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How to Leave Twitter: My Time as Queen of the Universe and Why This Must Stop by Grace Dent (21-Jul-2011) Paperback
Three years ago columnist and author Grace Dent joined new social network site Twitter, mainly as a place to dump her surplus jokes, rant about garbage TV and post exclusive j-pegs of her hot new toenail-varnish. But as every 're-tweet' and 'Follow Friday' saw her audience figures soar by tens of thousands, Dent found herself centre-stage in an all-consuming highly addictive social network revolution. One where the gags, gossip, scandal and backstabbing literally never stop. Here Dent takes a hilarious, acerbic look at what's really going on in Twitterworld; who's actually tweeting, who's really reading your tweets and what's behind the 140 character lies they tell. She looks at the highs and grotty lows of twitter addiction, the shameless social climbers, the friends you'll make and the ones you can't get bloody rid of, the barefaced bragging, the shameful celeb-stalking, and the truth about 'twanking', twitter cliques, angry 'twitchfork mobs' and dealing with trolls.
Unknown Binding
First published July 14, 2011
16 people are currently reading
265 people want to read
About the author
Grace Dent
29 books148 followersBritish columnist, broadcaster and author.
Between 2003-2010, Dent published eleven young adult novels, and was also a presenter on BBC2's The Culture Show, and a magazine and newspaper journalist, including a TV column for the Guardian.
From 2011 to 2017 she wrote a restaurant column for the Evening Standard, and became the Guardian's restaurant critic in 2018. She is a regular judge on the BBC's MasterChef UK and makes frequent appearances in Channel 4's television series Very British Problems.
Grace said in her role as an author for teens: ‘....kids who claim to have never read anything longer than a text message are ploughing through my books nagging me for the next one. This makes me insanely proud.’
She lives in East London with her husband, who works in the music industry. When she's not writing comedy Grace is to be found 'faffing about on the Internet' or 'faffing about in the garden or kitchen' or 'just 'faffing about generally. "I'm an excellent 'faffer."
Between 2003-2010, Dent published eleven young adult novels, and was also a presenter on BBC2's The Culture Show, and a magazine and newspaper journalist, including a TV column for the Guardian.
From 2011 to 2017 she wrote a restaurant column for the Evening Standard, and became the Guardian's restaurant critic in 2018. She is a regular judge on the BBC's MasterChef UK and makes frequent appearances in Channel 4's television series Very British Problems.
Grace said in her role as an author for teens: ‘....kids who claim to have never read anything longer than a text message are ploughing through my books nagging me for the next one. This makes me insanely proud.’
She lives in East London with her husband, who works in the music industry. When she's not writing comedy Grace is to be found 'faffing about on the Internet' or 'faffing about in the garden or kitchen' or 'just 'faffing about generally. "I'm an excellent 'faffer."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews
June 24, 2020
The acerbic TV critic and journo Grace Debt casts her acerbic no holds barred humour at the world of Twitter. And it is all pretty spot on, bar still from the perspective of a moderately well off middle class professional, where it is easy to typecast aspersions to other peoples' behaviours on social media. 6 out of 12.
June 5, 2012
A book very much of its moment, but entertaining none the less, if you've ever found yourself hooked on Twitter, you'll find yourself laughing along in recognition at much of this.
January 7, 2025
As a Twitter addict I had high hopes for this book but unfortunately it didn't quite deliver. Dent adopts the (very much self-appointed) role of the people's Twitter spokesperson, and a large portion of the book consists of her laying down the law regarding what people should and should not use the website for, with the air of someone who is under the impression that her word ought to be gospel.
The worst offence she commits is to devote pages upon pages to quoting what she considers to be her funniest tweets and following each one up with an explanatory paragraph detailing exactly why what she said was so hilarious/relevant. This is impossible to read without cringing. Try it.
I laughed out loud once and nodded my head in agreement once or twice, but generally felt as though the book could quite easily have been called "Why everyone apart from me is shit and wrong (especially celebrities but I'm not jealous, honest.)" or simply "LOOK AT ME! FOLLOW ME! PLEASE!"
The worst offence she commits is to devote pages upon pages to quoting what she considers to be her funniest tweets and following each one up with an explanatory paragraph detailing exactly why what she said was so hilarious/relevant. This is impossible to read without cringing. Try it.
I laughed out loud once and nodded my head in agreement once or twice, but generally felt as though the book could quite easily have been called "Why everyone apart from me is shit and wrong (especially celebrities but I'm not jealous, honest.)" or simply "LOOK AT ME! FOLLOW ME! PLEASE!"
March 2, 2016
'Read' this as an audiobook as part of my 'need something lightweight and humorous to listen to at bedtime' bookshelf. I really love Grace Dent's writing and her dry sense of humour - and maybe if I'd read it myself rather than listen to her, I'd have got on better with this book. Unfortunately GD's monotone delivery and glottal stop references to twi'r just got in the way. Probably much more pertinently, as someone who's an active user of social media I should have known better than to read a book with 5 year old references to the medium and what are now hackneyed descriptions of the characters you meet on there.
Overall, I really wanted to like this but I just di'nt.
Overall, I really wanted to like this but I just di'nt.
June 7, 2021
Was disappointed by this book. I enjoyed reading ‘Hungry’ do I thought that I would enjoy this. Sadly I thought it was quite weak. That said as it’s about a social media platform and it’s content it was never going to be high literature. Passable
September 25, 2011
How to Leave Twitter does not go very far to explain how to leave Twitter. And rightly so, because Grace Dent is very much still on it. In both senses of the term.
What How to Leave Twitter does do is give a brief and humorous guide to the social network (or "microblogging" network, as it is less and less frequently termed) some insight in how to use it well, and an array of wittily crated thoughts and experiences of Grace Dent's in her 3 years of using the website. In fact, a tidbit: she joined it a month to the day before I did.
When first I heard about this book I thought it an absolutely appalling idea for a book. I still think its title and description don't do its content any favours. I became a little less sceptical after reading Scott's glowing review in the Spectator (it's much better than this one, go and read it), so when I spotted it in Fopp for a fiver, I thought I ought to give it a look.
The page to which I turned contained a collection of Tweets you often see on an ill-curated timeline. You know, the complaints, the rants, the humble brags and self-congratulatory retweets, followed by Dent's imaginary dialogue with the offending Tweeter. Imagining the entire book must be like that, I almost didn't buy it. In the end, though, I decided it might be worth a look, if only for the sake of a good exercise in critical blogging.
