Rating: 
Summary: Blows other chick lit out of the water
Review: I found the book on the new paperback section and was immediately taken with the cute cover and catchy title. I got home and cracked it open meaning to just sample a few pages before dinner. But at 1am I finished, neck sore, hungry, and the dog unwalked. I'm not a big fan of chick lit. It seems to me that the market has been saturated to the point of brain freeze -- seeing all those similarly-covered books. But Why Girls Are Weird rises far above. Mostly for two reasons that I can figure out.1 -- The narrative voice of Anna K. is not the whiny simpering heroine of most. Sure she has man trouble and body issues, but hers is the voice of the smart girl. The girl who doesn't necessarily wholeheartedly embrace part and parcle the girlishness being a girl, but still remains firmly feminine. She is what I would want my daughter to be. Thoughtful and introspective, even when girly or man-crazy. 2 -- Ribon is funny. She has funny-chops the likes of which I haven't come across in a while. I discovered her website after reading the book and am very glad to have more of her to read. Ribon should be taking the SNL or Friends writing room by storm and kicking out the hacks, if there is any justice in the world for funny women. Why Girls Are Weird will make you feel cuddly and empowered at the same time. And that's a rare feat.
Rating: 
Summary: Good light read for the summer
Review: Another book that falls into the "chick-lit" category that is increasingly becoming popular. While I am not a usual fan of chick-lit, I read this novel because I am familiar with the author's website. In some ways, that may not have helped. Since some parts seem recognizable from the site, at times I felt I had already read this book. While you get an understanding of the character of Anna, other characters were not fully developed. Still, the author does have a talent for writing and this novel is better than a lot of what has come out recently. A good first book for the author, and I look forward to seeing more.
Rating:
Summary: Classic Pamie
Review: As a fan of Pamela Ribbon's website for years (My sister found it, and held my eyeballs open in front of the computer monitor while screaming, "THIS EXPLAINS SO MUCH!" over and over...), I was excited when she announced that she was releasing her first book. Then we waited. And we waited some more. We read Pamie's weblog entries about fretting about the book. My sister pre-ordered the book. And then she waited for the UPS guy to arrive. And then she devoured it. We'd gotten Harry Potter in the mail at the same time. It actually took precedence over Harry Potter. Take that, J. K. Rowling! And now I'm most of the way through it. It's terrific. My neighbors must think I'm strange -- here's this college-aged guy sitting out on this balcony in the middle of downtown, reading a book entitled "Why Girls are Weird" -- and laughing like a hyena. And not just any hyena. The Hyena that all other hyenas try to laugh like. The ur-Hyena. It's that good. In a style that mixes her weblog (or 'blog') writings with narrative from life and friends, Pamie explores the life of modern, internet-connected twenty-somethings as Anna K. Anna has split her personalities - She's one person on the web, with a boyfriend, a slightly different family, and slightly different friends. In reality, she struggling with her continuing mental entanglement with her ex, disenchantment with her job and her life, and a wall of color-coded sticky notes that she uses to keep track of the stories of her alternate personality. The entertaining portions of the book begin when she gets to know some of her fans, who have met her through her stories and writings. Things get really twisted up when she, for all intents and purposes, starts a long-distance relationship with one of her fans. But she's still not over her ex. And who can do a long-distance relationship via email anyway? Hilarity ensues. Of course, knowing Pamie, the other question *I* have is -- how much of this is true?!!
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful read..
Review: In the world of online journals AnnaK becomes an overnight celebrity through her somewhat fictitious life. This book is loosely based off the author's own online journal and is a fascinating peek into the world of a woman in her 20s view on love, life, and friendship. I throughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. I look forward to more work from Pamela Ribon and so should you.
