But, after a while, I didn't want to go back to this book. It's like when you have a friend going through a hard time, and you want to be there for them, so you spend as much time as you can. And years go by, and you think, I don't think it's healthy for me to be As Much There for them as I have been. I need a break.
I don't like feeling that way about a book. There is a particularly depressing (but good) story that ends at page 217. That's a great place to put this book down for several weeks, and then come back and read the rest in chapters, as opposed to trying to tackle it all at once. It's a better book that way. But because I didn't know to do that on my first read, I started to struggle with it in the 300s, and kept dreading picking it back up.
While I respect the drive, and conceit behind this massive collection of stories, it doesn't read well as a book. It's too much. If this was five or seven years worth of blogs, spaced out to every few weeks, and then collected in two or three collections, they'd definitely be four or five star books. But the magic of Allie Brosh's writing is her point-of-view, and to truly appreciate it, you need to experience it in bits.
I loved [b:Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened|17571564|Hyperbole and a Half Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened|Allie Brosh|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1409522492l/17571564._SY75_.jpg|24510592], and when I first picked this up, I was so excited to be reading her work again. No, they're not all funny. Some of them are serious examinations of a very depressing part of her life. And those stories were just as good, and just as necessary as the ridiculous stories about her dogs from the previous collection. But, after a while, I didn't want to go back to this book. It's like when you have a friend going through a hard time, and you want to be there for them, so you spend as much time as you can. And years go by, and you think, I don't think it's healthy for me to be As Much There for them as I have been. I need a break.
I don't like feeling that way about a book. There is a particularly depressing (but good) story that ends at page 217. That's a great place to put this book down for several weeks, and then come back and read the rest in chapters, as opposed to trying to tackle it all at once. It's a better book that way. But because I didn't know to do that on my first read, I started to struggle with it in the 300s, and kept dreading picking it back up.
I'm so sad to rate this so low, but it just wasn't what I was expecting at all. I know Allie went through so much since Hyperbole and a Half came out and I fully expected this book to reflect that, but... This book wasn't for me. I'll still always recommend Hyperbole and a Half, and I'll look forward to reading anything else Allie puts out (if she does), but this isn't a book I plan on revisiting.
I don't think I have read anything lately that so intensely made me both laugh and cry. Allie Brosh is so good at depicting depression and grief, as well as the absurdity of children, animals, and adults. My partner read this book first, and I had to leave the room at one point because he was laugh-crying so hard that I couldn't concentrate on my own book. Later, I laugh-cried at the same spot.
I will read anything Allie Brosh writes!
I will read anything Allie Brosh writes!
not what I was expecting and felt like it was trying to hard to mimic the natural quirkiness of the first novel
I have mixed feelings on Solutions and Other Problems. Of course I'm thrilled Allie Brosh has another book out, and that she seems to be doing okay. But this book didn't quite do it for me. It's not just that this it's much darker/sadder than Hyperbole and a Half is—that's to be expected, given what SAOP reveals about what's happened in Brosh's life since the first book's release. As readers, of course we're not "owed" anything by authors—their work is their work, and we can take it or leave it. I was hoping for more humor from Solutions and Other Problems, and that expectation is on me. I think it's that I can't quite subscribe to the idea that life ultimately doesn't have a meaning, which seems to be something Brosh is working thorough in many of her comics in this latest collection. Added to that, some of the comics just . . . fell flat for me.
It was still worth the read, and I'll revisit a few of the chapters. Brosh is a brilliant (if unconventional) comic artist), and there is so much good to be found in this collection. I hope she continues to heal, and continues to release stories if it's good for her to do so.
It was still worth the read, and I'll revisit a few of the chapters. Brosh is a brilliant (if unconventional) comic artist), and there is so much good to be found in this collection. I hope she continues to heal, and continues to release stories if it's good for her to do so.
Wow. This was not what I expected. It was wonderful, smart, sad, funny, and entertaining. I really would like to read her other book. There was a delay in her releasing this book, and after some traumatic stuff happened, she rewrote a lot of this book. I wish I could see some of the early drafts.
CW: suicide, death
CW: suicide, death