Despite my best efforts to rail against the only Twitter user with a substantial following and the right attitude to write a book about it, I found myself quite enjoying it. As Dent mentions, it's difficult to sum up what Twitter is, since it's such a different experience for everyone. What the book does is to lay out the typical timeline for Twitter uptake, some key points in learning to use it to your best advantage, and some of the ways ways in which Twitter has affected her life. From finding internet buddies who send you torrents of the TV show you want to review to the Twitter effect on marketing buzz, there are lots of interesting tidbits amongst the @caitlinmoran ramblings.
"Twitter is full of sharp, opinionated women. Or, as men tend to call us, 'sassy'. Footnote: I hate being called 'sassy'. The only reason 'sassy' still exists is to denote 'a woman who can verbally spar and issue droll one-liners at the same level as a man' is because we're so unused to seeing her we haven't invented any other words since the 1950s."
Amongst the chatter, too, is a stand-out segment on the state of the media landscape and its relationship to women. Where women in TV and the media are concerned, Twitter stands unique as a place for female writers and comedians to speak unedited, where their references to Boardwalk Empire aren't changed to Sex and the City and their references to top poop are left to reek joyfully at the writer's behest.
"I wonder if men get told so soften the tone of think pieces for fear that the poor male reader might feel under attack? Or are they allowed to be as pointy-tongued as they want, as men trust each other men to lap up a few truthbombs and realise they're talking about some other jerk anyway?"
For sharp-tongue and quick wit, get your butt on Twitter. If you're already on there, you can read this extra-long tweet in book form by picking up this book.
http://unculturedcritic.com
What How to Leave Twitter does do is give a brief and humorous guide to the social network (or "microblogging" network, as it is less and less frequently termed) some insight in how to use it well, and an array of wittily crated thoughts and experiences of Grace Dent's in her 3 years of using the website. In fact, a tidbit: she joined it a month to the day before I did.
When first I heard about this book I thought it an absolutely appalling idea for a book. I still think its title and description don't do its content any favours. I became a little less sceptical after reading Scott's glowing review in the Spectator (it's much better than this one, go and read it), so when I spotted it in Fopp for a fiver, I thought I ought to give it a look.
The page to which I turned contained a collection of Tweets you often see on an ill-curated timeline. You know, the complaints, the rants, the humble brags and self-congratulatory retweets, followed by Dent's imaginary dialogue with the offending Tweeter. Imagining the entire book must be like that, I almost didn't buy it. In the end, though, I decided it might be worth a look, if only for the sake of a good exercise in critical blogging.
Despite my best efforts to rail against the only Twitter user with a substantial following and the right attitude to write a book about it, I found myself quite enjoying it. As Dent mentions, it's difficult to sum up what Twitter is, since it's such a different experience for everyone. What the book does is to lay out the typical timeline for Twitter uptake, some key points in learning to use it to your best advantage, and some of the ways ways in which Twitter has affected her life. From finding internet buddies who send you torrents of the TV show you want to review to the Twitter effect on marketing buzz, there are lots of interesting tidbits amongst the @caitlinmoran ramblings.
"Twitter is full of sharp, opinionated women. Or, as men tend to call us, 'sassy'. Footnote: I hate being called 'sassy'. The only reason 'sassy' still exists is to denote 'a woman who can verbally spar and issue droll one-liners at the same level as a man' is because we're so unused to seeing her we haven't invented any other words since the 1950s."
Amongst the chatter, too, is a stand-out segment on the state of the media landscape and its relationship to women. Where women in TV and the media are concerned, Twitter stands unique as a place for female writers and comedians to speak unedited, where their references to Boardwalk Empire aren't changed to Sex and the City and their references to top poop are left to reek joyfully at the writer's behest.
"I wonder if men get told so soften the tone of think pieces for fear that the poor male reader might feel under attack? Or are they allowed to be as pointy-tongued as they want, as men trust each other men to lap up a few truthbombs and realise they're talking about some other jerk anyway?"
For sharp-tongue and quick wit, get your butt on Twitter. If you're already on there, you can read this extra-long tweet in book form by picking up this book.
http://unculturedcritic.com
November 16, 2012
No. Just no. The title was intriguing. The book itself is 90% total rubbish. And no, I would NOT recommend it to people thinking about joining Twitter. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
It basically involves Grace Dent slagging off most other Twitter users with a cringe-inducing level of arrogance and explaining how and why Twitter is a horrible place and that the majority of people on it are annoying/boring and nearly everything tweeted there sucks. And then admitting she's addicted anyway.
If this is comedy, her style is not at all amusing to me. I barely managed to plough through this, and was muttering to myself half the time about how crap the content was. Much like her apparent attitude to Twitter, which is also rather hypocritical since she complains constantly about people who use it yet still uses it herself.
Oh, and the "best" bit? In 199 numbered pages, only 13 are actually about "how to leave Twitter" - and, spoiler, the author ends up not leaving anyway. Despite how much she's apparently disgusted by the site and everyone on it.
I know it's meant to be satire, but it falls completely flat. It's rubbish. The only reason I'm going to give it even 1 star is for that last chapter, an occasional decent one-liner and a couple of the feminist points she made. As for "laugh out loud"... no. I didn't even get a chuckle from this book. Perhaps the odd ironic twist of the lip. But that's the most.
I felt I'd wasted my time reading this. (Valuable Tweeting time! ;) Or, you know, time in which I could have read a better book.) Don't bother - watching paint dry might be more entertaining, since you probably won't want to throw things doing that.
It basically involves Grace Dent slagging off most other Twitter users with a cringe-inducing level of arrogance and explaining how and why Twitter is a horrible place and that the majority of people on it are annoying/boring and nearly everything tweeted there sucks. And then admitting she's addicted anyway.
If this is comedy, her style is not at all amusing to me. I barely managed to plough through this, and was muttering to myself half the time about how crap the content was. Much like her apparent attitude to Twitter, which is also rather hypocritical since she complains constantly about people who use it yet still uses it herself.
Oh, and the "best" bit? In 199 numbered pages, only 13 are actually about "how to leave Twitter" - and, spoiler, the author ends up not leaving anyway. Despite how much she's apparently disgusted by the site and everyone on it.
I know it's meant to be satire, but it falls completely flat. It's rubbish. The only reason I'm going to give it even 1 star is for that last chapter, an occasional decent one-liner and a couple of the feminist points she made. As for "laugh out loud"... no. I didn't even get a chuckle from this book. Perhaps the odd ironic twist of the lip. But that's the most.
I felt I'd wasted my time reading this. (Valuable Tweeting time! ;) Or, you know, time in which I could have read a better book.) Don't bother - watching paint dry might be more entertaining, since you probably won't want to throw things doing that.
