Author Allie Brosh
In 2013 Allie Brosh published "Hyperbole and a Half", an assemblage of humorous and touching snippets about her life, rendered as cartoon drawings with captions and anecdotes. The following years were challenging for Brosh, but she continued drawing and writing, and the result is this follow-up book, which - though still funny - tackles some difficult issues.
In "Solutions and Other Problems", Allie writes about trapping herself in a bucket as a toddler;
having a five-year-old stalker;
horse poop appearing in her childhood home;
teaching tricks to animals;
buying bananas;
her struggle with cancer;
her sister's suicide;
her dimwitted/sneaky/manipulative dogs;
obstreperous technology;
a hammer-happy neighbor;
her cat's favorite toy mouse; and much more.
Since it's always great to have a laugh, here a few examples of Brosh's amusing tales.
When Allie was 3-years-old she became curious about her next door neighbor, a fortyish bachelor named Richard. Being a clever tyke Allie found a way to crawl out of the dog door of her home and creep into the cat door of Richard's house.
The youngster proceeded to skulk around Richard's house and occasionally watch him sleep. Little Allie would also abscond with some of Richard's things - a shoe, a spoon, a spatula, etc. - and hide them in her dresser drawer.
Allie's parents noticed that the child disappeared sometimes, and when they asked where she was, Allie said she'd been "hanging out with Richard." Horrified by visions of a child predator, Allie's folks confronted the neighbor, who claimed to have no idea what they were talking about. Allie was 'outed' when she hid Richard's live cat in her drawer.
*****
Brosh's family had a big brown hairy dog, called the pile dog, that contracted end-stage liver disease.
A symptom of this illness is water retention, and the dog developed a hugely distended abdomen. When summer arrived Brosh had to shave the dog's swollen tummy, but put a sweater on her for heat retention.
A broken air conditioner required the services of a repairman, who kept staring and staring at the pile dog.....and finally asked what kind of animal it was.
Brosh writes, "You don't even ask that question if you have any guesses - any guesses at all. Absolutely nobody wants to seem the sort of fool who can't tell the difference between a goat and a pony. If there's a chance it's an animal you've heard of, it isn't worth it.
Allie speculates the serviceman was thinking, 'Is it an illegal monster from outer space living with you here?' The family told him it was a dog, but Brosh doesn't think he believed them.
*****
Brosh's childhood diary is full of training plans, like plans to perform real magic; plans to teach her dog to read; plans to become a wolf; plans to teach her friend to draw faster and better; and more.
When Allie was six, she thought she'd discovered the secret to breathing underwater. The idea was to get a balloon, blow into it - so it's filled with air - and then breathe back and forth into it forever. Unfortunately, it didn't work.
*****
One of Brosh's most poignant chapters deals with helping 'ugly' children feel better about themselves. You can relate the story of The Ugly Duckling - about an unattractive baby bird that grows up to be a gorgeous swan.....
.....but the children might stay ugly.
You can talk about Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, whose 'disability' helped Santa on a foggy night.
Or you can tell the kids about the ugliest frog in the world.
"Once upon a time there was an ugly frog. And the world isn't fair, so it didn't grow up to be pretty or successful - it just stayed how it was.
Then one foggy Christmas Eve, the frog realized that everything is equally ridiculous. And it went sledding, because why not."
*****
The book is filled with stories, observations, and anecdotes, ranging from the bittersweet to the hilarious. Highly recommended.
Rating: 4 stars
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