Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened

by Allie Brosh

Overview

#1 New York Times Bestseller

“Funny and smart as hell” (Bill Gates), Allie Brosh’s Hyperbole and a Half showcases her unique voice, leaping wit, and her ability to capture complex emotions with deceptively simple illustrations.

FROM THE PUBLISHER:
Every time Allie Brosh posts something new on her hugely popular blog Hyperbole and a Half the internet rejoices.

This full-color, beautifully illustrated edition features more than fifty percent new content, with ten never-before-seen essays and one wholly revised and expanded piece as well as classics from the website like, “The God of Cake,” “Dogs Don’t Understand Basic Concepts Like Moving,” and her astonishing, “Adventures in Depression,” and “Depression Part Two,” which have been hailed as some of the most insightful meditations on the disease ever written.

Brosh’s debut marks the launch of a major new American humorist who will surely make even the biggest scrooge or snob laugh. We dare you not to.

FROM THE AUTHOR:
This is a book I wrote. Because I wrote it, I had to figure out what to put on the back cover to explain what it is. I tried to write a long, third-person summary that would imply how great the book is and also sound vaguely authoritative—like maybe someone who isn’t me wrote it—but I soon discovered that I’m not sneaky enough to pull it off convincingly. So I decided to just make a list of things that are in the book:

Pictures
Words
Stories about things that happened to me
Stories about things that happened to other people because of me
Eight billion dollars*
Stories about dogs
The secret to eternal happiness*

*These are lies. Perhaps I have underestimated my sneakiness!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781451666182
Publisher:	Gallery Books
Publication date:	10/29/2013
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	288
File size:	72 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Allie Brosh is the author of the #1 New York Times bestsellers Solutions and Other Problems and Hyperbole and a Half, which was named the Goodreads Choice Award Winner for Best Humor Book of the Year. Brosh has also given herself many prestigious awards, including “fanciest horse drawing” and “most likely to succeed.” Find out more at HyperboleandaHalf.blogspot.com.

Editorial Reviews

"I must have interrupted Melinda a dozen times to read to her passages that made me laugh out loud. . . . The adventures she recounts are mostly inside her head, where we hear and see the kind of inner thoughts most of us are too timid to let out in public. Despite her book’s title, Brosh’s stories feel incredibly—and sometimes brutally—real. . . . It is no hyperbole to say I love her approach—looking, listening, and describing with the observational skills of a scientist, the creativity of an artist, and the wit of a comedian."— Bill Gates

"Imagine if David Sedaris could draw . . . Enchanting."— People (4 stars, People Pick)

Winner of the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Humor Book of the Year
An NPR Best Book of the Year
A Library Journal Best Book of the Year, Memoirs— .

“I would gladly pay to sit in a room full of people reading this book, merely to share the laughter.”— Philadelphia Inquirer

"My wife, who rarely reads a book published after 1910 and who is difficult to make laugh, wept with pleasure while reading these comic illustrated essays from Ms. Brosh, who runs a popular web comic and blog. I had to find out what the fuss was about. The subjects run from light (cakes, dogs) to dark (the author’s own severe depression), and they foreground offbeat feeling and real intellect. Ms. Brosh’s inquisitive mind won me over, too.”— Dwight Garner New York Times

“In a culture that encourages people to carry mental illness as a secret burden . . . Brosh's bracing honesty is a gift.”— Chicago Tribune

“Brosh captures humanity at its simultaneous worst and best with a razor wit that allows us to laugh at even our darkest of selves.”— The Advocate (Baton Rouge)

"Will make you laugh until you sob, even when Brosh describes her struggle with depression."— Entertainment Weekly

"This is the BOOK OF THE YEAR."— Elizabeth Gilbert

“One of the best things I’ve ever read in my life.”— Marc Maron

"This book made me laugh, cry, and leak. It was honest, poignant, and ridiculously silly in all the best ways and I'm better for having read it. Plus, doggies!"— Jenny Lawson, The Bloggess and author of Let's Pretend This Never Happened

"An Internet-era treasure, an unexpected wonder of the 21st century."— Cory Doctorow, BoingBoing.com

“Brosh is a connoisseur of the human condition.”— Kirkus Reviews

"Brosh is an evocative writer who bares her foibles and shortcomings, from childhood to her present life, with a lack of vanity and a sense of catharsis that is palpable."— Publishers Weekly

“Get this for the smart people who appreciate humor in your life, and they won't be disappointed."— io9.com

“The whole blog is inspired.”— Andrew Sullivan, The Daily Dish (The Atlantic)

“Anyone seeking an accessible look at someone suffering from depression or some really delightful dog drawings need search no further.”— Time Out New York

"Both singular and familiar—the popularity of Brosh's blog and her absurd, exuberant voice meant that she started a lot of memes you might have come across—Hyperbole and a Half is a very funny reminder that it's normal to not have your shit together, and to know that it's okay to ask for help."— GQ

From the Publisher

2013-09-25
A quirky, humorous memoir/collection of illustrated essays. Brosh is a good example of how new literary forms are evolving. An immensely successful blogger, the author's Hyperbole and a Half earned her a 2011 Bloggies Award and also garnered a spot on PC World's "Funniest Sites on the Web." Suffice it to say, she has become something of an Internet sensation. However, as many readers know, web writing often does not translate well to a book (and vice versa). Brosh makes a solid first attempt to bridge this literary gap. Anyone who takes years' worth of blog posts and tries to pare them down into book form is facing a formidable task, whether the writing is any good or not (in this case, it is, though some essays are stronger than others). Blog followers don't usually binge read, but book readers do. That said, holding a book may leave some with a yearning for more cohesion. It does feel choppy in places, but the wit, hilarity and poignancy of the subject matter trump structural concerns. Brosh is a connoisseur of the human condition. In her typical self-deprecating and dramatic manner (hence the hyperbole reference), she tells personal stories that name things we can all relate to, including fear, love, depression and hope. Perhaps the most endearing thing about her writing is that she approaches her subject matter from a vulnerable, childlike place, complete with Paintbrush caricatures that have arguably already earned iconic status. Brosh's longtime fans and cult followers will be happy to learn that half of the material for this book is new and unpublished. The other half is comprised of Internet favorites, including "Simple Dog," "The God of Cake" and "Adventures in Depression." Part graphic novel, part confessional, overall delightful. An obvious choice for Hyperbole fans, but this will also appeal to fans of other oddball web presences like Homestar Runner and The Oatmeal.

Kirkus Reviews