January 19, 2012
It might sound ridiculous to say that I was really excited to read this book, but I was! I really love Grace Dent, having read her TV columns for a few years in the Guardian. And yes, I follow her on Twitter.
It was a dry, witty book that definitely had some well-observed pieces about the various people you find in the Twittersphere. This book was funny, but didn't quite live up to my expectations. As I was nearing the end my boyfriend asked me whether I was finding it funny. I asked why, and he said "You haven't laughed once". Not the best for a very light read.
I don't think a really long review is exactly necessary here: if you use Twitter a lot, you'll probably find it a good read and fairly witty. It's not going to have you laughing until you can't catch your breath, but a pleasant distraction nonetheless.
It was a dry, witty book that definitely had some well-observed pieces about the various people you find in the Twittersphere. This book was funny, but didn't quite live up to my expectations. As I was nearing the end my boyfriend asked me whether I was finding it funny. I asked why, and he said "You haven't laughed once". Not the best for a very light read.
I don't think a really long review is exactly necessary here: if you use Twitter a lot, you'll probably find it a good read and fairly witty. It's not going to have you laughing until you can't catch your breath, but a pleasant distraction nonetheless.
December 12, 2022
l wish to date you so that we can marry by Grace dent 💍💐🥰😍
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 7, 2013
I thought I liked Grace Dent.
However this is a truly abyssmal excuse for a book. For a good 30 pages she fills space with lists, which read like
1. I use twitter
2. I think of twitter a lot
3. If you are boring me.... I will be thinking of twitter!!!!!!!1
4. Before I was on twitter I did not know what it was like...
and so on and so forth, for such an insufferable amount of time and in such an unfunny way that you begin to wonder whether the book is not in fact a book, rather a horrific experiment to see how many people are out there that will never give up on a book.
Suddenly it ends, and there is some actual writing. For about a page and a half it is relatively amusing but then she begins hammering home her overlying point which is that she and her select friends (who I presume to be Caitlin Moran and Emma Kennedy) are the absolute BESTEST at social media and the rest of the plebs just stink the place up and make it less fun for the experts. This gets very grating very quickly. Suddenly we switch to the Dent/Moran pet subject, which is the very specific feminist subject of the lack of women on tv comendy panel shows- I agree there is a disproportionate amount of men on these shows, but Dent begins singling out Jamelia as being an unfunny woman whilst presumably inferring that she could do better- I have seen Dent bomb on several shows, even on screenwipe where she had preperation time she stated facts without wit.
I got a severe case of deja vu during this middle section, and realised she has repeated herself nearly word for word not 3 pages apart- I began to wonder if this book were even checked before being published, especially as the end of it is yet another long and arduous selection of painfully unfunny lists...
When you are on twitter instead of (anything important)then you know it is time to leave twitter!!!!!!!!!!!!!
...re word that as many times as possible, insert as many 'hilarious' important non twitter things as you can. You have written a book, well done.
In conclusion she does not leave twitter, she is not queen of the universe, she did not even write a book. Avoid
However this is a truly abyssmal excuse for a book. For a good 30 pages she fills space with lists, which read like
1. I use twitter
2. I think of twitter a lot
3. If you are boring me.... I will be thinking of twitter!!!!!!!1
4. Before I was on twitter I did not know what it was like...
and so on and so forth, for such an insufferable amount of time and in such an unfunny way that you begin to wonder whether the book is not in fact a book, rather a horrific experiment to see how many people are out there that will never give up on a book.
Suddenly it ends, and there is some actual writing. For about a page and a half it is relatively amusing but then she begins hammering home her overlying point which is that she and her select friends (who I presume to be Caitlin Moran and Emma Kennedy) are the absolute BESTEST at social media and the rest of the plebs just stink the place up and make it less fun for the experts. This gets very grating very quickly. Suddenly we switch to the Dent/Moran pet subject, which is the very specific feminist subject of the lack of women on tv comendy panel shows- I agree there is a disproportionate amount of men on these shows, but Dent begins singling out Jamelia as being an unfunny woman whilst presumably inferring that she could do better- I have seen Dent bomb on several shows, even on screenwipe where she had preperation time she stated facts without wit.
I got a severe case of deja vu during this middle section, and realised she has repeated herself nearly word for word not 3 pages apart- I began to wonder if this book were even checked before being published, especially as the end of it is yet another long and arduous selection of painfully unfunny lists...
When you are on twitter instead of (anything important)then you know it is time to leave twitter!!!!!!!!!!!!!
...re word that as many times as possible, insert as many 'hilarious' important non twitter things as you can. You have written a book, well done.
In conclusion she does not leave twitter, she is not queen of the universe, she did not even write a book. Avoid
May 31, 2018
Update on Read#2
I'm about to put myself on Twitter again, so this seemed like a good way to remind myself of the highs and lows of this social media platform. Also I'm curious to see how things have changed in the years that I've been avoiding it. I hope to get more out of Twitter this time around, cause the first time was really sort of pointless.
I'm upping the rating to 4 FUNNY STARS.
This book describes a life cycle of a tweeter, from the moment of the first nervous tweet, to enchantment, to illusions of grandeur, to reaching a stage of annoying the beejesus out of your followers, to disillusionment, to rehab. The author has gone through these stages "117 times", so she knows what she's talking about. And if you follow her lead, so will you.
On the whole, I enjoyed this book. It was funny (up to the point of snorting on the metro) and brimming with enthusiasm for the texts-that-no-one-cares-about platform. In fact, it made me wonder if Ms. Dent had an alterior motive in endorsing Twitter. After all there's a lot of text space given to this very problem.
The only problem I had was the author's arrogance. She goes on for pages and pages about what annoys her in people's tweets, what makes her unfollow, and why women aren't allowed to speak up in public. As for the latter, women probably have better things to do than produce countless talk shows. As for the former, my philosophy is, if you don't like what people are writing, just unfollow. Or at least scroll through - it's that easy.
I'm about to put myself on Twitter again, so this seemed like a good way to remind myself of the highs and lows of this social media platform. Also I'm curious to see how things have changed in the years that I've been avoiding it. I hope to get more out of Twitter this time around, cause the first time was really sort of pointless.
I'm upping the rating to 4 FUNNY STARS.
This book describes a life cycle of a tweeter, from the moment of the first nervous tweet, to enchantment, to illusions of grandeur, to reaching a stage of annoying the beejesus out of your followers, to disillusionment, to rehab. The author has gone through these stages "117 times", so she knows what she's talking about. And if you follow her lead, so will you.
