Reviews

I'll Tell You in Person by Chloe Caldwell

dmknott's review

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5.0

4.5 stars

zoethydear1850's review against another edition

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5.0

Messy, heartbreaking, fun, and wild- very good stuff, people.

literatehedgehog's review against another edition

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2.0

New York naughty white girl personal essays.

Maybe that's too harsh but I had much higher expectations for this based on other reviews and blurbs and I was sorely disappointed. I do read a fair amount of essays, so I could have reached my cap for "wowie I was a wild one" recollections or "this is how I (almost) met a famous person" anecdotes or "isn't my anxiety the worst?" navel-gazes. I wanted less introspection and more connection from these essays. In my view, personal essays use the personal details to connect to wider themes. I'm not asking for a treatise on the human condition, but a little more global perspective-taking.

reads somewhat like
Sloane Crosby's NYC intelli-smarm, Lena Denham's narcissism and Mindy Kaling's arbitrarily organized books.

I preferred
Scaachi Koul's reflections in One Day We'll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter and Samantha Irby's dark wit in We Are Never Meeting In Real Life (and in her other writings).

My take-away is that I should check that the essays are somewhat personal, somewhat political or cultural before I commit myself.

kaileycool's review against another edition

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4.0

Read this by the pool, which is the perfect setting for feeling bad for/about yourself and reading about someone else who also feels bad for/about herself.

bean_mcmachine's review against another edition

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5.0

Unbelievable in the best way. Caldwell’s writing is so beautiful while remaining grounded and gross. There is something so real about the way she speaks. Each section is better than the last. I never say this, but I can’t read it again.

cordelialeigh's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

3.5

ewill's review against another edition

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3.0

read

brashcandicoot's review against another edition

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reflective medium-paced

3.75

heyitsjude's review against another edition

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2.0

2/2.5?

I’ll Tell You in Person is an essay collection of works Chloe Caldwell has written over time. These essays have been written at various ages and points in her life and all complied into this book. Reading this felt like reading someone’s journal. It discusses relishing in your youth, but lacks the reflective aspect found in most essay collections. Some stories/essays began to feel repetitive but there were a few really good essays in here. I really liked Hungry Ghost where the author discusses her relationship with food weight and her body among other things. I also liked Soul Killer where Caldwell openly discusses her struggles with addiction. While it was a nostalgic read it also felt vapid. There wasn’t much to take away from it other than the fact the author lived life carelessly. The essays didn’t really intertwine in a way that make the book feel coherent. It makes you question what the point of the book is.

kktella's review against another edition

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funny reflective slow-paced

2.5