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baileyborkson 's review for:
Me vs Brain: An Overthinker's Guide to Life
by Hayley Morris
Thank you, NetGalley and Dreamscape Media, for the availability of the audiobook before its release.
Let me preface this review by saying I am not a regular watcher of Hayley's content. I see her videos once in a while, and I picked this book due to the title "An Overthinker's Guide to Life." As someone who is also diagnosed with generalized anxiety, I was expecting something of a mix between memoir and self-help—maybe even squeezing in some psychology in there. However, I would say this book is strictly a collection of anecdotes from the author's life. Half memoir, half comedy skit, it's a mix of those late-night stories you tell with your close friends and tiktok skits written out.
Lately, I have seen so many memoir-esque books with a title akin to "A _____'s Guide to _______." Which causes confusion and many lower ratings due to the confusion, and I do hope that this book does not have the same issues. Though it did not meet my own expectations, I tried to rate it according to what it was trying to accomplish. 3 stars for me is just average—not bad, not fantastic. Hayley's narration was wonderful, and the effects she puts in, the multiple voices, it shows how hard she works on her content itself. In parts where I was dragging due to the written content, her voice was able to keep me engaged. The main reason for my rating is just the actual content. Personally, I am not big on body humor; poop, blood, farts—all of that just isn't my jam. Hayley really does like a good poop joke, from what I have read. I think my chapter is definitely "Brain vs. Puberty" with her "totally real first period" story. I absolutely laughed aloud in a Starbucks for that one. Mainly because I think we have all been there, so badly wanting to fit in that you will do something so cringeworthy it haunts you in your sleep 20 years later. Those are the stories I felt the most invested in when they were truly relatable. I think my least favorite chapter was the "Sex Dream" one. This definitely felt like a tiktok skit written out in much longer form. I don't know how to describe the feelings I had, but all I could think was, "Why are you telling me this?". To use a TikTok audio, "It's funny, but not funny HaHa... funny weird.". Besides those two standout moments, the rest of the audiobook was fine. Story times with a friend, with little bits in between. If I had been a fan of Hayley, I think I would have enjoyed this a bit more (obviously), but coming in knowing basically nothing about her before just makes the experience average for me.
If I were to recommend this book, you would either need to be a fan of hers or like her style of humor. You won't get much self-help, but overthinking is definitely present in this entire book. Like the ranting and ravings of a mad scientist who likes to dress up as a vulva for the internet. It's a quick listen; Hayley does a fantastic narration job, and you might get a good giggle out of it.
Let me preface this review by saying I am not a regular watcher of Hayley's content. I see her videos once in a while, and I picked this book due to the title "An Overthinker's Guide to Life." As someone who is also diagnosed with generalized anxiety, I was expecting something of a mix between memoir and self-help—maybe even squeezing in some psychology in there. However, I would say this book is strictly a collection of anecdotes from the author's life. Half memoir, half comedy skit, it's a mix of those late-night stories you tell with your close friends and tiktok skits written out.
Lately, I have seen so many memoir-esque books with a title akin to "A _____'s Guide to _______." Which causes confusion and many lower ratings due to the confusion, and I do hope that this book does not have the same issues. Though it did not meet my own expectations, I tried to rate it according to what it was trying to accomplish. 3 stars for me is just average—not bad, not fantastic. Hayley's narration was wonderful, and the effects she puts in, the multiple voices, it shows how hard she works on her content itself. In parts where I was dragging due to the written content, her voice was able to keep me engaged. The main reason for my rating is just the actual content. Personally, I am not big on body humor; poop, blood, farts—all of that just isn't my jam. Hayley really does like a good poop joke, from what I have read. I think my chapter is definitely "Brain vs. Puberty" with her "totally real first period" story. I absolutely laughed aloud in a Starbucks for that one. Mainly because I think we have all been there, so badly wanting to fit in that you will do something so cringeworthy it haunts you in your sleep 20 years later. Those are the stories I felt the most invested in when they were truly relatable. I think my least favorite chapter was the "Sex Dream" one. This definitely felt like a tiktok skit written out in much longer form. I don't know how to describe the feelings I had, but all I could think was, "Why are you telling me this?". To use a TikTok audio, "It's funny, but not funny HaHa... funny weird.". Besides those two standout moments, the rest of the audiobook was fine. Story times with a friend, with little bits in between. If I had been a fan of Hayley, I think I would have enjoyed this a bit more (obviously), but coming in knowing basically nothing about her before just makes the experience average for me.
If I were to recommend this book, you would either need to be a fan of hers or like her style of humor. You won't get much self-help, but overthinking is definitely present in this entire book. Like the ranting and ravings of a mad scientist who likes to dress up as a vulva for the internet. It's a quick listen; Hayley does a fantastic narration job, and you might get a good giggle out of it.