On the whole, I enjoyed this book. It was funny (up to the point of snorting on the metro) and brimming with enthusiasm for the texts-that-no-one-cares-about platform. In fact, it made me wonder if Ms. Dent had an alterior motive in endorsing Twitter. After all there's a lot of text space given to this very problem.
The only problem I had was the author's arrogance. She goes on for pages and pages about what annoys her in people's tweets, what makes her unfollow, and why women aren't allowed to speak up in public. As for the latter, women probably have better things to do than produce countless talk shows. As for the former, my philosophy is, if you don't like what people are writing, just unfollow. Or at least scroll through - it's that easy.
August 19, 2011
I picked this book up in the library for 3 reasons:
1) To educate myself in the phenomenon I have studiously ignored thus far;
2) To strengthen my resolve to keep my facebook account disabled; although there have been benefits by the sackful (I now have a skincare routine. I have met up with 4 friends in the past week - in the flesh! I have avoided unwise drunken chats with my ex. My essays are ... um, not quite finished yet. Still, Rome wasn't built in a day...) I do miss it terribly;
and 3) An endorsement by Charlie Brooker on the front.
I still feel no compulsion towards Twitter, and I still hate and miss facebook in equal measures. She is funny though.
1) To educate myself in the phenomenon I have studiously ignored thus far;
2) To strengthen my resolve to keep my facebook account disabled; although there have been benefits by the sackful (I now have a skincare routine. I have met up with 4 friends in the past week - in the flesh! I have avoided unwise drunken chats with my ex. My essays are ... um, not quite finished yet. Still, Rome wasn't built in a day...) I do miss it terribly;
and 3) An endorsement by Charlie Brooker on the front.
I still feel no compulsion towards Twitter, and I still hate and miss facebook in equal measures. She is funny though.
July 25, 2011
A very funny book, I was genuinely giggling out loud.
It would have been higher, but in the section about how great women on Twitter are it goes off into a slight rant about women, or the lack thereof, in the media. Which is fair enough and very well written, but it wasn't really "right" in the middle of a book about Twitter.
If you're a Twitter user, read it and laugh loudly. If you're not, read it and you probably won't understand any of it.
It would have been higher, but in the section about how great women on Twitter are it goes off into a slight rant about women, or the lack thereof, in the media. Which is fair enough and very well written, but it wasn't really "right" in the middle of a book about Twitter.
If you're a Twitter user, read it and laugh loudly. If you're not, read it and you probably won't understand any of it.
December 29, 2011
This was basically a badly written list of things that be found, even by the most inept user, on twitter. There was nothing new, interesting or funny about this book at all. And as an avid twitter user, surprisingly it didn't even make me want to visit the website. The only reason I didn't give it a one star rating is that I actually managed to finish it all the way through.
April 4, 2016
Saturday magazine article stretched thinly over 200 pages. It's from 2011 though, so it might make you nostalgic for those halcyon days before #GamerGate.
August 6, 2024
It's probably fair to say that I read this book about 12 years too late, published in 2011 this is a book about the early days of Twitter. Arguably many things on the platform have changed since this book was written and it does suffer slightly from being out of date but on the whole anyone who was on the platform in the early days will resonate with some of the material here. To begin with Grace lists all the positives of the platform and in the current cesspit that is Twitter/X it can be hard to believe it was ever that way. That said I think there are still many pockets of kindness on there, people sharing interests, tweeting along with TV shows and sporting events and sharing jokes and when Grace moves on to describe the pitfalls of Twitter in that time period you realise that maybe nothing has really changed, it's just people looking back with rose-tinted glasses and choosing to ignore it was very similar to how it is now.
The book didn't resonate with me, Grace is obviously writing from her personal perspective and experiences of the platform from her position as an established, talented and reasonably well-known writer with that obviously comes a reach that your average user won't have. Despite what Grace says in the book I don't think most Twitter users were making friendship groups and I don't think many famous people were following non-famous people, it wasn't a level playing field for people of differing levels of recognition but she does at least acknowledge that everyone experiences Twitter differently.
It was also preachy in parts with Grace telling the reader what she thought people should use Twitter for and self-appointing herself as the Queen of Twitter, for example no bragging about your achievements, don't talk about boring aspects of your day, don't tweet too much etc. It's an easy read if you were on Twitter back in the early days and fancy reminiscing a little, and there were sections I enjoyed more than others, I enjoyed the section on women on Twitter using the platform to voice their opinions unedited when other media outlets would edit their words to sound more feminine.
An ok read, it has it's moments, just don't expect anything too profound.
The book didn't resonate with me, Grace is obviously writing from her personal perspective and experiences of the platform from her position as an established, talented and reasonably well-known writer with that obviously comes a reach that your average user won't have. Despite what Grace says in the book I don't think most Twitter users were making friendship groups and I don't think many famous people were following non-famous people, it wasn't a level playing field for people of differing levels of recognition but she does at least acknowledge that everyone experiences Twitter differently.
It was also preachy in parts with Grace telling the reader what she thought people should use Twitter for and self-appointing herself as the Queen of Twitter, for example no bragging about your achievements, don't talk about boring aspects of your day, don't tweet too much etc. It's an easy read if you were on Twitter back in the early days and fancy reminiscing a little, and there were sections I enjoyed more than others, I enjoyed the section on women on Twitter using the platform to voice their opinions unedited when other media outlets would edit their words to sound more feminine.
An ok read, it has it's moments, just don't expect anything too profound.
September 26, 2020
I rarely give a one star rating but this book was just infuriating from the very beginning.
Grace Dent named this book ‘How to Leave Twitter’ but it is anything but. The title implies that this is a look at how addictive Twitter (and perhaps social media generally) can be and what the benefits are of leaving or cutting down on usage.
Instead, what’s been written is a series of rants about why 90% of Twitter users don’t deserve a follow from her and what makes her a superior Tweeter. One example I found particularly annoying was about people celebrating their achievements with followers on Twitter. We as society do not see the good in ourselves enough, people should have the right to celebrate whatever seemingly minor or major thing they wish.
Grace Dent has decided that she is the Twitter user spokesperson, a title that is entirely self-appointed. Half of this book was just a collection of her put downs for certain users who are neither aggressive nor rude in tone but who do not conform to the specific way that the author, as unofficial spokesperson, thinks they should act.
This book needs a completely new title. I imagine this would have a much higher overall rating if readers didn’t find themselves mislead from the start.