Rating:
Summary: Good chick-lit
Review: With work a bloody bore, twenty nothing Anna Koval teaches herself how to use HTML. She begins writing a journal about slut Barbies, her last relationship with her former boyfriend Ian that seems so ancient times in retrospect, and other tales under the byline of Anna K. Feeling no one but her pal would ever peruse her mumbo jumbo hyperbole autobiographic stew, Anna still plugs away at her stories everyday at work. Her keyboard never stops clicking so that peers and management believe she is the hardest worker in the firm. To Anna's shock, she soon receives email as she has begun to have a fan base. One particular person wants to get to know her better. Anna fears he will reject the real Koval as not being on a par with the mythical Anna K even if LDobler sounds like he is falling in love with Anna as she herself wonders will the real Anna please stand up. WHY GIRLS ARE WEIRD is chick lit novel meets the information age as the amusing heroine bares her soul to the world, but wonders whose life is surfacing. The journal entries enable the audience to see up front and personal the essence of Anna to the nth degree while the email from her fans especially LDobler provides the means for the reader to comprehend his motives and desires. Readers will enjoy this often amusing, somewhat serious look at how women are becoming weirdly wired. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: Utterly brilliant. Fun, real -- a great read.
Review: Having been a fan of the author's website for a few years, I was very familiar with her voice going into this book. I was even worried that I wouldn't like the formatting, having gotten used to a column-esque type feel in her daily journal entries. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I loved the book beyond all explanation (it was a great mix of the feel of the website and a narrative). I only put it down once, to go to bed, and even then I laid awake for awhile wondering what was going to happen to each character in the book. The thing I liked the best was how real the book seemed. If you have any familiarity with the internet at all, you'll understand. The characters seemed like real people you could relate to, their situations as well, and you cared about them throughout everything. Why Girls Are Weird is extremely hilarious, without sacrificing the bulk of the story just to crack a joke or two. I often found myself laughing out loud, and I would recommend highly that you read this book so that you can too.
Rating:
Summary: The bit about Barbies alone is worth the cover price
Review: A few months ago I discovered the author's web site, and on a whim bought the book. The chapter on how six-year-old girls *really* play with Barbies is reason alone to read it. Her writing style is very accessible, making this 300-page book a fast read. The story itself is entertaining, touching, funny, and true; there were so many moments I went, "I do that! I know that! I thought I was the only person who ever !" Perhaps that is why people who follow online journals feel like we "know" the people writing them, since they write about everyday stuff and we eagerly identify. The more interesting parts are the protagonist Anna's thoughts on the web journaling phenomenon: why people do it; how much of what's written in online journals is true; just how much of her life should be accesible to her readers; and where to draw the boundaries between a person's on-line and off-line lives. An entertaining read, and the chapters are short so it's a good book for people who can only read a few pages in one sitting. (I have friends with kids and businesses to run, so this factor is important when choosing books.)
Rating:
Summary: Go ahead- laugh out loud
Review: Pamela Ribon's journey into getting over a boyfriend and moving on in life is rich with truth and laughter. This is a great read for women to relate to and men to learn from. Pamie.com fans will find that their money is well spent.
Rating:
Summary: This book got me into trouble...
Review: I loved this book. Pamela Ribon has created a painfully real and thoroughly likeable protagonist. When I finished reading, I wanted to call this fictional character up and ask her to hang out. She's Bridget Jones, Carrie Bradshaw and Wifey all wrapped up in one wry package. Rarely has a piece of fiction made me cry and laugh on the same page. And rarely has the reading of such fiction caused me to skip work and miss breakfast. No bacon and eggs for me, I devoured this book instead. Bravo, Ms. Ribon. I look forward to dessert.
Rating: 
Summary: I laughed my bottom off!!!
Review: Okay, not literally. I was at a bookstore and read the first couple of pages and I was so delighted that someone other than me actually remembered Jem and the Holograms! I found this book to be a very humorous meditation on the insecurities of a mid-twenties lady. As a mid-twenties man, who also writes, I can relate to a great deal this book contains. But the structure is, I think, among the more intriguing elements of this novel. To go from web site postings, to e-mail responses, to standard novel is... a novel idea! It was a wonderful departure and Pamela Ribon uses it very well. I was charmed by Anna Kovals honesty and inspired by her alter ego Anna K. This novel is light reading that has a universal appeal. I'm recommending it to all my friends.
| 
