The World According to Mimi Smartypants: Witty Online Musings on Ordinary Life's Surreal Reality

by Mimi Smartypants

Just who is this Mimi Smartypants, anyway?

She's 30 (but looks younger), 5'1" (but looks taller). She's never faced a situation she couldn't comment about -- especialy online! She lives in Chicago with her husband, LT, and her large cat, The Cat -- not to be confused with Kat (female friend, good for fashion advice, philosophical discussions, and getting into trouble in bars). She's never had a cavity and likes to look in other people's medicine cabinets. She's witty, urbane, outrageous, an international sensation; she's got a unique, smartypants take on ordinary life and its rampant surreality. And absolutely nothing is sacred or taboo -- not men, marriage, beer, religion, sex, marital aids, or motherhood.

Get ready world -- because Mimi's going to explain it all to you!

Genres: Memoir, Humor, Nonfiction, Chick Lit, Biography Memoir, Essays, Comedy

256 pages, Paperback

First published August 2, 2004

Reviews

[ba · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is basically an archive of excerpts from the blog at smartypants.diaryland.com, which is one of the most popular personal blogs, and one which I've been compulsively reading for years. Does it work as a book? I dunno; Kind of. I actually bought it for two reasons. Firstly as a historical document. I think in even a few short years, we're going to forget what was so cool about blogging, just like it's hard to explain why Ham radio was so cool, now that everyone has a cell phone. And B, someone should make some money off blogging, and it shouldn't be the people who do. (Hey, it makes sense to me, OK?). I've never donated any money to Ms. "Smartypants," but I've utilized her service for years. So when she did this book, I had no hesitation about buying a copy.

Also, am I the only one that bought the hardcover version? All the other reviews are for the softcover edition.

[Mel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I read Mimi's views on the world, I thought I was alone! She has a wry sense of humor and a quirky view on the world at large.

My views on religion may differ from hers, but that didn't keep me for enjoying her lists, links and life as she interprets it.

Since reading this book, I have been following her online diary and laughing til I pee a little. I have also started a live journal of my own for venting, and a public blog for standing on a soap box before the world at large.

(Mimi, who remains anonymous as the author of the book and diary, doesn't really wear pink stillettos)

[Badmoodbear · Rating 5 out of 5]

I reread this book because after 'One good turn' i needed something not so complex with all the characters.
I like diaries because of the everyday observations. Sometimes i wish i wasnt so lazy to document the crazies on my train every morning etc.
I like the words in this book too. That makes no sense - like why i like the words in this book more than others. But i do.

[Amanda C · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was expecting this to be somewhat more entertaining, per say. I think I had in my mind a "Sex and the City" narration, or even a "Julie/Julia"... however this seems to be exactly what it is, a random woman's thoughts that are somewhat jumbled, uninteresting and mundane.

I struggled to finish it and only did so for two reasons, I wanted to see if it got any better (it didn't) and I hate starting a book and not finishing it.

I wouldn't exactly recommend this book but if you're someone who used to steal your sister's diary, then you might like it.

[Jeremy Preacher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been reading Mimi for years (since around when this book deal went through, actually) and the book does a reasonable job of capturing her wacky non-linear style. It's edited pretty heavily - each "day" is a neat little anecdote rather than her usual "here are twelve things I thought about recently" and the daily diary format is palpably fake, but I laughed pretty hard at quite a few things.

It's not bad, and it's a quick read. But, you know, it's Mimi Smartypants - her diary is still around, still updated, awesome, and free.

[Slayermel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has got to be one of the funniest books I have read in a long time. It's a bunch of diary entries from a blogger named Mimi Smartypants. It's a quick fun read, with really no purpose behind it other then her sharing her views with us.
I think I found this book so entertaining because she reminds me so much of my close friends and myself. The things she says and thinks about, and some of the crazy stuff she comes up with. :0)
I laughed out loud so many times!!!

[Poppy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious. Read it on plane rides to and from Vegas. I'm telling you, you just haven't experienced Vegas until you've Mimi Smartypants-ified yourself. I mean, you look over at the casinos as your plane taxis up the runway, and you think, "I wish I knew what Mimi would make of Vegas." So get on that, Mimi Smartypants, OK?

[Julian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mimi is my favorite blogger ever and this is a collection of her first few years of entries. Some of the earliest entries are not the best but I still love this too much to not give it 5 stars. Don't judge this by its awful chick-lit cover!

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a bit biased as I know Mimi, but she's just hilarious and witty. This is especially fun if you're a Chicagoan or a Knoxer.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finally ordered this book (from Better World Books) because I've been wanting to read it for about a decade now. I liked it very much, but I'd read all of it before, back when I, like Mimi, had an online journal on diaryland (we were actually on each other's buddy lists there for a couple of years). I wish I could say I still read her writing every day, because it is always funny and entertaining, often with awesomely obscure links and such, but sometime around 2003, I stopped. Reading this book reminded me how much I enjoyed her quirky and intelligent musings, but it also made me feel old, as my brain kept teleporting me back to 14 years ago when I had dial-up internet on my first ever computer and I first discovered the fun world of online blogging, a hobby that I always really enjoyed, but just don't have the time for anymore. Four stars, Ms. Smartypants, out of respect and nostalgia.