Grace Dent named this book ‘How to Leave Twitter’ but it is anything but. The title implies that this is a look at how addictive Twitter (and perhaps social media generally) can be and what the benefits are of leaving or cutting down on usage.
Instead, what’s been written is a series of rants about why 90% of Twitter users don’t deserve a follow from her and what makes her a superior Tweeter. One example I found particularly annoying was about people celebrating their achievements with followers on Twitter. We as society do not see the good in ourselves enough, people should have the right to celebrate whatever seemingly minor or major thing they wish.
Grace Dent has decided that she is the Twitter user spokesperson, a title that is entirely self-appointed. Half of this book was just a collection of her put downs for certain users who are neither aggressive nor rude in tone but who do not conform to the specific way that the author, as unofficial spokesperson, thinks they should act.
This book needs a completely new title. I imagine this would have a much higher overall rating if readers didn’t find themselves mislead from the start.
February 24, 2020
Started reading this book about two weeks ago. It's pretty nice and is mostly about how Twitter even though it might seem frivolous to "outsider's" can actually reel you and get you addicted with retweets, likes, gossip, celebrity feuds etc.
Don't go in expecting a lot. I didn't really find it funny but then again that might be because this book was written a long time ago. I wouldn't recommend you to go out of your way to purchase this but hey, if you find it at a great discount (like I did) it's a pretty casual read!
Don't go in expecting a lot. I didn't really find it funny but then again that might be because this book was written a long time ago. I wouldn't recommend you to go out of your way to purchase this but hey, if you find it at a great discount (like I did) it's a pretty casual read!
November 13, 2019
I listened to this book (read by the author, which, I personally think made the reading experience better).
I do find Grace Dent funny. She has a dry sense of humour that I just “get”.
This book talks about her feelings about the social networking website, Twitter. I’m more of an Instagram girl, but, as someone who is on any social media website, I found this book witty and enjoyable.
3 stars.
I do find Grace Dent funny. She has a dry sense of humour that I just “get”.
This book talks about her feelings about the social networking website, Twitter. I’m more of an Instagram girl, but, as someone who is on any social media website, I found this book witty and enjoyable.
3 stars.
November 5, 2017
If uve been having a love-hate relationship with Twitter, read this book - it's gonna make you certain!
September 9, 2020
A super-quick whimsical read. This book is very much of its time, but a lot of it still holds true. I would read an update as the twitter landscape has changed
April 10, 2021
Incoherent rambling, merely an excuse to repeat her own “funniest” tweets to even more innocent readers.
Read
March 1, 2022Twitter toooo funny! 💯
March 24, 2022
I love Dent's style and humour - made me giggle outloud. Felt like a chat over cocktails on a fantastic night out.
July 3, 2013
Grace Dent’s latest literary offering is a 198 page hug. The kind of hug you get from your Mum just after she has told you off for being very bad indeed. A hug that knows you couldn’t help yourself, couldn’t stop yourself from inflicting pain that turns into self-loathing.
‘How to leave twitter – My time as queen of the universe and why this must stop’ is a how to kit for knowing when you have just taken things a little bit too far and have become detached from real life.
The book begins with a list of 100 things about Grace and twitter. You will read it and cringe as you realise at least 75 apply to you. This isn’t a bad thing as Grace herself has admitted that they are about her and her relationship with twitter, but they will provide food for thought and are an excellent introduction to the book and its point.
For those who don’t follow Grace (@gracedent) then you’re missing out. For those who don’t know Grace’s work, you are also misses out. She is an incredible writer who has a must read column in the Guardian guide and has published on many other platforms. Worth a google.
Like so many tweeters you just extract what you want and disregard the other stuff. I like when Grace tweets about Eastenders, despite not being an avid viewer I know enough to laugh at the jokes about characters and plotlines. I have never watched The Killing and as such choose to ignore those bits, you get the idea.
We all have something to learn about the bridge between real life and social networking. I used it to interact socially with people with a common interest, for work and career networking and to follow a few celebrities. I do sometimes find the line between twitter and real life blurred but I have in the past enjoyed tweetups with great people who work in my industry and I have discovered great writers through it. I have also found myself trapped when following someone who spouts so much bile and who I was worried about unfollowing lest the unleash it on me, though this morning whilst reading the book, I did manage to unfollow them and so far, no recriminations.
A key theme that runs throughout the book is that you should treat real life and twitter in much the same manner. You would not walk down the street and shout abuse at a stranger, or go up to someone and expect them to listen to your every whimsy even though you quite obviously haven’t got anything in common.
Many readers will smugly think, oh that’s common sense, I would never do that. I was one of them readers but a brief period self-reflection, I knew that I needed to modify my online behaviour. Every time I log on now all I see are the stereotypes that Grace mentions and as with all stereotypes, they are based in very intelligent observations of others. The one stereotype that bothers me most are the people who will retweet (RT) anything.
“@football_hero you’re amazing and I loved watching you play. RT pls?”
Why would anyone RT that? I don’t believe it is an example of people self-promoting their achievements because that made up example is exciting compared to some of the crap people pass on. Much of it is a comment on something current, my examples mainly relate to football, and people ask for their point to be RT’d. It is mainly middle aged men that do it and I have no idea why and even less idea why the person asked to RT something do.
You will laugh and blush as you walk hand in hand with Grace through her experiences on twitter and you will close the final page believing that you can change your ways. I hope I can but probably not to the extent I should being so I will undoubtedly post this on my twitter and ask people to RT it.
As someone who works in PR, I could not think of a better example of a book to show the people in charge of social media at your work as an example of how not to conduct yourself on twitter. It has the capability to be used as much as a marketing tool as it is to be used a fine piece of writing.
Grace is entertaining throughout and I cannot recommend this book highly enough to those who do actually use twitter for more than telling people that you’re having a shower now.
As an end note, the first tweet I read from Grace after I finished the book was “@gracedent about to take Britain’s most pregnant woman out for lunch. Beware London”. I guess it is sometimes a case, and my Grace’s own admission, a case of do as I say, not as I do.
£7.99 well spent, cheaper than the priory.
The picture in the piece is of a signed manuscript I received from Grace after she said she had a few to give away on twitter. I was at Glastonbury very drunk when she made the offer and I only turned my phone on and checked it my chance. Twitter can be wonderful.
‘How to leave twitter – My time as queen of the universe and why this must stop’ is a how to kit for knowing when you have just taken things a little bit too far and have become detached from real life.
The book begins with a list of 100 things about Grace and twitter. You will read it and cringe as you realise at least 75 apply to you. This isn’t a bad thing as Grace herself has admitted that they are about her and her relationship with twitter, but they will provide food for thought and are an excellent introduction to the book and its point.
