Samantha Irby

Staring down the barrel of her fortieth year, Samantha Irby is confronting the ways her life has changed since the days she could work a full 11 hour shift on 4 hours of sleep, change her shoes and put mascara on in the back of a moving cab and go from drinks to dinner to the club without a second thought. Recently, things are more 'Girls Gone Mild.' In Wow, No Thank You Irby discusses the actual nightmare of living in a rural idyll, weighs in on body negativity (loving yourself is a full-time job with shitty benefits) and poses the essential question: Sure sex is fun but have you ever googled a popular meme?

'Samantha Irby is the king of sparkling misanthropy and tender, loving dread.' Jia Tolentino

'A laugh. A fart. A snort. Or some combination thereof. Be prepared to totally lose control of the noises that come out of your body while reading the latest essay collection from humor writer Samantha Irby.' Bustle

'The only writer who can make me laugh with abandon in public... Her signature irreverence is intact, of course, but it can't mask the heart she leaves bleeding on the page.' Elle

'Samantha Irby is hilarious... Nothing is off limits and I love it.' Candice Carty-Williams

Essays

Wow, No Thank You

Ani Velasquez

Liyah 🤎

Enjoyed it but it was a little too self deprecating at times. I read it in abt two days while I was traveling so it was just a tidal wave of self put down jokes. Maybe if I’d read it more spaced out it would’ve have been so grating but nearing the end I found myself getting quite annoyed with it.

Ditipriya Acharya

This book made me laugh out loud in public. It’s a good thing my mask (Wear Masks, people!) hid my embarrassment from those around me because I had to explain to my mom that I was laughing at the author’s description of pooping on the street. So...

Lara Engle

Funny, gross, relateable (especially if you've ever been poor), this is worth a read. Honestly, it's the distraction I needed in the midst of the insanity that is our world right now.

Pandora Padfoot

Read it due to recommendations from Kara Brown and many others and didn't know anything about the content. It was so much fun!!! Please just read it and have fun. When she wrote about getting hair removal I couldn't breath from laughing too hard 😂😂

Irene Alegre

Wow, no thank you. Exactly my thoughts after reading the first 'essay'. Abandoned right away. Not for me.

Hello, 911? I am the first person at this party. 'Samantha Irby is the king of sparkling misanthropy and tender, loving dread.' Jia Tolentino Staring down the barrel of her fortieth year, Samantha Irby is confronting the ways her life has changed since the days she could work a full 11 hour shift on 4 hours of sleep, change her shoes and put mascara on in the back of a moving cab and go from drinks to dinner to the club without a second thought. Recently, things are more 'Girls Gone Mild.' In Wow, No Thank You Irby discusses the actual nightmare of living in a rural idyll, weighs in on body negativity (loving yourself is a full-time job with shitty benefits) and poses the essential question: Sure sex is fun but have you ever googled a popular meme? 'A laugh. A fart. A snort. Or some combination thereof. Be prepared to totally lose control of the noises that come out of your body while reading the latest essay collection from humor writer Samantha Irby.' Bustle 'The only writer who can make me laugh with abandon in public... Her signature irreverence is intact, of course, but it can't mask the heart she leaves bleeding on the page.' Elle 'Samantha Irby is hilarious... Nothing is off limits and I love it.' Candice Carty-Williams

The new book from the New York Times bestselling author

Wow, No Thank You.

Fraser Simons

Raunchy and candid. Some of the bits get a bit old, skipping ahead (sure, sex is good but have you____) for like more than 3 minutes is just really, really annoying and not at all funny anymore. There was another thing that was like that. But overall it’s insightful and endearing and pretty funny.

Cindy Lieberman

Unabashedly raw, honest, and funny. A box of mismatched socks and Lucky Charms marshmallows that manages to cover a wide range of topics from growing up poor, managing IBS (expect frequent use of the word diarrhea), pitching in Hollywood, parenting, making friends as an adult, how her books have not made her rich, and the like. Too much time describing her perfect playlist, but as a self-described procrastinator, she must have needed more pages quickly to meet her publisher’s deadline. Still, a fun listen, read by the author.

Sheila Masterson

Laughed out loud repeatedly throughout this book.

Suzy Dean

Laughed out loud for a few parts, but couldn’t fully relate. Lots of references to pooping in the street lol
I would like to meet her though
Overall, meh but with a little sparkle

Rose Stanley

Enjoyed this collection even more than the last one! 

Ms Irby has a real gift for taking mundane, depressing, or anxiety-inducing situations and finding a way to make you laugh while reading about them. Look forward to seeing what she does next.

Yoomi

I love the way she writes and observes the world. I love it so much I bought the audiobook and the physical copy because it’s even funnier when I hear her actual voice.

Christina M Masters

I read this book because Jenny Lawson told me to and when Jenny Lawson tells me to do something I typically do it because I know it is something that will bring me joy and happiness and I will most likely laugh and laugh and laugh. The blurb on the cover says it is spit-out-your beverage funny and this is often an adage I use when I am trying to tell someone how funny a book is. At one point Samantha Irby writes in her book, "Who wants this? Who needs this?" and I would argue that whether most people want it right now is inconsequential, but who needs this right now...I would say nearly everyone! This is a delightful, funny, truly spit your drink out all over your book, screen, phone, wherever you choose to read it, kind of funny. For a while, I thought that maybe Samantha Irby and I were the same person, because many of her thoughts are my thoughts except that her thoughts are packaged in a much funnier way than my thoughts ever could be. So, I highly recommend this for anyone who needs a laugh in this not so funny crazy nightmare we have found ourselves in.

Zoe Smolen

This was a me issue and not a book issue. Still want to read more from Irby.

Cindy

Funny, real, raw. Feels like indulging in a conversation with a friend, especially when no topic is ever too sacred for Sam.

Kelsey Holtaway

Devin Mainville

Damn. I can’t remember the last book that had me laughing the way Wow, No Thank You did. I mean, full throated cackling. Luckily, I read this in lockdown instead of out in the real world where I could be judged. Although, to be fair, if I was out in the world and saw someone snort laughing at a book my only judgement would be to go buy that book immediately, which is what I suggest you do with this book.

Samantha Irby’s voice is so strong and clear that even when she’s talking about completely personal experiences, it feels incredibly relatable. Her essays give voice to the types of thoughts most of us would never express, but it feels so incredibly gratifying that someone was able to and we get to laugh along with her.

Laura Dobie

Essays that resonated with me and made me laugh out loud.

Darice de Cuba

Samantha's third essay book is a balm to the soul in these surrealistic times. Now 40, married and settled in Michigan, Samantha writes about moving to a small town, homeownership, and the things becoming a published writer brought her. Like her time in LA writing for the new TV show Shrill or before that, trying to sell a TV show script/idea.

All in her traditional funny dark humor, holding none, baring it all. 

"Writing a television show is like hanging out with your friends in the same room every day, arguing about what should happen on a show you haven’t watched yet. After the first week, I waited for someone to show up and tell me, “Okay, hoe, it’s cute that you thought we were just gonna let you sit in a chair and get paid to think about imaginary people. Here’s your scrub brush, you remember where the toilets are, right?” And . . . I would do it. I would scrub those toilets. "

Bonus: Sam shares her recipe for cheeseburger macaroni.

Hello, 911? This takeout spot doesn’t have online ordering.


I got my copy from Netgalley in exchange for a review. And I already ordered a signed copy to be shipped to me all the way from Kalamazoo, Michigan to The Hague, Netherlands. Support writers and bookstores in these times, and order your copy from your local bookstore!

Wow, No Thank You Essays

Reviews