I find that people often judge me pretty harshly based on what an avid pinner I am. Know what I say to them? I say "Shame on you and your kin." Why do I say this? Because Pinterest is so much more than what they think it is. Yeah, Pinterest has a lot of crafts and recipes perfect for women over the age of 40. But do you know what else Pinterest has? It has FANTASTIC BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS. So here's the sitch Kim Possible.
I was browsing Pinterest one hot summer day, avoiding the sun and the impending doom that is Florida's humidity, and I came across a list of summer reads. As I was preparing for a trip to the beach with my BFFL Kaitlyn and her parents, Sue and Larry (who adore me), I figured having a book to read whilst soaking up the rays and tending to my jellyfish wounds while hot cabana boys served me lemonade (minus the hot cabana boys, sadly, but I did get Sue to pass me a water at one point) was a good idea. On this list was a book recommended for none other than a day at the beach. What was the name of this book, you might ask? Calm yourselves, I'll get to it. First- some quick background.
Funny books have never appealed to me. I don't know what it is. I read one of Chelsea Handler's books, and only found it moderately entertaining, even though I adore her show. I tried to read Bossypants by Tina Fey, and I couldn't even finish it. And believe you me, I am a very devoted Tina Fey fan. But I just couldn't do it. Forgive me, Tina. Anyways, no matter how hard I tried to get into them, it never works. They never made me legitimately laugh out loud. Until this book.
As I'm sure you've all been avidly waiting for it, here's the title of the book: Let's Pretend This Never Happened. I feel like you just know it's gonna be a good book when the cover is a taxidermied mouse in Renaissance clothing. Which is precisely what graced the cover of this godly book. Know what else? It's not like it was just a random picture of a mouse so the cover could be quirky- it was a prominent part of the stories. Her father was a taxidermist, and she, a collector of strange things (like taxidermic animals). Her entire family is…unique, to say the least. And her stories do not disappoint.
Basically, the book is a memoir of the author, Jenny Lawson. She also happens to be a very talented blogger (The Bloggess- check it out or watch the world burn). Most importantly, she is the funniest woman I have ever not met. You think you know funny until you read this, upon which you'll realize just how deprived you've been and probably hate your parents for it. I'm still trying to find a book that will make me laugh as hard as this one did, and to no avail. I'll just have to continue reading her blog and wait for her to publish another book. Even thinking about it makes me giddy. Time for some spoilers. They won't be too spoily though, so even if you plan on reading it (which you most definitely should), my wee spoils won't give much away.
I don't care who you are, potty humor appeals to everyone. Of all ages. Ever. This book has an entire chapter devoted to explosive diarrhea. While I was at the beach, I kept giggling at it until Kaitlyn finally asked me to read it to her. So of course I end up reading it to her whole family while they appear to be napping, and I look insane just sitting there appearing to be talking to myself. I don't even care. It was that funny. The whole time she's going to the bathroom (we're back to the book now, not my beach trip), notes are being passed to her under the bathroom door by whom she assumes to be a murderous rapist. I won't tell you if it turns out to be a murderous rapist or not, but I'm pretty sure you can guess that one for yourself seeing as she's still alive. But the very first thing she thinks about is how her rapist will be disappointed because of her…excrements, and give up on her anyways. This chapter was hilarious. I'm talking side splitting laughter. I'm talking lose your voice and choke on your own saliva laughter. It's funny.
So if you enjoy happiness you will enjoy this book. It was everything you could possibly ask for- heartstrings tugging, gut wrenching, laugh out loud material. And I never would have known about it had it not been for Pinterest. So to all you naysayers out there, check out the book. And thank Pinterest. Well actually, thank me. Then by the transitive property you'll be thanking Pinterest anyways. You're welcome.