For those who don’t follow Grace (@gracedent) then you’re missing out. For those who don’t know Grace’s work, you are also misses out. She is an incredible writer who has a must read column in the Guardian guide and has published on many other platforms. Worth a google.
Like so many tweeters you just extract what you want and disregard the other stuff. I like when Grace tweets about Eastenders, despite not being an avid viewer I know enough to laugh at the jokes about characters and plotlines. I have never watched The Killing and as such choose to ignore those bits, you get the idea.
We all have something to learn about the bridge between real life and social networking. I used it to interact socially with people with a common interest, for work and career networking and to follow a few celebrities. I do sometimes find the line between twitter and real life blurred but I have in the past enjoyed tweetups with great people who work in my industry and I have discovered great writers through it. I have also found myself trapped when following someone who spouts so much bile and who I was worried about unfollowing lest the unleash it on me, though this morning whilst reading the book, I did manage to unfollow them and so far, no recriminations.
A key theme that runs throughout the book is that you should treat real life and twitter in much the same manner. You would not walk down the street and shout abuse at a stranger, or go up to someone and expect them to listen to your every whimsy even though you quite obviously haven’t got anything in common.
Many readers will smugly think, oh that’s common sense, I would never do that. I was one of them readers but a brief period self-reflection, I knew that I needed to modify my online behaviour. Every time I log on now all I see are the stereotypes that Grace mentions and as with all stereotypes, they are based in very intelligent observations of others. The one stereotype that bothers me most are the people who will retweet (RT) anything.
“@football_hero you’re amazing and I loved watching you play. RT pls?”
Why would anyone RT that? I don’t believe it is an example of people self-promoting their achievements because that made up example is exciting compared to some of the crap people pass on. Much of it is a comment on something current, my examples mainly relate to football, and people ask for their point to be RT’d. It is mainly middle aged men that do it and I have no idea why and even less idea why the person asked to RT something do.
You will laugh and blush as you walk hand in hand with Grace through her experiences on twitter and you will close the final page believing that you can change your ways. I hope I can but probably not to the extent I should being so I will undoubtedly post this on my twitter and ask people to RT it.
As someone who works in PR, I could not think of a better example of a book to show the people in charge of social media at your work as an example of how not to conduct yourself on twitter. It has the capability to be used as much as a marketing tool as it is to be used a fine piece of writing.
Grace is entertaining throughout and I cannot recommend this book highly enough to those who do actually use twitter for more than telling people that you’re having a shower now.
As an end note, the first tweet I read from Grace after I finished the book was “@gracedent about to take Britain’s most pregnant woman out for lunch. Beware London”. I guess it is sometimes a case, and my Grace’s own admission, a case of do as I say, not as I do.
£7.99 well spent, cheaper than the priory.
The picture in the piece is of a signed manuscript I received from Grace after she said she had a few to give away on twitter. I was at Glastonbury very drunk when she made the offer and I only turned my phone on and checked it my chance. Twitter can be wonderful.
July 18, 2021
Started off very well but then got quite boring. Useful though.
April 24, 2013
Madonna’s clever isn’t she? She made records like Vogue and Music with the title right there, repeating in the chorus. They aren’t great records beyond their 15 minutes of fame, but whenever some tired TV/radio journalist needs to run a news story about fashion or music, you can pretty much guarantee they’ll roll out those tunes in the background. Madge has presumably grown rich on the royalties. “Papa don’t Preach” and “Like a Virgin” are banished to drunken uncle dances at weddings, but Music and Vogue live forever. Similarly if you’re a journalist who’s acquired a sturdy following on Twitter in the UK, why not roll out a light-hearted book about the good and bad of the Twitterverse.
Of course the thing is, to understand this book you will already have to be using Twitter. It’s a particular kind of British insecurity that says “I’m already doing something, but I’d better check I’m doing it properly”, but there you go – guilty as charged. So for all the world wide capacity of social media, it’s fair to say this is very UK centred read – actually, let’s be honest, it’s a London media Soho/Shoreditch based read. You don’t have to follow many international tweeters to realise that a lot of her Twitter rules don’t really stand up.
Mostly I’m a pro-Twitter person, I stumbled onto it a few months ago and realised that it was where all the smart people had gone when social media exploded (nice of them to tell me). When Myspace, Facebook and Tumblr were launching there Bonfires of the Vanities, Twitter quietly set up and provided an endless source of dialogue, articles, instant News, pithy one liners...OK and funny cat pictures. There is I think, a good book to be written about Twitter. Something between the crappy newspaper think-pieces about how social media is ruining social skills/grammar/spelling and a barely disguised PhD thesis in Media Studies that uses words like “trope” and “meme” one too many times.
Unfortunately this isn’t it.
What this is, one suspects, is the result of the second bottle at a publishing lunch, and then about a year later, a blind panic, a lot of crying and a rush to get something, anything in print. The acknowledgements give credit to a Julian Loose at the publisher Faber and Faber. I can only assume that Julian’s headless body currently lies in cement supporting a motorway somewhere, because I’m pretty sure that when the Literary Editors Union got a hold of this, the order for a hit went out pretty fast.
The book has no structure. It’s barely 200 pages with some exceedingly generous spacing (like when you needed to make your homework look bigger). There are also lots of well spaced lists. Originally I thought that perhaps she had restricted herself to 140 character paragraphs, which would at least have been a novelty, but no such luck. Despite an absence of words, it still it manages to repeat itself on occasions. There’s one particularly awkward kettle/pot moment when Dent is talking about how novelty Twitter accounts seek out book deals…and you think…um yeah…
I like Grace Dent. She’s hellish funny on Twitter, often writes very good journalism and I’ve just discovered from Goodreads that she’s written a whole bunch of award-winning teen fiction books; so I guess this isn’t even really her third-string job, and heck, she probably has a mortgage to pay. This would perhaps be a less bad book, if every so often you didn’t catch a glimpse of the talent Dent clearly is. Here’s the good stuff:
(1) A few very funny jokes.
(2) Some well observed stuff about the multi-window working desk life most of us now live.
(3) A philosophical dip into whether a virtual friend is any less valid than a real life friend (not really).
(4) Some good stuff about women on Twitter – the antidote to “women’s interest magazines”.
(5) An interesting digression on the word “sassy” (Dent is anti-sass).
…but that’s it.
There, I saved you the price of the book – you’re welcome.
Oh, it's not about leaving Twitter, Dent loves Twitter and so do I.
