I am trying to get into different genres and styles of novels this year, from graphic novels and manga, to venturing into more nonfiction. I started off this year finishing Michelle Obama’s memoir, so I was on a bit of a memoir high if you will. So when I saw this was available to read, I was pretty stoked.

I’m not a big Instagram person myself, finding that comparing myself to celebrities can be very damaging for my self-esteem. Then my sister’s boyfriend showed me a post by Celeste Barber, where instead of feeling insecure by the posts these celebrities made, she chose to celebrate her own body and beauty by imitating these pictures. I quickly delved into her account and found that there is a way to be happy about yourself, without buying into all the falsehoods that celebrities try to sell you.

Barber’s writing style in her memoir is very reflective of her self-deprecating sense of humor that is ever present in her parody photos. Even some of the more serious moments in the book have a lightheartedness to it, capable only from someone who is very content with their lot in life. The chronology jumps around a bit, so this memoir reads very differently to what I am used to. The writing itself can be a bit too much at times, but the book isn’t too long that it becomes hard to bear.

I would recommend this book to anyone that wants something easy to fly through that’s funny and oddly inspirational at times. Who knew?

As someone completely unfamiliar with the author I found this book to be okay. Did I laugh? Yes, I did laugh at times. But also there were times were I felt like the author had given us TMI. Normally I read these type of books by celebrities I’m familiar with and enjoy. Needless to say I neither loved or hated this book.

This book was funny. There is no denying that. Ms. Barber has a great way of looking at life and getting you to laugh at it. We are #blessed to have her sense of humor. Although Ms. Barber says she doesn't blog, that is exactly how this book read. It was a series of essays about her life, mimicking the titling from Friends, and some of the crazy things that have gone on in it. Like real life nostalgia, there were inconsistencies in her story and if I were reading this as a straight and true memoir, I would question them. But this isn't really that. It is more like a sketch comedy or series of essays about the possibly craziness that surrounds all of us and how Ms. Barber as approached it to maintain her sanity. For me, reading this book cover to cover was a bit overkill. I think I would have appreciated it more had I read a chapter or two each day.

I came across Celeste Barber's Instagram page last year and started following her. I thought her parodies of pictures were a hoot and I liked her humour. To be honest, other than that, I didn't know who she was.

I saw that she is touring and will be in Toronto in a couple months so I bought tickets. If she is as funny in person as with her pictures, I figured it would be fun (looking forward to it!).

When I came across her book, I was interested because I assumed it would be funny ... and it was. Plus as I enjoy reading bios/autobios, it was a chance for me to learn more about her.

Celeste is an Australian actress, former dancer, writer and comedian. She is married to Api (#hothusband) and they have two children.

The book is full of stories about Celeste and her family ... including being bullied in school when she was young, dancing, friends that have passed away that she still holds dear, meeting and falling in love with her husband, having open heart surgery when she was 25, how she got in trouble at yoga, why she started her Instagram account and more. She feels that Friends is the "greatest show in the whole wide world" so each story title starts with "The One ...".

I liked the writing style and her humour definitely came through. As a head's up, she swears ... a lot (there are lots of F-bombs). Though the manner of her storytelling is amusing, her stories have a serious tone ... for example, about bulling and body image. I appreciated her honesty in discussing some difficult topics.

I wanted to read this book just for the name and then i saw the author was Celeste Barber. I follow her posts and i laughed a lot. I liked her writing style too. It was hilarious and real. I laughed a lot parts. It was a very fun read.

This book had me laughing out loud! I've followed Celeste on Instagram for.a while.now and am so glad I was able to read her book. She's super funny. This is a light and enjoyable read. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Fantastic read from a talented author. Thank you to the author and publisher for a chance to read and review.

I did enjoy this book. It wasn't what I was expecting, and knowing very little about Celeste (I feel on first names basis with her having read this) I very much enjoyed learning about her life. I particularly liked her straightforward approach to describing her experiences at school, her "me too"s and her thoughts on the videos she makes. It's a style that's accessible. My only criticism is that it is written for an American audience, I'd love to hear her thoughts on the UK in her next book.

Loved this book. I have followed Celeste on her Instagram for a long time now and was so looking forward to this book. I love that you can totally hear her personality and voice in the pages but it is also a more serious look into more aspects of her life than you would get on her instagram. She has that special ability to talk about important, scary and serious topics while still bringing her own touch of humour to it without being offensive. If you know her from instagram you’ll enjoy this book and if you don’t know her yet, well, then go follow her on Instagram and read this book ASAP!

I was not aware of Celeste prior to reading her book, but now I am a fan! She had me laughing time after time, and I could not wait to read the next story of her life.

I’m not always in the loop when it comes to pop culture these days (my head is always in a book or focused on my kid, so I miss a lot!). Having no idea who Celeste Barber was, I found the cover and description of her book interesting and thought I’d give it a go. Holy crap, I’m glad I did! The word choices and flow of her book had me trying to stifle my laughter so I wouldn’t wake up my sleeping 9-month-old. From calling a midwife “Fisty Brenda” to her explaining why she’s Insta-famous to a makeup artist, this book made me want to follow her and hear so much more.

Thank you to @NetGalley and 4th Estate for an advanced copy of this #ebook in exchange for an honest review!

This is a fun and funny memoir by that woman on Instagram who does the ridiculous model poses but in mom mode. Her photos have always cracked me up, but her writing style was not a good fit for me. However, if you love that coarse wit and the tell it like it is humor, then you're gonna love this.

Hilarious book. I love funny memoirs and this one did not disappoint in any way. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thanks to Netgalley for allowing me to read this arc early.

