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

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I've been a fan of Allie Brosh for a while. A friend a few years ago put me on to her website Hyperbole and a Half. I've read it religiously since then. I read all the back catalogue. I spent a friends wedding as an Alot (it made a lot more sense after several bottles of wine and no food available). Completely reasonable in my mind.

Allie is hands down, brilliant. She is a wonderful storyteller, an amazing illustrator (how on earth do you make Paint drawings so emotive?), and has a killer wit. I wish honestly, I was just half as funny as her.

Half of the book is from her website. It's been re-drawn or touched up. But it's the same. But like a familiar friend, who has told you all of their stories before, they are amusing and still make you laugh in places, sometimes before the joke has happened. If you haven't read her website, don't and save it for the book. Then read the other posts that aren't in the book later.

Most of the other parts of the book are funny too. A few are a little filler-y. But I can understand that. Print is less forgiving that web based media in that regard. But a lot of them made me laugh as well.

If you haven't read her before, her depression posts/chapters are heartbreakingly honest and so incredibly real. They have helped so many of us who may not of had depression to finally "get it". For those who have, it has helped them realise that what they feel is not weird, it's normal. If nothing else, she has accidently revolutionised experiencing, understanding and connecting with people with depression. Am I over blowing her horn? Possibly. But I am yet to meet someone who disagrees.

Read it. You'll laugh, you'll possibly cry. You'll definitely be yelling PARP!