[Richard Magahiz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This blog turned book comes from around the same time as Julie and Julia but it neither tries to organize itself according to some overarching principle nor takes such a horrifying turn, memoir-fashion, but meanders in its own obsessive way. It's an odd memento from a time not that different from the present, with the political and economic scenes making scarcely a ripple in the hyperfocus of her attention on the mundane. She did not set out to make great art but it's comforting in its own way if you are already a reader of the blog. Otherwise, it seems unlikely that anyone would go search this book out.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I already read the blog this book comes from, but I had no idea she had a book until a month ago. Mimi Smartypants is smart, opinionated, funny, and assertive. She is a lot of things I'm not and would (secretly) like to be. The only downside is that this is truly a diary and not fiction or a memoir--meaning that there is NO plot whatsoever to this book. It's not building toward anything. Nothing really happens in the book (she's already married, and has a good job, etc. etc.) but I had a great time reading her thoughts. I'm reading all the archives at the blog.

[Ariel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mimi can talk down her book all she wants ("Embarrassing!" seems to be her most frequent response to being an author), but this book is funny and inspiring. Mimi always encourages me to take my own humor writing over the edge of absurdism. The true magic in her writing is that she takes a joke farther, and farther, and just when you're like "Oh ha ha -- way to take it there!" she takes it a half step farther and you're all "Oh oops, I peed myself."

I'm knocking off a star only because this isn't original material. I'd love a Mimi book of original writing.

[Liddy Barlow · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the paperback equivalent of my favorite gummy bears from Fresh Market: it is full of empty calories, but it's so delicious you can't stop. Mimi Smartypants is a blogger from Chicago, and this plotless book is a collection of some of her wittiest entries. I checked it out of the library after a librarian, seeing me growing increasingly frustrated with a fruitless browse, thrust it into my hands and told me it would make it laugh. And it did, over and over again. Nothing wrong with gummy bears every once in a while.

[Bill Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up in Singapore, and it started me reading the only blog I have ever stuck with on the internet. I find Mimi's comments inviting, refreshing and amazingly close to my feelings. I even joined goodreads because of MiMi. I only rated it 3 stars because of the disjointed feeling I t reading a edited blg.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

My good friend Rachel gave me this to read. Very easy, mindless read. The only thing I took issue with is having things that I though were unique to me written in a book by a blogger in Chicago. Seriously - her favorite bar, flower, foot-wear, music. Now I understand that she and I both have named our daughters the same name. Maybe I am mimi smartypants.Thanks Rach!

[Ashley M · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book hilarious at times and had to stop myself from laughing out loud in public for fear of people thinking I am insane. While it's not great writing, mostly because it is a collection of her blog entries, her take on Chicago was appreciated and she had some funny stories that I could relate to. Good for a quick giggle-fix.

[Aubrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book hugely entertaining and frequently hilarious. I haven't picked it up in...Holy crap, six years?! OK, apparently six years, but I can still recall specific passages like "inexplicable absence of dead bird!" and the bit about the "monkey shop." That's more than I can say about a lot of other books I've read in the interim.

[Kellie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Needed something light to read after The Hunger Games, and this fit the bill. Had just picked it up for a buck at the library book sale.

Done in diary/journal format, it was easy and quick and made me laugh out loud a lot. Reminded me a bit of the Laurie Notaro books. Mimi and her husband must have a lot of fun together, that's all I'm saying.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is basically just the dead-tree encapsulation of some of her standout diary entries from smartypants.diaryland.com - but she's got a smart, witty voice and a knack for everyday observation that I quite enjoy. It's a fun, quick read.

[Carrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is just some of Mimi Smartypants' earlier blog postings in book form. I love Mimi, she's the kind of cool that I always wished I could be. It doesn't exactly have a plot, it's just her random thoughts, but it's funny. I would recommend just reading her blog, though. It's better.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book hard to read at times. It's main set up is like a so so blog. If you like reading blogs, which I have a couple of my own, this is the only way I see you wanting to read this book. If you are not a blog reader, this book is not for you.

[Traci · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love her blog. I would never read this book if I saw it on a shelf. The publishers did a real disservice to her, but on the other hand, they contacted her and said, hey can we print your blog? We will give you money. And so naturally she said yes.

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny in bits, but nowhere near as funny as her website. Think this one was seriously edited down. Love to read Mimi both because she's a Chicago-an, and because we're only a couple degrees of separation - one of my NY buds went to college with her and roomed with one of her best friends.

[Curlita · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love her web site primarily for her irreverent tales from the parenting trenches -- but her irreverent tales about ANYTHING are pretty damn funny, too. This books is no exception. Fun, light read.

[Bridget · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a collection of blogs written on Diaryland by Mimi Smartypants. She is hilarious! She still updates the Diaryland blog a few times a month - worth your time to check it out!

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

funniest book I have ever read -- her blog is also to die for.

[Lala · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sort of a pre-Jen Lancaster type book. Mimi isn't as ascerbic as Jen Lancaster but definitely had her moments.

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a light read and made me laugh all the way through. Mimi is smart, funny and independant, she is everything a woman wants to be.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been reading Mimi's blog for years, and I love this collection of her earlier posts.

Makes for very good subway reading.