Name: Dead Dad Jokes
ISBN: 9781943735938

Ollie Schminkey

Dead Dad Jokes is an unflinching take on family, loss and trauma. There is nothing quiet about Schminkey's debut. Every page is raw, honest and unforgettable. Dead Dad Jokes brings the impact of addiction into crisp focus while also shattering our simplistic TV preconceptions about it. Ollie never lets the reader slip into the easy sadness of cliche - instead they guide us through the realities and contradictions of losing someone you love and of death - reminding us that they need not be one and the same.

Dead Dad Jokes

Gabriel Noel 

ARC given by NetGalley for Honest Review

Ollie Schminkey weaves a macabre and raw picture of the honest truth about watching a loved one die. They masterfully make the "othering" feeling of hearing about death connect in an honest and thoughtful way.

Throughout the book they speak on putting aside one's own hang-ups when dealing with the death of an abuser, and how it feels to use their deadname and the wrong gender identity throughout the process. Grief and the grieving process is a large part of this collection of poems, it's intimate in a way that makes you feel part of the story without feeling intrusive. (That is until they start talking about the penis.) 

Overall I was highly impressed by the intensity and the bluntness towards death Schminkey captures and I'm hoping it will help others in similar situations.

Kaeli Wolf 

This book is definitely not for the weak of heart or injury. The author is descriptive, dark, and honest about the death of their father, as referenced in the title. I personally didn't hate or love it, but I think it is definitely something that needs to be out there for other people to read as well.

Dead Dad Jokes

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