Of course the thing is, to understand this book you will already have to be using Twitter. It’s a particular kind of British insecurity that says “I’m already doing something, but I’d better check I’m doing it properly”, but there you go – guilty as charged. So for all the world wide capacity of social media, it’s fair to say this is very UK centred read – actually, let’s be honest, it’s a London media Soho/Shoreditch based read. You don’t have to follow many international tweeters to realise that a lot of her Twitter rules don’t really stand up.
Mostly I’m a pro-Twitter person, I stumbled onto it a few months ago and realised that it was where all the smart people had gone when social media exploded (nice of them to tell me). When Myspace, Facebook and Tumblr were launching there Bonfires of the Vanities, Twitter quietly set up and provided an endless source of dialogue, articles, instant News, pithy one liners...OK and funny cat pictures. There is I think, a good book to be written about Twitter. Something between the crappy newspaper think-pieces about how social media is ruining social skills/grammar/spelling and a barely disguised PhD thesis in Media Studies that uses words like “trope” and “meme” one too many times.
Unfortunately this isn’t it.
What this is, one suspects, is the result of the second bottle at a publishing lunch, and then about a year later, a blind panic, a lot of crying and a rush to get something, anything in print. The acknowledgements give credit to a Julian Loose at the publisher Faber and Faber. I can only assume that Julian’s headless body currently lies in cement supporting a motorway somewhere, because I’m pretty sure that when the Literary Editors Union got a hold of this, the order for a hit went out pretty fast.
The book has no structure. It’s barely 200 pages with some exceedingly generous spacing (like when you needed to make your homework look bigger). There are also lots of well spaced lists. Originally I thought that perhaps she had restricted herself to 140 character paragraphs, which would at least have been a novelty, but no such luck. Despite an absence of words, it still it manages to repeat itself on occasions. There’s one particularly awkward kettle/pot moment when Dent is talking about how novelty Twitter accounts seek out book deals…and you think…um yeah…
I like Grace Dent. She’s hellish funny on Twitter, often writes very good journalism and I’ve just discovered from Goodreads that she’s written a whole bunch of award-winning teen fiction books; so I guess this isn’t even really her third-string job, and heck, she probably has a mortgage to pay. This would perhaps be a less bad book, if every so often you didn’t catch a glimpse of the talent Dent clearly is. Here’s the good stuff:
(1) A few very funny jokes.
(2) Some well observed stuff about the multi-window working desk life most of us now live.
(3) A philosophical dip into whether a virtual friend is any less valid than a real life friend (not really).
(4) Some good stuff about women on Twitter – the antidote to “women’s interest magazines”.
(5) An interesting digression on the word “sassy” (Dent is anti-sass).
…but that’s it.
There, I saved you the price of the book – you’re welcome.
Oh, it's not about leaving Twitter, Dent loves Twitter and so do I.
July 21, 2011
How To Leave Twitter is a witty, often laugh out loud funny (and not at all sassy) novel aimed at Twitter users that can't go five minutes without Tweeting their Tweeps. Eerily familiar it was almost as if author Grace Dent had been rooting around in my head (or more likely my Twitter account) for funny anecdotes. I mean, how else does she know about my habit of spending hours on the website with a full bladder because I simply cannot pry my eyes away from the screen for the minute it might take me to walk to the bathroom? Or, that I check my timeline every morning within five minutes of opening my eyes?
The title to the book is quite misleading as this is not a self help book on how to kick your Twitter addiction (though the final chapter rather unsuccessfully touches upon the subject), but instead it follows the various stages of becoming familiar with the social media platform. From the very first encounter where the user still thinks it's completely overrated, to the all too familiar stage of full-blown addiction where not even a bursting bladder can prompt the user to move a single inch as it can mean the difference between life or death. Or rather, the difference between reading a new Tweet as soon as it appears on your client or only being able to absorb the useless information after a 30-second delay.
There are also various more random chapters where Dent describes things close to her heart (or at least ones she seems very passionate about), such as "Woman on Twitter" and "The downsides of Twitter". The latter being filled with examples of what one should not Tweet about under any circumstance, as it will alienate Dent, your feed and possibly all of Twitter. Quite terrifying as I do not know a single person who hasn't Tweeted about at least one of the subjects listed on there at some point in their Twitter life time, including myself which made me fear that Dent would absolutely hate my account. Thankfully I soon remembered that she doesn't follow me, and never will, so at the last moment I decided against announcing my dramatic departure from Twitter.
In short, How To Leave Twitter is a clever and scarily realistic tale of the highs and lows of being a Twitteruser addict and is written in such an engaging and funny way that it will prompt you to follow @gracedent as soon as you turn the final page (or possibly upon turning the first one). It won't in any way help you kick your Twitter addiction, but let's face it, who really wants to anyway? There is absolutely nothing more fabulous than being able to wear your comfy pants on a Saturday night whilst chatting to your closest friends 20,000 miles away about vital issues such as the latest hashtag game.
The title to the book is quite misleading as this is not a self help book on how to kick your Twitter addiction (though the final chapter rather unsuccessfully touches upon the subject), but instead it follows the various stages of becoming familiar with the social media platform. From the very first encounter where the user still thinks it's completely overrated, to the all too familiar stage of full-blown addiction where not even a bursting bladder can prompt the user to move a single inch as it can mean the difference between life or death. Or rather, the difference between reading a new Tweet as soon as it appears on your client or only being able to absorb the useless information after a 30-second delay.
There are also various more random chapters where Dent describes things close to her heart (or at least ones she seems very passionate about), such as "Woman on Twitter" and "The downsides of Twitter". The latter being filled with examples of what one should not Tweet about under any circumstance, as it will alienate Dent, your feed and possibly all of Twitter. Quite terrifying as I do not know a single person who hasn't Tweeted about at least one of the subjects listed on there at some point in their Twitter life time, including myself which made me fear that Dent would absolutely hate my account. Thankfully I soon remembered that she doesn't follow me, and never will, so at the last moment I decided against announcing my dramatic departure from Twitter.
In short, How To Leave Twitter is a clever and scarily realistic tale of the highs and lows of being a Twitter
April 15, 2012
As someone who has an often fluid relationship with the world’s greatest networking site I wasn’t sure what I’d make of this going in. The title suggests a missive against social networking and yet it comes from someone who a quick check reveals is still very much ‘on Twitter.’ I also saw that many reviewers found the book preachy and dictatorial over how should behave on Twitter, and non-tweeters might find it all too dense and difficult to get into.
