I like Jenny's humor, and there are some REALLY amusing chapters in the book. However, many sections feel forced, like the author was trying too hard to be funny. Thoughts: Jenny (I pretend we cool like that in my mind) is my bestie... she just doesn’t know it. Now she’ll read that and think a) psycho who is “my biggest fan” and hide the sledgehammer or b)she hears this A LOT and smiles. I assure her it’s B (FYI I don’t own a sledgehammer. And I have 2 beagle rescues so ya’ know I’m trusty). I think many people FEEL Jenny Lawson - particularly those who suffer the same afflictions. Those who don’t - I’m gonna’ guess you haven’t traveled this path and pray you never do. In a serious vein, Jenny excoriates her insurance company, which avoids paying for her medication and treatments....a phenomenon that's probably familiar to much of the general public.

I highly recommend Lawson's books, but realize that for every story about lawn gerbils and boxes of penises there are stories about dark depression and pain. It's a balance that I think she handles well and we can all take something away from learning to find the lightness in every situation. Paradise is a tweener. It follows characters Ben, Chon, and O between the events of the two books in which their story is told. It's told in the same style as well which is fun. It's a damn good story, it's fun. It involves some characters from Bobby Z and Frankie Machine as well. I loved this story, but I feel like this one only works for people who have read The Winter of Frankie Machine. If you haven't, the end of this story--which is really good--would seem kind of out of left field. It makes perfect sense and you see it coming if you've read Machine though (which you should anyway).Paradise might take place in Hawaii, but it revisits everyone's favorite trio from Savages, Ben, Chon, and of course O (Ophelia). They are still in the game but trying to set up shop on the islands. And, don't be surprised if others make surprise appearances (but let that be a surprise). Winslow knows these characters well and it's a fantastic story. Some chapters surprised me with anxieties and odd decisions so very similar to mine. Finally, someone else who waffles between answering the door when the mail-carrier requires a signature or just ignoring it and driving to the post office on another day. Hoping to feel up to face-to-face communication in the future. Sunset is a look into the bail bondsman business. What Winslow does here though is he revisits some of his greatest hits of the past as he throws on the gnarly surfers of the Dawn Patrol and even an aging Neal Carey from several of Winslow's earlier novels. It's great to ride the waves with all these familiar characters. And as always, like I wrote above, her musings on anxiety and depression made my heart hurt but also strangely soothed me because it's comforting to know other people struggle too as messed up as that sounds. I enjoyed Broken much more than Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things, which I read years ago and considered too one-note. Broken had some of those elements and sections that felt draggy, and I'll admit that I even skimmed a few parts. However, the bright spots of the story overshadowed the less interesting sections.

apparently, because jenny lawson is the vaccine that will protect me against anything 2021 has in store is an acceptable response to the question "why are you requesting this book?" over on edelweiss.

Basically the secret to a long-lasting marriage is memory loss and well-meaning lies and beach margaritas. Number four features a character from Winslow’s novel Dawn Patrol, Boone Daniels,as well as several other characters, and a bail bondsman working on chasing a skip. And thank you for discussing your anxiety because it's good to have a buddy (an author you've met once) who also involuntarily tightens or shakes their hands when anxiety or sensory overload takes over and you realize you are not as unusual as you feel you are, although being unusual is also how you like it and would never want to be "normal." That's not to say that there aren't difficult parts. She has long been open about her health and mental health struggles and some of those chapters are incredibly painful. But...but...she always offers a bit of lightness and hope even in the midst of the darker days. Jenny's husband Victor has been one of my favorite parts about all of her books and blog entries. I love how she drives him completely nuts and he often seems frustrated or grumpy but in a funny way. Then suddenly you get these moments of sweetness from him that make me melt.

I decide to keep the broken dove even though I can already hear Victor in my head telling me that she’s too broken to save. I will nod and agree but I still won’t part with her. She will tell a story to people who will wonder what magic she must have if she’s still treasured even in this state. Like I’ve never heard that line a million times on cop shows and in novels. I think a good rule should be, if you’ve heard a line before, leave it out.Long-time fans of Winslow's work will recognize some familiar characters, most notably weed growers Ben, Chon and O, who first appeared in 2012 in The Kings of Cool. Here, in what the author describes as an "intermediate adventure," the three best friends are vacationing in Hawaii where they run into a battle with some local gangsters while attempting to expand their area of production. Jenny: Let's change "butt" to "buttonhole." Editor: Are you sure you want to do that? Jenny: Oops, that was autocorrect. I meant let's change "butt" to "butthole." There were a few sections about this book that were really good. I think her open letter to her insurance provider should be printed out and everyone should be made to read it (especially politicians and law-makers). I also liked the sections where she talks openly about mental health and chronic pain, because those are things that should be normalized, and the more people do that, the more natural it seems. The cringe compilation she got from her followers sharing some of their top embarrassing moments was also pretty great-- although in that section, the humor really wasn't hers. Bits and pieces of the writing in other sections wrenched a smile or a raised eyebrow but overall, this was a miss for me.