stingraemusic's review against another edition

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funny informative lighthearted fast-paced

3.0

wayward's review

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funny informative lighthearted fast-paced

2.0

Welp, this is a relic of 2012 that did not age well at all. Some good advice, but buried in an overall glib, dismissive, and navel-gazing tone.

mhall's review against another edition

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1.0

I like Lindy West, but this didn't work for me. Granted, I'm not in the demographic.

pmcintosh's review against another edition

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2.0

20% meaningful contributions.
50% dated and/or amusing commentary

Overall, not enough for a book - rather a lazy collection of columns. I love the writers - but yeah. Lazy and outdated. (Of course. It’s several years old.)

jackieguy's review against another edition

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1.0

His trans chapter ruined the whole thing for me

stormywolf's review against another edition

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3.0

This book definitely won't be for everyone. For one thing, you have to have a sense of humor. If you don't at least smile at the inside flap, then drop this book now, because I can almost guarantee that you won't like it. In addition to prolific swearing, the book contains a LONG, detailed chapter concerning sex—straight, gay, lesbian, bi and trans—by way of real written letters and responses a la "Dear Abby", and a chapter on politics (specifically describing Republicans and Feminists). However, there are also laundry tips, tested recipes, and true stories of working in restaurants.

I guess I'd recommend it to anyone who is really, really stressed about going off to college who has a sense of humor and an open mind. A lot of statements in the book are there purely for comedic effect (see the sections on music and books), but there are quite a few sincere pieces of advice as well (see the chapter on Drugs).

I don't know if I would have picked this up before heading off to college, and if I had, I don't know if it would have changed much of my experience. But I do think that voicing and addressing some of the fears a newly graduated 17/18-year-old can be helpful, even (especially) when delivered in a comedic and frank fashion.

Approximate Reading Time: 4.5 hours

chase's review against another edition

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4.0

It was great. Funny too! I was a bit disappointed that Dan Savage didn't have as much material as I expected, but it was over all pretty good.

mlknits's review against another edition

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3.0

Probably should have read the blurb (or the subtitle) before I bought this, as I'm definitely not the intended audience, but it was still a fun read. Would be a great gift for a college-bound relative.