‘Ortberg’s playful takes on pop culture as he explores everything from House Hunters to Golden Girls to Lord Byron, Lacan, and Rilke … Ortberg’s writing is vulnerable but confident, specific but never narrow, literal and lyrical. The author is refreshingly unafraid of his own uncertainty, but he’s always definitive where it counts … You'll laugh, you'll cry, often both at once. Everyone should read this extraordinary book.’ STARRED REVIEW

Kirkus Reviews

‘[A] a hybrid of incisive cultural criticism and heartfelt rumination on transitioning and queer identity.’

Erin Keane, Ashlie D. Stevens, and Hanh Nguyen , Salon

‘Daniel Mallory Ortberg’s Something That May Shock And Discredit You is three eloquent books in one: memoir, essay collection, and treasure trove of cultural analysis, all coming in under 250 pages. Ortberg is as nimble a storyteller as they come, so the shifts from painful personal revelations to pithy observations about Lord Byron turn on a dime while still mostly feeling part of the same whole … The details are all Ortberg, as is the ability to turn eschatology into something more accessible and less judgmental.’

Danette Chavez , The A.V Club

‘[Ortberg] puts his dazzling wit and humour on display in a ‘memoir-adjacent’ collection of essays that touches on topics as wide-ranging as Lord Byron, the Bible and House Hunters in his exploration of self as a transgender man.’

Barbara VanDenburgh , USA Today

‘The ‘Dear Prudence’ columnist and expert culture commentator returns with his sharpest, wittiest collection yet, a survey of pop culture ranging from scathing to plain weird.’

David Canfield , Entertainment Weekly