Humor

The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo

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The Girl With the Lower Back Tattoo cover

Author: Amy Schumer

Genre: Memoir/Humor

Publisher: Gallery Books

Pages: 336

 

Amy Schumer has built her career on being honest- hilariously, brutally, honest- and I, and so many others, love her for that. She says the things that many think and won’t say, and she doesn’t sugarcoat it. This book is that, and so very much more. It had everything that I was hoping for out of a book written by Schumer. It had the stories of sex, drugs, drinking, and family drama delivered with her signature humor, sarcasm, and wit. What it had that I wasn’t expecting, though, was her being honest in a very different way about the subjects that have touched and affected her life: date rape, domestic violence, gun violence, body shaming, and her father’s MS diagnosis. It was very touching, and humanizing, to see her speak out on these topics in such an authentic way. This book was well written, in that it balanced the serious topics out with humor, so it didn’t become too heavy to read. It was very interesting to learn more about Schumer and her life, up to this point. I was a fan before, and I am even more so of one now!

The Princess Diarist

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princess-diarist-cover

Author: Carrie Fisher

Genre: Memoir/Humor

Publisher: Blue Rider Press

Pages: 272

 

I have been a fan of Carrie Fisher for a very long time. I have always thought that she represented a lot of what I wanted to be as a woman- intelligent, outspoken, hilarious, fiercely unashamed to be who she is, and f*ck ‘em if they can’t take a joke! She had her struggles, and never hid that. In fact, she put them right out there in the hopes that she could help others. That was just another one of her amazing qualities. I read this book before her passing, and I can honestly say that it made me love her even more. Carrie was a very gifted author. This memoir was based on her journals that were kept during the making of the original Star Wars film. Rather than just a copy of her journal entries (although some of those are included for your reading pleasure), she tells the story in her own words based off of those journals. She is honest, straightforward, and hysterical in her storytelling. If you love Star Wars, Carrie, great memoirs, or all the above read this!!!

RIP Carrie. The Force will always be with you.

carrie

 

Scrappy Little Nobody

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scrappy-little-nobody-cover

Author: Anna Kendrick

Genre: Memoir/Humor

Publisher: Touchstone

Pages: 304

 

Confession time: I am a bit in love with Anna Kendrick. I have followed her work for years, and her Twitter feed cracks me up on a regular basis. She is witty, funny, charming, and just the right amount of crazy….so….relatable! In this collection of stories, she recounts her life experiences starting as a young girl beginning on Broadway, to the false start of beginning her dating life, to really trying to launch her career. I am so glad that AK decided to “let the crazy out” in this memoir, because it was in many parts laugh-out-loud funny, which was just what I needed. If you are a fan, you will hear her voice loud and clear in this book and love every second of it! If you just need a good laugh, pick it up!

Teacher Misery

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Teacher Misery cover

Author: Jane Morris

Genre: Humor

Publisher: Truth Be Told Publishing

Pages: 244

 

Teacher Misery is a hilarious collection of stories, essays, emails, and interactions between this teacher and her students, parents, and faculty. It tells, in a perfect humorous way, just how ridiculous and somewhat miserable the field of teaching has become. What was once one of the most respectable fields to be in, has become a battleground for teachers who just want to help kids. I swear the stories in this book just got more hilarious and ridiculous as the book continued. Read it! It will make you want to find a teacher and hug them!

667 Ways to F*ck Up My Life

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667 Ways cover

Author: Lucy Woodhull

Genre: Humor

Publisher: Totally Bound Publishing

Pages: 298

 

Dag was the quintessential good girl. The type of girl that everyone loves and loves to hate, because she is so perfect. One day, her world comes crashing down around her ears. She won’t put out, so she gets fired. She goes home, only to find out that her boyfriend is moving away without her. Her dad takes a Hawaiian vacation with her sister, but doesn’t invite her. Dag decides to do a complete 180, and go bad girl to see how that works out for her. She schemes many ways to f*ck up her life, and puts it all in blog form. She goes all in, and does it in spectacular form…and it works. Things start turning around for her, when she turns it all around.

This book was entertaining, and really pretty funny. It had a relatable main character, and definitely a point of view that most can relate to, even if not to the extreme that Dag experienced it. We’ve all had one of those days that everything seems to be against us. There was just something that stopped me from going all in with this one. I can’t really say what it was, though. Maybe it was just that I wanted more depth, where there wasn’t meant to be any. Anyway, I will say that it is a worthwhile read, especially if you’re looking for a laugh.

