A review by readswithcocktails
I Want to Be Where the Normal People Are by Rachel Bloom

Did not finish book. Stopped at 55%.
I don't know how to say this without it sounding like I'm trash talking Rachel Bloom. It's really hard to read a memoir of someone who thinks they're self-aware, but actually lacks that quality. The opening chapter where she gatekeeps who can say that they were bullied was a lot. Especially when she acknowledged how much privilege she actually has to have never been bullied because of her race, gender identity, sexual orientation, etc but then doubles down on how her bullying was the worst. Bullying of any sort is awful and traumatic. Everyone's trauma is their own, but listening her explain why her trauma is worse than others even while acknowledging her privilege was a lot. It didn't feel like punching down, but it did feel insensitive. This level of almost self reflection and poorly calculated jokes continued to happen until I couldn't any more. Maybe the humor just isn't for me? There were some really funny and touching parts, but that wasn't enough to keep me going.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings