Review: Let's Pretend This Never Happened

Pretend

  • Author: Jenny Lawson
  • ISBN: 9780399159015
  • Pages: 318
  • Genre: Memoir/Humour

The above ISBN is for the hardcover edition, but I listened to the audiobook I purchased.

For fans of Tina Fey and David Sedaris—Internet star Jenny Lawson, aka The Bloggess, makes her literary debut.
Jenny Lawson realized that the most mortifying moments of our lives—the ones we’d like to pretend never happened—are in fact the ones that define us. In the #1 New York Times bestseller, Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, Lawson takes readers on a hilarious journey recalling her bizarre upbringing in rural Texas, her devastatingly awkward high school years, and her relationship with her long-suffering husband, Victor. Chapters include: “Stanley the Magical, Talking Squirrel”; “A Series of Angry Post-It Notes to My Husband”; “My Vagina Is Fine. Thanks for Asking”; “And Then I Snuck a Dead Cuban Alligator on an Airplane.”  – Goodreads

I’ve been a fan of The Bloggess for a very short time, having only come across Jenny Lawson’s blog a little less than a year ago.  Not long after reading a few of her posts, I wanted to read her books.  I especially wanted to read Furiously Happy, but being the crazy type of person that has to read things in order, I chose Let’s Pretend This Never Happened first.  I also decided to go with the audiobook instead of the paperback because Jenny narrates it herself.
I love audiobooks narrated by the author.  While sometimes that’s the last person who should be narrating a book, most of the time, they’re the best option because, hello, they wrote the book.  The author knows all their own natural pauses and cadence, and so you find out how the book should sound.  Also, there’s no way I’m listening to a humorous memoir by a Texan narrated by someone who isn’t a Texan.  Had Jenny Lawson not narrated her own audiobook, I probably would have just waited to buy the paperback next year when, and if, I was no longer participating in the Shelf Love Challenge.  Instead, I used my Audible credit like it was about to expire or the audiobook was going to be removed or something.
Let’s Pretend This Never Happened is for everyone who has had a crazy life or thinks they’ve had a crazy life.  It’s also for everyone who suffers or has suffered from Depression, PTSD, anxiety, or rare diseases for which there is no cure.  For you, get ready to meet a person who understands just what you’re going through and will make you laugh until you’re rolling on the floor, crying, and probably peeing your pants.  I don’t know how I was able to drive to and from work for the week it took me to get through this book, but I didn’t have any road rage while I did it.  I was too busy laughing.
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Monday’s Minutes

“Monday’s Minutes” is a weekly post in which I track my bookish life.  All book covers are linked to Goodreads unless otherwise noted.

Current Reads:

  • Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke
  • The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice – for the Never-Ending Anne Rice Reading Challenge.
  • The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente
  • Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty
  • The Fangirl Life by Kathleen Smith

InkdeathLestat Fairyland

Serafina Fangirl Life

Finished:

  • Mother Ocean, Daughter Sea by Diana Marcellas
  • Let’s Pretend this Never Happened by Jenny Lawson
  • Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
  • Emissary by Thomas Locke
  • Billy Lovecraft Saves the World by Billy Lovecraft

Mother Pretend Alice

Emissary Billy

DNF:

  • Escape From Netherworld by David Kuklis
  • Sadie Sugarspear and the Weeping Willow by Nicole Arlyn

Escape Sadie

Challenges:

Total pages read: 1285

Total # of books for the year: 25.  I’ve got a lot of reviews to write, thanks to Bout of Books 16 🙂

My Top Commenter: Thank you to everyone who stopped by during Bout of Books or to cheer me on for #FitReaders 🙂

What are you reading this week?

Monday's Minutes

“Monday’s Minutes” is a weekly post in which I track my bookish life.  All book covers are linked to Goodreads unless otherwise noted.
Current Reads:

  • Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke
  • The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice – for the Never-Ending Anne Rice Reading Challenge.
  • The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente
  • Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty
  • The Fangirl Life by Kathleen Smith

InkdeathLestat Fairyland

Serafina Fangirl Life

Finished:

  • Mother Ocean, Daughter Sea by Diana Marcellas
  • Let’s Pretend this Never Happened by Jenny Lawson
  • Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
  • Emissary by Thomas Locke
  • Billy Lovecraft Saves the World by Billy Lovecraft

Mother Pretend Alice
Emissary Billy
DNF:

  • Escape From Netherworld by David Kuklis
  • Sadie Sugarspear and the Weeping Willow by Nicole Arlyn

Escape Sadie

Challenges:

Total pages read: 1285

Total # of books for the year: 25.  I’ve got a lot of reviews to write, thanks to Bout of Books 16 🙂
My Top Commenter: Thank you to everyone who stopped by during Bout of Books or to cheer me on for #FitReaders 🙂
What are you reading this week?

