Fun read! Solid 4

lovely humorous read - ponderings on modern life that make me think and smile

I would like to read
a full length novel by Gay
'cause this was too short.

I received a digital ARC of this from NetGalley.

I'm not a fan of sports writing, and I hadn't heard of Jason Gay beforehand, but the existing glowing reviews along with the description enticed me. Know that you too can appreciate Little Victories without caring about sports or the author's other work.

Gay offers advice that is useful, straight-forward, and funny. You'll learn about his family, some of his previous jobs, his fashion sense, and his opinion on a variety of topics. By the time I finished these stories and bullet points of tips and suggestions, I fully bought into the idea that we should celebrate the little victories in life. Sometimes it's good enough that I boiled water and served Costco ravioli with jarred sauce to my family, and if that's a victory at the time, I'm taking it.

I smiled, I took some advice to heart, I chuckled, I nodded, and at the end, I even teared up a bit. I'm pleased that NetGalley provided me the opportunity to read a title before deciding whether or not to purchase it for the library where I work. Most of the time I rely on editorial reviews as well as Amazon reviews to help me decide what to buy. Happily, this will be making its way to my local library's shelves shortly after release.

I don't know what I was expecting when I checked "Little Victories" out from the library, but it was a perfectly lighthearted read that I needed. There were many times reading that I laughed and cried simultaneously. Definitely worth the read. "If you do not want your kid to eat oreos for a midnight snack, do not give your kid a grandparent." Just one of the gems from Jason Gay.

Fun story-- one of my dear friends basically threw this book at me in a used bookstore and forced me to buy it. She thought it was a self-help book that would cure my perfectionism. It is not that. It is a memoir. And it's a dang good memoir too-- poignant and so, so funny. Gay's turns of phrase are some of the greatest bits of writing I've seen in a while, and he has pretty solid advice in here too. It's a fun read that tugs at your heartstrings. It reminds you of how beautiful and chaotic and unpredictable life is.

I would definitely recommend the audiobook. It is read by the author and his inflections and examples made the book laugh out loud funny.

Foreword:
I listened to the audiobook narrated by the author himself.

Review:
A Gate-keeping and judgmental reflection of someone’s life who seems not to be happy at all. The author seems jaded and cynical and likes to insult others because they don’t align with what he wants and expects them to be.

This book has no rules, no point, and no useful or trustworthy source. This was a painful listen.