Seriously. Celeste is amazing. I’ve been. Folllwijg her on social media for a long time, and she’s absolutely hilarious. She’s modest, beautiful, and beyond funny. I was so excited for her book. It did not disappoint. If you’ve never heard of Celeste, find her on social media NOW. Buy her book, and read the shit out of it. ASAP. You’ll love it.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book. All opinions are my own.

I requested this book because I follow Celeste on instagram, and I think her satire photos are hilarious and her personality lifts my spirits. I was glad to see that personality throughout this entire book, and it lends some comedic relief during the parts that are a bit heavy. For instance, her very scientific jargon used when describing the heart surgery had me cracking up even though that wasn't a happy/funny part of her life. #hothusband and their story was very interesting as well, you see him on her instagram and stories but I didn't know anything about their relationship prior to this book. I didn't go a full 5-stars, because like with most middle-class white memoirs there just isn't a lot to relate to if you weren't someone brought up in type of household. I liked Celeste's voice throughout, and the pieces of her life that she did share all fit into the bigger picture of who she is, why she is famous enough for a memoir, and how she sort of thinks the whole instagram fame is silly.

I follow Celeste on Twitter she always seems hilarious warm real honest and that is exactly what she is like in this book so enjoyable a wonderful read..Celeste shares alll hides nothing her life exposed a wonderful read.# netgalley #amazonpublishing.

In the life of every social media celebrity, there comes a moment when someone finds it a great and original idea to have that celebrity put out an autobiography. If one is extremely lucky, the outcome is funny, witty, or at least interesting. Most of the time, luck has other places to be, and the reader is stuck with something that could best be described as "meh"

For quite a while, I was a fan of Celeste Barber's Facebook page, on which she regularly posts photos of herself spoofing outlandishly ridiculous photos of outlandishly photoshopped models in ridiculously outlandish poses. Of course, Ms. Barber looks nothing like an undernourished, photoshopped model, but she's doing this primarily for fun (often with the assistance of her husband, who is best known by his handle #hothusband), and that's why fans laugh with her and love her.

When the book was first announced, bearing the same title as the most famous hashtag on the page, #challengeaccepted, I was rather hoping to get a kind of "Best Of" collection of photos, perhaps some outtakes, perhaps some anecdotes. Instead, I got a collection of swearword-peppered, stream-of-consciousness stories that somehow apparently make up enough content to be sold as a biography these days.

Now, generally speaking, cussing doesn't disturb me much. One of my favorite cookbooks is Thug Kitchen, after all. I just think that overusing language like that is like those drawn-out car chases in movies: mainly filler.Ms. Barber opens with a reality-lit-type recollection of her son's birth*. I am one of those seemingly rare women who don't particularly care to be regaled with blood-and-goop-stained vignettes of childbirth. A couple of chapters later, we delve into Ms. Barber's school years. I don't really think it's funny or cool or inspirational to tell young people who might be reading this book that being bullied isn't a big deal, because, well, the author was able to laugh it off and now feels like a stronger person for it. And just in case some of that even later stuff in the book was brought forth by some subconscious pang of guilt about writing insensitive remarks like that, devoting an entire intermission to proclaiming how much you love the gay community doesn't vindicate anyone. Sorry.

It's a sign of our times that I feel it necessary to sidetrack to tell you that I am not implying that dedicating a chapter to your love of your friends and fans is somehow wrong. It is, like a lot of things in this book, unnecessary. Ms. Barber talks early on about one of her close friends who happens to be gay, and what she says about him should make her feelings clear to any but the dullest of readers. There, glad we're past that.

Anyway, the bullying incident really rubbed me the wrong way, and I very nearly decided not to finish the book at all. I did, though, and it wasn't complete rubbish. It also wasn't particularly funny, or witty, or inspiring, and I really don't see the point to it. Somehow it has an odd tang of being aimed directly and primarily at an American audience. What version do the Aussies get? Or do they already know everything there is to know about Celeste Barber?

My take on "Challenge Accepted!" is this: if you love Celeste Barber because of her self-deprecating humor and the way she casually skewers advertising, decide if you primarily do so because of her photos. If the answer is yes, this is a challenge you do not need to accept. But if you're curious about what goes on in the life of an Instagram celeb who is more like you than most, go for it.

"Challenge Accepted!" is published by Amazon Publishing. I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for a review, although I'm sure someone is regretting that decision right now. All opinions are, unless otherwise stated, my own.*if there is no such category as reality-lit, someone's been snoozing at the helm.

I absolutely love following Celeste Barber on Instragram. Her side by side comparisons of supermodels/celebrities make me laugh out loud. Her realistic images point out the ridiculousness of trying to compare yourself to the images we see all around us, on TV, movies, and online. I am so glad she has a platform for these reality checks and I always look forward to her posts.

I was excited to read her book, and I found it to be very funny at times. It reminded me a little bit of Caitlin Moran. She is relatable and her book was easy to read, even though she writes about some challenging topics at times. I hope she continues to express herself online, especially on Instagram!

*Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for an Advanced Readers Copy in exchange for this honest review*

I adore Celeste’s photos, but I could not seem to get into this book. I think it could have really used a good editor, because parts of it seemed choppy. I’m still very much a fan of hers, but this book didn’t quite work for me.

Thank you to the publisher and author for accepting my request to read this book through Netgalley!

SOOOOO funny! I've been following Celeste on Instagram for a while and jumped at the chance to read her bio/memoir (thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing)! I was worried that I would not view her in the same way, or worse yet, not like her any longer but that is not the case. I found a real person. Someone who is funny and has a unique view of her life that when expressed in her own voice, makes you laugh. Which, if I am not mistaken, is the whole point. Kudos Celeste!