Since I just posted “the Insidious Nature of Book Reviews” I thought I’d share a few of my favorite bad reviews of my books. To be honest, I don’t react to bad reviews in the way I portrayed in the comic. I understand that my work is rather specific and appeals to a certain audience. My humor and writing isn’t for everyone, and for that I’m grateful. How boring would it be if we all liked the same stuff? So over the years, I’ve gone from taking bad quips personally, to accepting them, and ultimately to reveling in them. My attitude towards negativity is most adequately summed up in this brief, veracious review: “Wertz doesn’t give a shit and neither do I.” -Carrie L.
So, on with the hate! These are some of my favorite from Goodreads: (all spelling/grammer errors included, and reviews are truncated.)
-At first glance the cartoons seem childish and poorly rendered but one realizes that the author is capable of more detailed drawings, like the cover, but is quite possibly too lazy to render them fully.
-Wertz is a sarcastic fat white girl semi-whining, semi-growling about a nerdy lame-ass white boy. Everyone has the same damn problems, I need to read the Bible. There’s also a weird cheese fetish in this book. I hate cheese.
-When I read it I kinda feel like I’m reading a hipster version of US Magazine, a tad dirty and indulgent. Maybe that’s just my own issue though.
-Look, I am as humorless as the next absolutely humorless lesbian feminist, so some of this stuff (like calling things “retarded;” HUMORLESS) rings a little sour for me.
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This book made me feel refreased and in a depressing state after that I took a dump. Star treck is the most awsome t.v show ever!!! It feel so good to read the book and be constopaded after words and then diarrhea. Thank you pepto bismo or what ever -FART OUT-!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
To be fair, most of those reviews went on to explain why they actually liked the books. However, this is not the case for Amazon reviews. Amazon has a program called Amazon Vine, in which prolific reviewers receive books they might not normally be inclined to read. I think it’s a counterproductive program as it causes unnecessary dissension, but at least it’s led to some pretty hilarious quips.
-You’re not supposed to read someone’s diary, right? Oh yes, it’s called journaling these days. Whatever… So, what is it about the author? She’s a mid twenty something whose only real skills are living on a pittance and drawing comics. Does one skill enable the other? I’m not sure why I liked this, but I read it through in one long sitting.
-First I must add that it took me a lot longer to read this than I had anticipated. It wasn’t my type of humor from the beginning to the end so that made it hard for me to get through. That being said it still wasn’t the worst book I’ve ever read, nor was it the best. This being the first graphic novel I’ve ever read left me wondering what the point of the illustrations were about halfway through. Personally I would have rather read this all in paragraph form, but I guess that wasn’t the point. I found a few parts funny but they just weren’t enough to make me look back upon the book and think that I would like to read it again.
-I really have no reason why I picked up this book, other than searching for some laughs. I am not of the demographic the author is aiming for, have very few life experiences that seem to over lap with her and have never read a graphic novel/memoir. That being said, I kinda enjoyed it!
-Now, at times I felt like putting the book down and saying, perhaps it’s time to pick up a sci fi novel, but somehow I returned to this troubled, disfunctional life that Julia lived and writes about… To call this a graphic novel is a misnomer. It is more of an illustrated blog. The art is atrocious. The ‘stories’ are vignettes, not standard GN fare. Insightful, no really. Intelligent, not really…Recommended? Only if you liked Fart Party. If not, consider it an investment in the maturation of an artist.
-Only in America could an alcoholic, whiney, self-sabotaging person with limited artistic skill write and illustrate a comic, oops, “graphic novel” about her pathetic and boring life in San Francisco and New York City/Brooklyn and become successful. Reading it almost drove me to drink. I only decided to review this book after reading the reviews of “The Fart Party” so I am certain that I will be in the minority and that my review will be highly criticized but I post it, anyway, in the hope that someone with tastes similar to mine will be dissuaded from wasting his or her time.
USA! USA! USA! ammiright or what?
{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }
fart out.
I enjoy the weird cheese fetish in your book.
How can someone hate cheese? Asshat.
I hate cheese, and love your book(s).
what's WRONG with me ?
Book sucks.
Make more.
"This book made me feel refreased and in a depressing state after that I took a dump. Star treck is the most awsome t.v show ever!!!"
-the hell?
I loved your book, so there.
Just finished DATM yesterday and now I'm wondering, if I missed a page or two? Can't remember any Star Tre(c)k in it? Probably I should read it again…
> being the first graphic novel I've ever read
Can you imagine DATM being the first graphic novel someone ever reads? LOLLERSKATES!!!
Look at it this way: the kinds of people who would hate your books are exactly the kinds of people they should be inflicted on!
Anyway, we love your books and want to give you a hug.
Also, who the ef hates cheese? That's just not right.
I believe this is a graphic memoir not a graphic novel :3?
But…you're not fat at all.
most of these things aren't true, that's why it's fuuuunny
book is book.
A tad dirty and indulgent is very high praise.
I don't care, I still liked it.
I loved the shit out of Drinking at the Movies. Who would've thought I could connect in a meaningful way with a simple drawing? Shitchyeah.
Hey, this is a great post. Way to keep a positive attitude. I posted a link to my blog. Keep up the good work.
“This being the first graphic novel I’ve ever read left me wondering what the point of the illustrations were about halfway through”
I can’t even begin to make any sense out of this. Who reads a comic while wondering what the point of the illustrations is? Have they never seen a comic before? Fucking grrrrr. I’m not sure why I’m so annoyed by this, it’s just so mindbogglingly stupid.
(I think your comics are great by the way.)
Oh, the hater-ade!
I am a vegan… I live vicariously through your “cheese fetish.”
Actually, no offense, but your life would be pretty boring in most other writers’ hands. I read “Drinking at the Movies” and my first thought was: “Julia spends most of this book wanting to be alone and drink whiskey, or actually being alone and drinking whiskey, and I still want to read it, rather than just sit alone and drink whiskey (which is not that hard to do).”
that’s actually a really great compliment, thank you! However, Drinking at the Movies isn’t a very accurate portrayal of my real life, only moments/days in it. A lot happened that year that was too messy/chaotic to put into the book, and because I was too chicken shit to put it in there. But I did indeed spend most my time wanting to or being alone and drinking whiskey so I’m glad I could at least make that entertaining for ya!
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