I loved so many things about this book. First: LOOK at the cover and endpapers. It’s hard not to instantly love a book that puts a smile on your face just by looking at the cover, and then makes you laugh out loud before you read even a single word. Second: The Bloggess is hilarious even when writing about ‘horrible things’—I laughed through the serious bits and absolutely howled through the funny bits. Third: Because my friend Rosie suggested that we read this book at the same time so we could cry-laugh about it afterwards, I decided to keep a running list of things that made me physically burst out laughing. THAT LIST IS SO LONG THAT I HAD TO RESORT TO WRITING DOWN THINGS THAT LITERALLY MADE ME SNIFFLE WITH TEARS OF HILARITY. There’s a bit about a swan attack that made me laugh so hard I almost hacked up a lung. Fourth: Every single time she talks about her mother it reminds me of my mother… there’s even a bit about dusting that could honestly be a quote straight from her lips. Fifth: Her chapter headings… you’ll see when you read it, because you will read it. Sixth: Victor is the kind of man I hope I end up with. Seventh: To live your life in a way that makes you furiously happy is a pretty genius way to live. Eighth: She makes it sound like it’s perfectly normal to have not one, but two taxidermied raccoons with maniacal grins, one of which is posable. Ninth: She named her cats Hunter S. Thomcat and Ferris Mewler, and she wants a cat named The President and a pony named Pony Danza. Tenth: She makes up words for fun, includes notes from her editor, and admonishes spell check for being racist. Eleventh: She worries over what would happen if spiders became currency, which made me think of this essay by David Thorne, which made me laugh even harder. Twelfth: Everything else.

No. 5 on my challenge. It’s about time, too. I waited all year to check this book off my list. It was so worth the wait.