Bout of Books 16: Day 7 Progress and Wrap-Up

Bout of Books
The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week-long readathon that begins 12:01 am Monday, May 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are entirely optional. For all Bout of Books 16 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

 

The Boyfriend made breakfast and then we read together some more.  I finished Emissary by Thomas Locke, and Billy Lovecraft Saves the World by Billy Lovecraft.  Then I started Sadie Sugarspear and the Weeping Willow by Nicole Arlyn, but DNF’d it after a couple of chapters.  After I had walked off that bit of horribleness, hoping it wouldn’t give me nightmares, I didn’t feel like starting another book, so I went back to what I had been reading before Bout of Books started and picked up InkDeath by Cornelia Funke.   The Boyfriend finished The Gunslinger by Stephen King and started the second book in the series, The Drawing of the Three.
I did far better reading-wise than I thought I would.  Finishing five books in a week is something I haven’t done in a long time, and certainly not while also starting and DNFing two others.  I think this Bout of Books was just what I needed to knock out a large chunk of my ARCs and get back into hardcore reading mode 🙂  I look forward to Bout of Books 17 in August!
  • Total Time Read: 40 Hours and 7 Minutes
  • Total Pages Read: 1285
  • Books Finished: Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson, Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, Mother Ocean, Daughter Sea by Diana Marcellas, The Emissary by Thomas Locke, and Billy Lovecraft Saves the World by Billy Lovecraft.
  • Total Number of Books Read: 5

Bout of Books 16: Day 6 Progress

Bout of Books
The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week-long readathon that begins 12:01 am Monday, May 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are entirely optional. For all Bout of Books 16 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

 

Saturdays are even better than Fridays.  The Boyfriend and I decided to have our weekly date in the afternoon instead of the evening.  We went to get tacos for lunch and then went back home to read together 🙂  I DNF’d Escape From Netherworld by David Kuklis and got through most of Emissary by Thomas Locke.  The Boyfriend started reading the copy of The Gunslinger by Stephen King that I loaned him.  He read about half of it in one sitting.  That’s not typical for him, so it’s obvious he loves it, and that makes me very happy 🙂
  • Time Read: 10 Hours 15 Minutes
  • Pages Read: 330
  • Books Finished: Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson, Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, and Mother Ocean, Daughter Sea by Diana Marcellas.
  • Total Number of Books Read: 3

Bout of Books 16: Day 5 Progress

Bout of Books
The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week-long readathon that begins 12:01 am Monday, May 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are entirely optional. For all Bout of Books 16 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

 

Fridays are the best.  I finished Alice in Wonderland and Mother Ocean, Daughter Sea by Diana Marcellas.  I started Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty, The Fangirl Life by Kathleen Smith, and Escape From Netherworld by David Kuklis.
  • Time Read: 3 Hours 29 minutes
  • Pages Read: 60
  • Books Finished: Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson, Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, and Mother Ocean, Daughter Sea by Diana Marcellas.
  • Total Number of Books Read: 3

Bout of Books 16: Day 4 Progress

Bout of Books
The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week-long readathon that begins 12:01 am Monday, May 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are entirely optional. For all Bout of Books 16 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

 

I didn’t quite make it through Alice in Wonderland yesterday, but I will finish it today.  I’m also nearly done with Mother Ocean, Daughter Sea by Diana Marcellas.  Once I finish those, I plan to move on to Serafina and the Black Cloak by Beatty and Escape From Netherworld by David Kuklis.
  • Time Read: 4 Hours
  • Pages Read: 137
  • Books Finished: Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson
  • Total Number of Books Read: 1

#FitReaders Check-In

FitReaders2016
  • This check-in is for May 6th – 12th.
  • My weight is still holding steady.  While it’s great that I haven’t gained back any of the weight I’ve lost so far, it’s a little frustrating to have plateaued so early on.
  • This week, my goal was to average 7k steps per day.  Now that I go walking during my two 15 minute breaks and for half of my lunch break while I’m at work, my step goal is a breeze.  I’m still concerned about what will happen now that the temperature is starting to climb, but for now, I’m not having a problem getting enough exercise throughout the day.
  • If you’d like to add me as a friend on FitBit, you can find me HERE.
  • Steps: 49,554/49,000
  • Miles: 20.37/19.25
  • Flights of stairs: 138/70
  • Active Minutes: 245/210
  • Monthly 5K Races Completed: 1/10
  • Monthly 1 Mile Fun “Runs” Completed: 2/10
  • Total Money Donated: $16.84/$100.00

Bout of Books 16: Day 3 Progress

Bout of Books
The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week-long readathon that begins 12:01 am Monday, May 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are entirely optional. For all Bout of Books 16 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

 

I finished Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson, started Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.  I didn’t read anything after I got home from work, even though I had wanted to try finishing Mother Ocean, Daughter Sea by Diana Marcellas.  I just wasn’t feeling well and went to bed extra early.
  • Time Read: 1 Hour and 53 Minutes
  • Pages Read: 59
  • Books Finished: Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson
  • Total Number of Books Read: 1

Bout of Books 16: Day 2 Progress

Bout of Books
The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week-long readathon that begins 12:01 am Monday, May 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are entirely optional. For all Bout of Books 16 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. – From the Bout of Books team

 

Like Monday, I worked on getting through the same two books yesterday; Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson, and Mother Ocean, Daughter Sea by Diana Marcellas.  It was another good reading day, but I did fall asleep on the couch for about 30 minutes or so while I was reading.
  • Time Read: 3 Hours 38 Minutes
  • Pages Read: 114
  • Books Finished: Nothing yet
  • Total Number of Books Read: 0