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carokfulf's review against another edition
5.0
Pleasant and searching
The perfect read for a summer spent only briefly away from Brooklyn. Hodgman is sweet and measured and a better writer than he gets much credit for.
The perfect read for a summer spent only briefly away from Brooklyn. Hodgman is sweet and measured and a better writer than he gets much credit for.
jslive's review against another edition
4.0
“Vacationland” by John Hodgman has his usual hilarious self-deprecating snark, but also a few deeper feelings along the way. I enjoyed it.
chelseaknits's review against another edition
5.0
It was hilarious. It made me cry. My inner only child felt seen (and blushed for it). I knew I liked John Hodgman; I didn’t know I loved him.
lahowitt's review against another edition
funny
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
[audiobook]Some good essays, some boring. He’s definitely self-aware, which is nice. Good to hear some Judge John Hodgman opinions in practice.
dmaurath's review against another edition
5.0
So much better than Green Lights. That might not be the comparison you expected but let me explain. I hated Matthew McConagheys anachronistic list of life lessons for immature white males and how completely unself-aware it was. Vacationland is in complete contrast, a quite self-aware, more mature, and far better written memoir of a white male Gen Xer.
Hodgman recognizes his privileged upbringing often and explores it as a reoccurring theme throughout his book. Then its more mature because he uses bullies as an opportunity to teach his son resilience, unlike Green Lights where McConaghey implicitly endorses violence. Finally, Hodgman is an author who did some acting, not an actor trying to be an author, so his writing is naturally much much better.
My only small complaint with this book is that Hodgman revisits a tired joke about country people trying to kill city people a few too many times. It quickly becomes unnecessary hyperbole.
Hodgman recognizes his privileged upbringing often and explores it as a reoccurring theme throughout his book. Then its more mature because he uses bullies as an opportunity to teach his son resilience, unlike Green Lights where McConaghey implicitly endorses violence. Finally, Hodgman is an author who did some acting, not an actor trying to be an author, so his writing is naturally much much better.
My only small complaint with this book is that Hodgman revisits a tired joke about country people trying to kill city people a few too many times. It quickly becomes unnecessary hyperbole.
murph_the_serf's review against another edition
4.0
Hodgman's voice comes through extremely strongly and since I'm one who loves his voice, that's a win for me! While large portions of the book are in fact not about vacations, Hodgman weaves a strong memoir narrative through many points of his life and does a great job of making it seem like he's telling you one long story as opposed to "here is a thing that happened to me - oh, and here is a different thing that happened to me."
pumpkinmama's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 really - I liked some of these vignettes more than others (some leaned a little too name-droppy/hipstery ridiculousness for my tastes) but he sure can write beautifully and is very funny.
cpoole's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
3.5