You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost): A Memoir

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You're Never Weird on the...cover

Author: Felicia Day

Genre: Memoir/Humor

Publisher: Touchstone

Pages: 272

 

For those of you not familiar with Felicia Day, she’s weird, and she embraces it! She may be familiar to you from her acting career (Vi on Buffy, Charlie on Supernatural, Dr. Holly Marten on Eureka, etc), or you may recognize her from her YouTube channel, Geek & Sundry or her web series, The Guild. She has been touted as being the “Queen of the Nerds”, and for good reason.

In this memoir, Felicia takes us through her life, from her childhood in the deep south (where she was home schooled for “hippie reasons”) to college at 16 years old (where she double- majored in math & violin, and graduated as valedictorian) on to Hollywood (where she had quite the time getting a start, with no contacts or agent) to where she is now. She doesn’t gloss over anything at all, which makes the book not only funny, but sweet, sad, shocking, and most of all, honest. If you are in your 30’s, you’ll laugh along the way at her remembrance of the rising of the internet, the games that we played on it, and finding yourself in that age. If you’re not, you’ll laugh anyway, trying to picture what that was like. Her honest story about her life is one of finding who you really are along your way, and embracing exactly who that it, not who people expect you to be. It is a great tale of a young woman succeeding in being exactly who she is, with no apologies. I liked her before, and I love her now! She’ll make you proud to be weird!

Why Not Me

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Why Not Me cover

Author: Mindy Kaling

Genre: Humor

Publisher: Crown Archetype

Pages: 240

 

In her second book of introspective essays, Mindy Kaling has solidified her place on my list of funniest and most refreshing celebrities. This second book was, honestly, even more laugh-out-loud hysterical than the first. She had me at “Your boobs have to be on fleek”! Written in her own voice, with her own brand of humor, Kaling takes us through her journey of Hollywood stardom and lets us see the “behind the scenes” view of what life is really like- from her Hollywood starlet perspective, of course! From the process of looking camera-ready, to falling in love, to trying to remind yourself that you belong when you’re constantly reminded that maybe you really don’t- this collection of essays will make you fall in love with Mindy Kaling, and want her as your new BFF.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)

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Is Everyone Hanging Out cover

Author: Mindy Kaling

Genre: Humor

Publisher: Three Rivers Press

Pages: 222

 

If you are familiar with Mindy Kaling’s television writing/acting or her comedy, then you will already understand the tone of her book. Mindy Kaling is funny in a very self-deprecating, smartass, witty, girl next door that you want to be best friends with way. In this book she tells the stories of her life from growing up, her time in college, moving to New York and trying to get her career off of the ground (in the most hysterical way…think calling her train in to work the “rape train” due to its shadiness and ending up getting a town car driving her to and from work because of it). You also get some great behind the scenes info on some of our favorite comedians (their personalities may or may not be what you think they should be!).

After reading Chelsea’s last book, I decided that I should stay on the humor book track for a little while, as my mind still feels like it needs a little bit of a break from having to really think too much sometimes. I have been a fan of Mindy Kaling since I first saw her on The Office years ago, but for some reason I never got around to picking up her book until just now. I am sorry that I waited so long! This is a laugh out loud, coming in to your own tale that will make you want to be a part of her life, if only for the stories that you get out of it.

Lies That Chelsea Handler Told Me

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Lies That Chelsea cover

Author: Chelsea’s Family, Friends, & Other Victims; Chelsea Handler

Genre: Humor/Entertainment

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Pages: 304

 

Unlike Chelsea’s other two books, this one is actually written by her friends and family. These are their tales of the times that Chelsea has lied to and pulled some major pranks on them. See, Chelsea Handler loves to lie and pull pranks, and she is awesome at it! Even though all of these people know her well, and know that there is a very good chance that anything that she is telling them is a lie, there is also the chance that it might be true, and they inevitably fall for the tall tale. Underlying all of her mischievousness, Chelsea is also hysterical and an amazing friend and family member to this cast of characters, and that shines through as well.

I needed a bit of a break from the sci-fi/fantasy/YA fiction that I have been reading, and it has been a rough week, so I decided to go with some humor to lighten things up. This helped a lot! I am a huge Chelsea Handler fan, and have followed her since the onset of Chelsea Lately. Although this wasn’t actually written by her, I could still hear her humor permeating the book, and most of the writers are right up there wither her humor level. I didn’t enjoy it as much as Chelsea’s previous books, but it was a fun read, and definitely worth the time.