Review: Solutions and Other Problems, by Allie Brosh

Russ Allbery eagle at eyrie.org
Wed Feb 17 21:21:42 PST 2021


Solutions and Other Problems
by Allie Brosh

Publisher: Gallery Books
Copyright: September 2020
ISBN:      1-9821-5694-5
Format:    Hardcover
Pages:     519

Solutions and Other Problems is the long-awaited second volume of Allie
Brosh's work, after the amazing Hyperbole and a Half. The first
collection was a mix of original material and pieces that first
appeared on her blog. This is all new work, although one of the
chapters is now on her blog as a teaser.

As with all of Brosh's previous work, Solutions and Other Problems is
mostly drawings (in her highly original, deceptively simple style) with
a bit of prose in between. It's a similar mix of childhood stories,
off-beat interpretations of day-to-day life, and deeper and more
personal topics. But this is not the same type of book as Hyperbole and
a Half, in a way that is hard to capture in a review.

When this book was postponed and then temporarily withdrawn, I
suspected that something had happened to Brosh. I was hoping that it
was just the chaos of her first book publication, but, sadly, no. We
find out about some of what happened in Solutions and Other Problems,
in varying amounts of detail, and it's heart-wrenching. That by itself
gives the book a more somber tone.

But, beyond that, I think Solutions and Other Problems represents a
shift in mood and intention. The closest I can come to it is to say
that Hyperbole and a Half felt like Brosh using her own experiences as
a way to tell funny stories, and this book feels like Brosh using funny
stories to talk about her experiences. There are still childhood
hijinks and animal stories mixed in, but even those felt more earnest,
more sad, and less assured or conclusive. This is in no way a flaw, to
be clear; just be aware that if you were expecting more work exactly
like Hyperbole and a Half, this volume is more challenging and a bit
more unsettling.

This does not mean Brosh's trademark humor is gone. Chapter seventeen,
"Loving-Kindness Exercise," is one of the funniest things I've ever
read. "Neighbor Kid" captures my typical experience of interacting with
children remarkably well. And there are, of course, more stories about
not-very-bright pets, including a memorable chapter ("The Kangaroo Pig
Gets Drunk") on just how baffling our lives must be to the animals
around us. But this book is more serious, even when there's humor and
absurdity layered on top, and anxiety felt like a constant companion.

As with her previous book, many of the chapters are stories from
Brosh's childhood. I have to admit this is not my favorite part of
Brosh's work, and the stories in this book in particular felt a bit
less funny and somewhat more uncomfortable and unsettling. This may be
a very individual reaction; you can judge your own in advance by
reading "Richard," the second chapter of the book, which Brosh posted
to her blog. I think it's roughly typical of the childhood stories
here.

The capstone of Hyperbole and a Half was Brosh's fantastic two-part
piece on depression, which succeeded in being hilarious and deeply
insightful at the same time. I think the capstone of Solutions and
Other Problems is the last chapter, "Friend," which is about being
friends with yourself. For me, it was a good encapsulation of both the
merits of this book and the difference in tone. It's less able to find
obvious humor in a psychological struggle, but it's just as empathetic
and insightful. The ending is more ambiguous and more conditional; the
tone is more wistful. It felt more personal and more raw, and therefore
a bit less generalized. Her piece on depression made me want to share
it with everyone I knew; this piece made me want to give Brosh a
virtual hug and tell her I'm glad she's alive and exists in the world.
That about sums up my reaction to this book.

I bought Solutions and Other Problems in hardcover because I think this
sort of graphic work benefits from high-quality printing, and I was
very happy with that decision. Gallery Books used heavy, glossy paper
and very clear printing. More of the text is outside of the graphic
panels than I remember from the previous book. I appreciated that; I
thought it made the stories much easier to read. My one quibble is that
Brosh does use fairly small lettering in some of the panels and the
color choices and the scrawl she uses for stylistic reasons sometimes
made that text difficult for me to read. In those few places, I would
have appreciated the magnifying capabilities of reading on a tablet.

I don't think this is as good as Hyperbole and a Half, but it is still
very good and very worth reading. It's harder reading, though, and
you'll need to brace yourself more than you did before. If you're new
to Brosh, start with Hyperbole and a Half, or with the blog, but if you
liked those, read this too.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Reviewed: 2021-02-17

URL: https://www.eyrie.org/~eagle/reviews/books/1-9821-5694-5.html

-- 
Russ Allbery (eagle at eyrie.org)             <https://www.eyrie.org/~eagle/>


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