We just added Allie Brosh's first book, half of which has already appeared on the web in her blog, and the other half is entirely new material. The image on the cover is Allie Brosh herself, and the yellow triangle is her pony tail.
The book isn't all that different from her blog; she writes about the mundane--her two dogs and the rules they must live by, including no bees. Her classic blog, "The God of Cake," her retelling of the time she ate her grandfather's birthday cake, is still just as funny as it was the first time I read it, but in the context of this book, next to the new blog posts, the story has another layer. In this book, Brosh exposes and reflects on her crippling depression in at least two posts, and she does so in a way that makes the experience crystal clear to those folks who have never struggled with depression. She also reflects on her arbitrary rules for life, which made me think about perception and reality, and of course, philosophy. She even depicts herself on a forbidden quest to a cave where she reads the writing on the wall.
I've always loved Matt Inman's The Oatmeal, and I've often compared Inman and Brosh and both comedic geniuses, but after reading this book, I have to say that Inman is funny in a superficial and scientific way, and he encourages wonder with the world with his emphasis on animals and science. But Brosh understands the heart, she shows what it is to be human, and she does it while making me laugh. She reminds me of the time in own childhood when I teamed up with my sister to harrass and annoy our mother.
This book won't stay on the shelf long, friends.
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