Real Artists Have Day Jobs

February 1, 2016
While comedian Benincasa hits some of the same subjects here as in her previous book, Agorafabulous!, the 52 essays in this collection span a wider range of more relatable topics, such asking for a raise, using meditation and mindfulness, being nice to old people (but challenging them if they have “racist, old-ass beliefs”), dealing with physical abuse, and decluttering your home. She writes breezily, eschewing ornate literary language in favor of a conversational tone. Geared toward young women in their 20s, the advice Benincasa offers is grounded in her own experiences, recounted with humor, and punctuated with moments of earnestness; as she explains in her introduction, “The most authentic insight comes from those who acknowledge their own shortcomings.” Benincasa’s central message is one of radical confidence and self-acceptance.

Raw and ribald advice for growing up.Curiously, Benincasa's (Agorafabulous!: Dispatches from My Bedroom, 2012, etc.) 52-essay sampler of empirically based life lessons begins with a disclaimer touting her unworthiness as an advice giver. But what sets the latest collection from this comic apart from the rest of the burgeoning Everywoman's self-help library is the soundness of the advice given. Amid some hilarious descriptors and a proclivity for unleashing expletives that makes Amy Schumer's potty mouth seem reserved, Benincasa provides solid tips for relationships, health, wellness, and employment, many of which will be helpful for millennials feeling the crunch of keeping pace with modern living. Where a physician might remind one of the importance of prioritizing sleep, the author promotes the idea with all the subtlety of a drill sergeant: "Burning the midnight oil is fun until you burn right the fuck out." Encouraging readers to embrace their individuality, no matter how embarrassing or nerdy, Benincasa offers courage on multiple fronts: "Consider the thing you really want to do that you have not yet done because you are afraid you would suck at it. Now go do it anyway." The author draws on her experience with anxiety and depression, offering a refreshingly frank look at the difficulties of coping with mental illness and its remedies; at one point, she dubs a panic attack "the exact inverse of an orgasm." Readers would be hard-pressed to mistake sex for intimacy after encountering her admonishment that, contrary to popular practice, "a vagina is not a time machine": "sex cannot take you back in time to a simpler era." Throughout the collection, Benincasa's graphic yet pithy reflections cater to the 140-character attention spans of the Twitter-sphere while effectively instilling much street-smart wisdom. Raunchy and unabashedly unapologetic, this is useful, take-no-prisoners humor. COPYRIGHT(1) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

March 15, 2016

Admitting that she is no expert at, well, anything, comedian Benincasa (Great; Agorafabulous!) transforms her hard-earned experiences into fun and sound advice. Fifty-two essays, one for each week of the year, add up to 12 months of inspiring self-help guidance on just about everything: sex, love, self-esteem, even flossing. The author's oddball wit crackles on the page, yet it is the way that she pairs humor with sincerity that ultimately wins her readers over. She has battled severe anxiety and depression for most of her life and is the first to acknowledge that there will be "Shit Days." By taking this honest stance, she reminds readers that they are not alone. Outspoken and matter of fact, Benincasa points self-deprecatingly to her own failures to emphasize just how important they are to living a full, happy, and meaningful life. It's hard to imagine an actual self-help book could be more inspirational. VERDICT Although most of these essays are a few, breezy pages in length, don't let the short form fool you--Benincasa's wisdom and humor will reverberate for days to come.--Meagan Lacy, Guttman Community Coll., CUNY

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