Category Archives: Non Fiction

Uganda Be Kidding Me
By: Chelsea Handler
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Published: March 4, 2014
Genre: Non-Fiction
Rating:

Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

Wherever Chelsea Handler travels, one thing is certain: she always ends up in the land of the ridiculous. Now, in this uproarious collection, she sneaks her sharp wit through airport security and delivers her most absurd and hilarious stories ever.

On safari in Africa, it’s anyone’s guess as to what’s more dangerous: the wildlife or Chelsea. But whether she’s fumbling the seduction of a guide by not knowing where tigers live (Asia, duh) or wearing a bathrobe into the bush because her clothes stopped fitting seven margaritas ago, she’s always game for the next misadventure.

The situation gets down and dirty as she defiles a kayak in the Bahamas, and outright sweaty as she escapes from a German hospital on crutches. When things get truly scary, like finding herself stuck next to a passenger with bad breath, she knows she can rely on her family to make matters even worse. Thank goodness she has the devoted Chunk by her side-except for the time she loses him in Telluride.

Complete with answers to the most frequently asked traveler’s questions, hot travel trips, and travel etiquette, none of which should be believed, UGANDA BE KIDDING ME has Chelsea taking on the world, one laugh-out-loud incident at a time.

This is a quick and easy read about Chelsea’s travels. She takes us through the various places she’s traveled, the friends who accompanied her and the insanity that ensued.

I think the most interesting part of the book was her story about Africa. It was entertaining to read about their safari adventures as well as the difference between the different “camps” they stayed at. Not to mention the interesting characters that they came across while in Africa. For some reason I just gravitated towards this story more than the others. Not saying that the others weren’t entertaining to read but the Africa trip really took the cake with this one which left the other trips falling a bit flat for me.

This is the second book that I’ve read of Handler’s and I have to say that they all have the same feel to them. The writing style is the same and Chelsea always comes off sounding a little out of control. Instead of relaying information, it always sounds like she’s fabricating things to make it more interesting and funny. Or maybe she really is as obnoxiously out of control as the book says. I will be honest that if that’s the case, I feel bad for some of the people that she comes across in this book.

Those who enjoyed her previous books would probably like traveling the world through Chelsea’s eyes. However, if you are looking for a halfway civilized documentary about traveling with some humor mixed in then this is not for you. After all, we are talking about someone who likes talking with a stereotypical Asian accent, drinks heavily, and doesn’t take life seriously at all. In the end, this was a quick light read that was entertaining while it lasted.

“Why are babies allowed to cry when they wake up, but adults crying when they wake is frowned upon? Babies are permitted to act like assholes whenever they feel like it and no one blinks, but if an adult throws a temper tantrum, all of a sudden it’s on YouTube.”

Normal Gets You Nowhere
By: Kelly Cutrone, Meredith Bryan
Publisher: HarperOne
Published: May 3, 2011
Genre: Non Fiction
Rating:

Goodreads
Amazon
Barnes & Noble

nor-mal: according with, constituting, or not deviating from a norm, rule or principle / conforming to a type, standard, or regular pattern / of, relating to, or characterized by average intelligence or development

Normal?
Who wants to be that?

When Kelly Cutrone’s first book, If You Have to Cry, Go Outside, was first published, young people flocked to this new voice—finally, someone was telling it like it is, in language they spoke. It quickly became a New York Times bestseller, and fashion publicist Kelly Cutrone became more than a personality, she became a beloved guru, mentor, and fairy godmother.

Now she’s back with another no-holds-barred book to awaken our souls and kick our asses into gear. With Normal Gets You Nowhere, she invites us to get our freak on. History is full of successful, world-changing people who did not fit in. Think Nelson Mandela, Joan of Arc, Eleanor Roosevelt, Amelia Earhart, John Lennon, and Rosa Parks. Instead of changing themselves to accommodate the status quo or what others thought they should be, these people hung a light on their differences—and changed humanity in the process.

“I know you don’t feel normal, so why are you trying to act it and prove to everyone you are?” Cutrone says. So much of what we say or don’t say, and what we do or don’t do, is dictated by what others have told us, or what people may think of us. This is not how we should be living, by measuring ourselves against the mundane.

An invitation to rethink who you are, what you value, and what you want from life, Normal Gets You Nowhere goes beyond how to reinvent yourself and create your own brand, and investigates what it means to live in this world as a tuned-in, caring individual with a passion for making a difference. There’s already an army of super talented uberfreaks changing the world–isn’t it time you joined it time you joined them?

Read More →