The style of humor just didn't appeal to me. Felt pretentious and immature. Although I did enjoy the overall look of the book.

Just wasn't for me. Too... I don't know. I really wished that I liked this.

This one is funny for a specific type of person, not exactly my closed ones but at least but for me, some parts wor really well.
I enjoy the images, were kind of stranger but pretty

Whenever I sit down to write a review I read what others have thought of it. I was shocked that many people considered it over the top. It is supposed to be over the top, it is a satirizing look at issues that affect women (at least some women) in the 21st century. Having said that, it was an infuriating read because I could easily picture these words coming out of a myriad of reality tv stars and that makes this even sadder.

My full review can be found on my Goodreads and blog: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2067045436
https://bookspoils.wordpress.com/2017/10/07/review-literally-me-by-julie-houts/

We live in a world where everyone can become "famous" in a matter of mere moments. Houts has a devote following on Instagram where she is considered "Instagram's favorite illustrator". To me, this collection of dark and satirical illustrated essays ran like a stream of entertaining consciousness best enjoyed while just a touch stoned. Would I buy this book as a gift for someone else? Probably not. Would I recommend following Houts on Instagram for entertainment value? Absolutely, and already have (she's jooleeloren on Instagram).

My favorite from the book: "How To Be A Perfect Feminist", though the adventures of the four women of the Apocalypse were pretty great, too.

I give it a 3.5 outta 5. There was two stories I skipped because the writing scribbles were a bit difficult to read. But it definitely gave me some insights in to how women function, I always thought it was funny how women go so high-pitched when they greet each other and was always curious as to if they even knew how they were behaving...it turns out they're very aware and are playing sick social games where the high-pitchyness is like a sonar ping type tool. A lot of the stories seemed to ridicule the same sort of vapid self-centred woman in passive aggressive tones, possibly to vent the author's frustration at "basic bitches" (not my words, quoted from Ronda Rousey), but it was done humourously and I think we all know the type and therefore I think these stories are something we can all enjoy

Well this was an interesting book. Some parts were really funny, but some were just strange. 

I really enjoyed the journey to Coachella. Four girls meet in an Uber Pool. They're the most unlikely people to see together and they don't get along. Let's just say, the car ride ends in pee in the backseat. 

The pictures were very unique. I liked the way they were filled in with water colours. Some of the illustrations told an entire story. There was also an unusual mouse that appeared multiple times. 

This book was original and unconventional. At times I didn't know what was going on, but some of the stories were very funny.

Took a chance on this one. While I enjoyed the art style and it had some weird but fun bits it just wasn't enjoyable as a whole. Not sure whom I'd feel this should be recommended for but I'm most definitely not it.

*thank you to NetGalley and Touchstone for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

1.5 stars.
I have no background history of this author so I wasnt sure what to expect, but I just didnt get into it. I got bored with most of it but the images...well I did like the style, which has earned this an extra half star. Unfortunately I wouldnt recommend this.

I honestly just don't know what to think of this book. I think part of it is that I don't really have any context for it. Apparently the author is Instagram famous and an illustrator but I don't have an instagram and I'd never heard of her before seeing this title. Because of this it was a little bit difficult for me to figure out in places exactly how ...self-aware she was being I guess. And I'm still not really sure, but I laughed out loud a lot while reading this so I'd definitely put it in the win column and actually bumped my rating from 3 to 4 stars after thinking about it overnight.

The format of the book is a few longer prose pieces with lots of illustrations and webcomics in between them. The first story threw me off a little bit because like I said, I wasn't sure how seriously I was supposed to be taking it, but it was soon very clear that the entire thing was heavy satire. And by the time someone peed on a Bible in the second story I absolutely lost it.

And the whole thing is basically that level of ridiculousness, but it's also got a lot of great social commentary. I don't even know, it's definitely unlike anything I've read before. I mean there's a 30+ page criticism of consumerism from the point of view of a ficus. It's either pure genius or the most pretentious thing ever, but either way it's a trip and I had a lot of fun reading it. This isn't going to be for everyone but if it looks interesting and you like slightly surreal humor and social commentary I would give it a try.

