Graphic Novel Review- Alone Forever: The Singles Collection by Liz Prince!

Title: Alone Forever: The Singles Collection
Author: Liz Prince
Format: egalley
Pub. Date: February 5th 2014
Source: Netgalley & Top Shelf Productions


Book Description via Goodreads:

Liz Prince, author of the world's cutest relationship comic, Will You Still Love Me If I Wet the Bed?, returns with a new comic about being -- gasp! -- SINGLE. At last bringing her popular webcomic to printed form, Alone Forever explores the joys of flying solo, free to focus on what really matters: comics, punk rock, and cute boys with beards.

Drawn in Liz Prince's ultra-charming style, filled with self-deprecation and cats, there's something for everyone to relate to in this celebration of self-reliance in the age of OkCupid.

It's the perfect gift for any friend! …If you want that friend to immediately respond, "Wait, what are you saying?!"

Review:

★★★★

Oh Liz Prince. You never fail to make me laugh. I read her book Tomboy awhile back and I really enjoyed it, so when I saw Alone Forever I knew I needed it. I was right!

This collection of comics made me laugh out loud more than once. The beauty of Prince's work is that (at least for me) it is painfully relatable. I've done the whole internet dating scene and it's a scary and awkward place. I've internally battled myself in spurts of "I love being single!" versus "SOMEONE LOVE ME!" I'm not the smoothest person, socially, and I tend to be a bit on the awkward side. I'm also usually oblivious to flirtation.

Alone Forever is a great book for people who have done or relate to any of those things. Prince talks about them with a great sense of humor and honesty. I laughed, I said "awww" quietly to myself, and I read a few more than once because I loved them so much.

I recommend this book to anyone who has ever been single, fallen asleep among their cats, or has braved the depths of online dating. This is better suited for a more mature audience, as the language is not for little eyes and ears. This is a perfect gift for one of your girlfriends, or for yourself on Valentine's Day.

Thanks to Netgalley and Top Shelf Productions for my copy in exchange for my honest review.

Review: The Complete Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook: Dating & Sex

Title: The Complete Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook: Dating & Sex
Authors: David Borgenicht, Joshua Piven, Ben H. Winters
Format: Hardcover, 419 pages
Pub. Date: March 5th 2013
Source: Quirk Books

★★★★★

Four and a half stars, rounded up.

The Complete Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook: Dating & Sex is just as it sounds. This guide book is over 400 pages that cover the broadest possible range of topics that one in the dating game could use help with. Using both humor and fact, this handbook has an answer to any possible problem that could arise from the first date to marriage and beyond.

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This book, ya'll. Oh my god. It made me laugh out loud on more than one occasion, that's true. But I actually learned a lot more than I thought I would. I'll definitely be keeping this book on my shelf for when I have my own love crises in the future. (Not if, but when.)

+This survival handbook offers a lot of really useful advice, some of which I actually used today. This information includes (but is nowhere limited to) how to open a bottle if you have no bottle opener, how to heal/treat passion wounds like bites and scratches, how to unlock a pair of handcuffs if you lose the key, and how to move on from a break up. To those of you wondering, you can in fact use a deadbolt lock slip to open a bottle of tasty Samuel Adams seasonal brew, Octoberfest. I highly encourage only doing this in a dormitory where 21+ year olds are allowed to have alcohol, as I am. Yay college, and yay to the authors for solving a problem I didn't know I'd need to solve.

+This book also has heavy sprinklings of humor, such as how to date a vampire, strange animal mating habits, and even an "it's not you, it's me" form letter. This guide is peppered with illustrations to help the reader get the most out of the advice that's being given, whether serious or hilarious.

Honestly, this book is just one big treasure trove of information. Men and women alike can learn something from it, and even if you don't learn anything (unlikely), you'll at the very least get a laugh or two. If you ever find yourself confused by the action of your spouse or the opposite sex, unsure of how to call off a date, or even just want some tips on basic stain removal and wound treatment, this survival guide has something for you. This book does contain sex advice, but it's not explicit. I would totally recommend this.

Thanks so much to Quirk Books for my copy!