I can kind of see their point to an extent, but I also think they are missing the point entirely. This is an extended ode to God’s own social network, from someone who has a huge amount of affection for it and happens to also be a thoroughly entertaining writer. And that is the point; this is Grace Dent’s view on how the twittersphere should be, based on how she enjoys using it. Because that is what makes Twitter such an enjoyable experience, it is what YOU make of it. You shape your own Twitter experience by choosing what you post, who you follow, it is your own personal corner of the internet. Think someone is irritating on Twitter? Hit the unfollow button and problem solved. Dent’s book is quite vociferous in setting out her opinions of what the do’s and don’ts are of Twitter, but that doesn’t mean you have to live by them.
There are parts of Dent’s Twitter that I don’t recognise at all. She alludes to a constant stream of flirty sexual contact between tweople, but as a man who has been in a relationship since I joined I’ve never partaken, nor seen much evidence of it in my timeline. Or it could be that I’m so utterly dreadful at flirting that I utterly missed the massive amounts of flirtatious behaviour right under my nose. I also disagree hugely with some of the parts where she points out behaviour that she sees as unacceptable on Twitter. I’m pretty sure she’d unfollow me within a couple of days out of boredom. But that doesn’t really matter because that’s her view, not mine, and she puts it across with flair and excellently crafted humour that means that even when I disagree with her I’m still chuckling at her observations.
As a directional tool for how to use Twitter, it’s flawed. Which means it’s a good thing that isn’t what it is. It’s a personal take on a modern phenomenon which will have its audience of Twitter users chuckling at its honesty and its ire, as long as they are not so utterly pompous as to think they themselves have all the answers. I’m pretty sure Grace Dent doesn’t really think she does either, but it’s fun watching her pretend she does.
I can kind of see their point to an extent, but I also think they are missing the point entirely. This is an extended ode to God’s own social network, from someone who has a huge amount of affection for it and happens to also be a thoroughly entertaining writer. And that is the point; this is Grace Dent’s view on how the twittersphere should be, based on how she enjoys using it. Because that is what makes Twitter such an enjoyable experience, it is what YOU make of it. You shape your own Twitter experience by choosing what you post, who you follow, it is your own personal corner of the internet. Think someone is irritating on Twitter? Hit the unfollow button and problem solved. Dent’s book is quite vociferous in setting out her opinions of what the do’s and don’ts are of Twitter, but that doesn’t mean you have to live by them.
There are parts of Dent’s Twitter that I don’t recognise at all. She alludes to a constant stream of flirty sexual contact between tweople, but as a man who has been in a relationship since I joined I’ve never partaken, nor seen much evidence of it in my timeline. Or it could be that I’m so utterly dreadful at flirting that I utterly missed the massive amounts of flirtatious behaviour right under my nose. I also disagree hugely with some of the parts where she points out behaviour that she sees as unacceptable on Twitter. I’m pretty sure she’d unfollow me within a couple of days out of boredom. But that doesn’t really matter because that’s her view, not mine, and she puts it across with flair and excellently crafted humour that means that even when I disagree with her I’m still chuckling at her observations.
As a directional tool for how to use Twitter, it’s flawed. Which means it’s a good thing that isn’t what it is. It’s a personal take on a modern phenomenon which will have its audience of Twitter users chuckling at its honesty and its ire, as long as they are not so utterly pompous as to think they themselves have all the answers. I’m pretty sure Grace Dent doesn’t really think she does either, but it’s fun watching her pretend she does.
August 10, 2011
Three years ago Grace Dent joined Twitter and after some hesitation found herself addicted to the all consuming social networking site. How to Leave Twitter (Subtitled: My Time as Queen of the Universe and Why This Must Stop) is her wickedly witty guide to Twitter, that is not only hilarious but actually quite informative.
Dent advises on the stages of Twitter addiction (How to Join Twitter) as well as how to justify your Twitter addiction to non-Tweeting friends and family (I found this section very useful); the upsides, such as live tweeting for events and telly programmes, keeping abreast of breaking news and the like; the downsides, mainly consisting of other people's annoying Tweeting habits (though this is a section pretty much everyone on Twitter, if they are honest, will blush over as they recognise themselves); celebrities on Twitter (a very useful FAQ on the phenomena) and of course, How to Leave Twitter, or at least how to take a break and reclaim your life.
I really could relate as like Dent I created an account a while back and began following a few notable people and then drifted away wondering what all the fuss was about. Personally I remained in what Dent describes as the 'Resisting Twitter' stage until a few months ago when an invite to experience Eurovision 2011 via Twitter was so much fun that it caused me to skip over all the intermediate steps to become a full blown convert and semi-addict.
After finishing this I felt that it should be essential reading for anyone on Twitter or for those considering joining, though the level of in-jokes might be off-putting. I'm also not sure how well Dent's razor-sharp snarky humour will be received outside the UK though that is a matter of individual taste.
Alongside the material about Twitter, she includes some quite pointed rants, such as how the editors of women magazines tend to change her rather caustic style making her seem more warm and fuzzy. She is full of praise about how vocal women are on Twiiter and also how it has proved revolutionary for her work as a television critic as she is able to get the buzz on what people are watching and/or mocking. A little book full of gems and LOLs.
Dent advises on the stages of Twitter addiction (How to Join Twitter) as well as how to justify your Twitter addiction to non-Tweeting friends and family (I found this section very useful); the upsides, such as live tweeting for events and telly programmes, keeping abreast of breaking news and the like; the downsides, mainly consisting of other people's annoying Tweeting habits (though this is a section pretty much everyone on Twitter, if they are honest, will blush over as they recognise themselves); celebrities on Twitter (a very useful FAQ on the phenomena) and of course, How to Leave Twitter, or at least how to take a break and reclaim your life.
I really could relate as like Dent I created an account a while back and began following a few notable people and then drifted away wondering what all the fuss was about. Personally I remained in what Dent describes as the 'Resisting Twitter' stage until a few months ago when an invite to experience Eurovision 2011 via Twitter was so much fun that it caused me to skip over all the intermediate steps to become a full blown convert and semi-addict.
After finishing this I felt that it should be essential reading for anyone on Twitter or for those considering joining, though the level of in-jokes might be off-putting. I'm also not sure how well Dent's razor-sharp snarky humour will be received outside the UK though that is a matter of individual taste.
Alongside the material about Twitter, she includes some quite pointed rants, such as how the editors of women magazines tend to change her rather caustic style making her seem more warm and fuzzy. She is full of praise about how vocal women are on Twiiter and also how it has proved revolutionary for her work as a television critic as she is able to get the buzz on what people are watching and/or mocking. A little book full of gems and LOLs.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews