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howlinglibraries 's review for:
Furiously Happy: A Funny Book about Horrible Things
by Jenny Lawson
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Like my grandmother always said, “Your opinions are valid and important. Unless it’s some stupid bullshit you’re being shitty about, in which case you can just go fuck yourself.”
I genuinely don't have words for how much I adored this book, or how grateful I am to have finally read it. I've been meaning to pick it up for years, and finally did after making a deal with my mother (she would read Finlay Donovan Is Killing It if I would read this — we've both been very happy with this deal's outcomes), and honestly, Mom, thank you for harassing me endlessly to read this. You were right. I loved every single page.
Without the dark there isn’t light. Without the pain there is no relief. And I remind myself that I’m lucky to be able to feel such great sorrow, and also such great happiness. I can grab on to each moment of joy and live in those moments because I have seen the bright contrast from dark to light and back again. I am privileged to be able to recognize that the sound of laughter is a blessing and a song, and to realize that the bright hours spent with my family and friends are extraordinary treasures to be saved, because those same moments are a medicine, a balm. Those moments are a promise that life is worth fighting for, and that promise is what pulls me through when depression distorts reality and tries to convince me otherwise.
I don't think any book has ever made me laugh so hard, but I also don't think any book I've ever read has captured mental illness and chronic illness/pain so well. There were chapters in this book that hit me so hard, I had to pause my audiobook and go do something else for a while to give myself a chance to recover, because there's something painful in the best way about listening to someone say all the things you never quite have the words for, like how unfair it is that depression is a chronic illness nobody ever congratulates you for surviving, or how bullshit it is that our society treats mental health medications with so much hostility and skepticism despite the fact that we would never look down on someone for taking medications for, say, migraines, or arthritis, or cancer. I could rant for a long time, but honestly, just read this book, because Jenny says it all so much more eloquently than I could.
“Surprise, motherfucker, there's a dead raccoon in your bed and he wants a snugglin'!”
But alongside all of the heavy topics, this book is just a damn delight from start to finish. Maybe part of it is because Jenny reminds me so much of myself in the ways she looks at the world and how her thought processes work (ADHD brains unite!), but I laughed until I cried at least three times, and two of those times were probably related to her incredible taxidermy animal stories.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go grab audio copies of her other books... and maybe look into pricing a taxidermy raccoon.
✨ Representation: Jenny has ADHD, multiple physical conditions (including rheumatoid arthritis), and multiple mental illnesses (including but not limited to depression, anxiety, avoidant personality disorder, OCD, trichotillomania, suicidal ideation, and self-harm)