There were a few pages I enjoyed and I was engrossed in the horribly brutal intro story of a bride that pushed herself too far in her preparations but mostly I didn't really connect with anything in this collection of illustrations. I've never seen this author's work before but it seems to be inspired by those high profile magazines with the perfect Vogue runway model on the streets of New York with the skinny, sharp women with long, luscious hair. I enjoyed some of her other odd illustrations of the animals too and her story of her older sister tormenting her with wet socks that she called "sock juice" will be something that particularly stays in my mind when I think of this book. Overall, it just wasn't my style and I'd say the typical young, Instagram famous star would enjoy this type of work but then again I think it's too satirical for them too because it manages to seem to be catered towards that type but also using that type to make fun of them so I'm not really sure who this book would be well aimed to.

This book is bad. It's not entertaining. It fails in its attempts at satire. The art is really nice, but that doesn't make up for how bad the rest of it is.

Format: protected PDF
Tissue warning: only if you cry when you laugh out loud
HEA: not that kind of book
Triggers:
My reviewer rating: 3 out of 5
Recommend read: Yes
Published: October 24, 2017

Thank you to Netgalley and the author, Julie Houts, for the free PDF of Literally Me. I've read a few comic-esque graphic novel types, but this one takes the cake. It's so ADD that a few times I had no idea what I was reading.

That being said, it was eye-opening and the pictures are the best part.

A funny, often dark fictional look into the other side of Instagram and the social media landscapes where underfed and overdressed young women desperately try to curate a picture-perfect life. Definitely a book that captures a certain element of the zeitgeist, but may go over the head of anyone who doesn't have a deep interest in or experience with social media-influencer culture. The watercolor illustrations are reminiscent of fashion sketches but with a sinister edge, which adds a nice extra dimension to the stories.

She's talented and made me laugh in some parts. I can't relate completely to this material, but it's good.

Interesting dip into the head of someone who isn't me.

Literally Me is a hodgepodge of cute illustrations and seemingly random life observations by a slightly famous instagrammer. Four Horsewomen of the apocalypse is the best story as it has a plot with a surprisingly religious twist on fame. Another good story was about a ficus having an existential crisis. The worst was Assimilation Code. It was like reading the most boring Computer Science textbook and appeared to have absolutely no point. The author seemingly has an obsession with tube socks, which is unusual for a female but fully explained in Sock Juice. Sock Juice is a possibly true story of the author's early relationship with her older sister.

Literally Me has such a variety of content that most readers, like me, will find stories to love, to like and to hate within it. The illustrations will appeal to all. However, it is hard to rate so 3 stars seems fair.

Thanks to the publisher, Touchstone, and netgalley for an advanced review copy. This book will be released on October 24, 2017.

In my head, I think that I imagined this graphic novel being a little different. I was not able to relate to the experiences that Houts' images proclaimed. There were a few ideas that I could relate to, like the way that one analyzes the room for interaction and how to rate the approach-ability of one group over another. There were portions that I found funny--but overall I felt a little confused.

I could imagine that followers of Houts would have better reviews!

Literally Me is based on Julie Houts' Instagram illustrations. Including drawings, essays and shorty stories, Houts takes a tongue in cheek look at the life of women.
The best part of the book is the sumptuous comic-esque drawings showing off her creative flair and dry wit. The most memorable include a series on Kylie Jenner giving a sardonic look at women's fashion and trends.
My least favorite part was the prose. Houts goes over the top to poke fun at the latest fads and while I appreciate the sentiment (trust me; I'm with her on the colonics), I don't particularly like the writing style.
Fun and sometimes poignant, Literally Me outs it all out there and will win the hearts of many women.

I'm a little confused. While parts of this book left me smiling and laughing, other parts left me a little bored and others left me with the phrase 'What am I reading?' Playing on repeat in my head. Simply put this book was a little bizarre but in a sort of a good way.
I enjoyed parts but not thought of it for me to think this was a great book. For me, it was just ok.