Genre: Nonfiction/Humor
Pages: 369
Published: 2013
If you like awkward stories with pictures, you're in for a treat. Have you ever heard about the goose that got stuck in Allie's house? Or her mentally challenged but lovable dog? What about the time the time she ate a whole cake despite her parents' efforts to hide it? Or the infamous toy parrot that could repeat anything she said? Takes straight from her blog, Allie's here to tell us the best of her ridiculous life stories in the way that only she can as she navigates life and the silly and serious challenges that come with it.
Even if you've never read Allie's blog, you probably recognize this meme:
Straight from Allie herself, this is the type of drawing you can expect. Drawn images are interspersed with text snippets of varying lengths and colorful page backgrounds.
I don't really know how to categorize these stories. Like many memoirs, it's stories from the author's life. In this case, they came from her blog. What makes it stand out, though, are her drawings. Who doesn't love her little people with triangles for hair? Readers will find a lot of scenarios to relate to here also. Whether it's getting lost in the woods and having a parent pass it off as a game as to not frighten the kids, insisting on going to that birthday party, or even doing ridiculous things with your siblings to annoy your parents, it's standard suburban life with a refreshing, sarcastic perspective.
Don't forget the pets! Allie's dogs are a huge part of her life. They're stupid, but we love them, and that's the point she gets across. Readers will follow along as Allie gives her dog an IQ test, adopts another dog in hopes of helping the first dog, and writes them a guide to life. But she gets to know other animals, too. I won't even get started on the goose.
Allie also isn't afraid to get serious in her stories and illustrate thought processes in her illustrations as well as events. One metaphorical story, for example, deals with depression as she explains what it's really like and why sometimes people's helpful efforts fail. But her style of humor shines there, too, as she realizes how to laugh again under ridiculous circumstances (aka finding a piece of corn). Another chapter talks about motivation, but does so in a humorous way. Allie's character, for example, decides she doesn't really want that banana in her grocery cart and examines all the options that don't involve going back to the bananas and putting it back, then judges herself for them. Should she leave it on the nearest shelf? No, that would look ridiculous. Should she just buy the banana to avoid awkwardness altogether? Allie speaks to many of our thought processes here. Or maybe that's just me. But one of my favorite "serious" chapters must be Identity Part 1, where she questions if she is actually a good person or if she is just doing good things to make herself feel good. Or maybe she just thinks she would be a hero in a given situation when in reality she would shy away if something like that were to happen. It's pretty thought-provoking. I know that other readers will start questioning themselves, too.
A handful of chapters border on the complex when it comes to subject material and drawings. In one story, Allie refers to so many things as the "thing" that I forget which "thing" she's referring to. That's where it lost me a little bit. Otherwise, I liked this book and what it brings to the table. It's hard to categorize these stories and give a coherent summary, but that isn't the point. So many people insist on writing their life story these days, but Allie is one of the few with something new to say and a unique style to do it with.
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