...And Then You Die of Dysentery: Lessons in Adulting from The Oregon Trail

by Lauren Reeves, Jude Buffum (Illustrator)

A quirky, nostalgic send-up to the Oregon Trail computer game, featuring snarky and hard-earned life lessons from the trail. 

Pack your wagons, find your ride-or-(literally) die friends, and roll up to Matt’s General Store with a sack of cash—it’s time to hit the Oregon Trail, twenty-first-century style! …And Then You Die of Dysentery is the perfect send-up to the sometimes frustrating, always entertaining, and universally beloved Oregon Trail computer game. Featuring a four-color design in the game’s iconic 8-bit format, alongside pop culture references galore, the book offers 50 humorous, snarky lessons gleaned from the game’s most iconic moments, including gems such
— Suffering from exhaustion is a real thing . (It’s not just PR code for why a celebrity went to rehab.)
— If you hunt too frequently in one area, game will become scarce. (The first signs of gentrification!)
— Invite your sweetie to cuddle with you while looking up at the stars. (The night sky was the original Netflix & Chill. Step 1: Loosen up Orion’s belt...)

With its laugh-out-loud commentary and its absurdist nostalgia,  ...And Then You Die of Dysentery  is the ultimate trip down memory lane … all the way to the Willamette Valley.

Genres: Humor, Nonfiction, Adult, Pop Culture, Self Help, Comedy, Video Games

112 pages, Hardcover

First published October 16, 2018

Reviews

[Kate Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good chuckles. I rolled my eyes at a couple of the "liberal snowflake" and vegan jokes. I'm not "offended," I just think they're trite, boring jabs. Otherwise, the book is entertaining. I don't think I'd want to buy a copy for myself. It only takes a few minutes to read and there weren't any jokes or comments that I really felt inspired by or that I wanted to go back and read again. My recommendation would be: pick it up at your library, chuckle, pass it to the next person.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

This charming little book is a fab reminder to keep things in perspective, don’t take life too seriously, and always remember: bears are fucking everywhere so get your shit together, Janice, we won’t carry your ass to Oregon even if it is in pieces.

[Christina · Rating 2 out of 5]

This should not be a book. This should be a Buzzfeed listicle titled “30 ways Oregon Trail is basically adulting.”

For a certain age group, it's funny to see how childhood and real life connect. Some of the connections were tenuous at best, but still funny. It's a book that will get dated very quickly though as it relies heavily on contemporary culture and slang.

Nice for a quick read and a quick laugh, but just as quickly forgotten, like the Buzzfeed article you posted on your friend’s wall 2 weeks ago and totally forgot when your friend mentioned it.

[Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was expecting this to be short, but not "you can finish this in 10 minutes" short. It was funny at points, but not nearly funny enough and definitely did not need a "liberal snowflake" joke. It wasn't clear what angle it was coming from, and given that, I was not inclined to give the author the benefit of the doubt, particularly with a few of the other jokes giving it context.

[Susan · Rating 1 out of 5]

While I saw that the book was short, I didn't realize it was the meme version of a picture book. Took about 6 minutes total to read. Humor was mediocre, and oddly geared toward people much younger than those of us who actually played this game as kids. Most Buzzfeed lists are far superior to this book. One star- if you're interested or curious about this one, just flip through it while browsing a store, but don't waste your money.

[Emma Ann · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two stars solely for the cute pixel art. I thought I was picking up a collection of essays. Instead this book is a collection of … joke tweets? But not even good ones? For example:

“Always take the depth and width of a river into consideration before crossing it. YOLO!”

Every page of the book is like this and only one joke out of the whole thing is funny. I’ll save you the time. Here it is:

“Bad news is best delivered swiftly, like a rattlesnake bite. Anyway, Timmy’s dead.”

[Colona Public Library · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you remember playing The Oregon Trail computer game, you will definitely have to read this book. The author Lauren Reeves compares things that happened in the game to real life now. It is hilarious. The illustrations are pixelated to reflect the same way the computer game was. It is a must read.

~April

[Telthor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Y'know what? I wish this was a series of pop culture essays relating adulthood to the Oregon Trail game, instead of a series of trite little comments (most of which aren't particularly funny or insightful, shrug) with pictures.

The pictures are by far and away the greatest part of this. I looove pixel art. Love it love it. It gets a star on its own right just for the illustrative work. So cute. So Stardew Valley. So '90s gaming. I'm love.

But the rest of it is kinda pointless and some of the jokes are kind of off (a liberal snowflake joke? a 2010 "hide yo kids, hide yo wife" joke? pls), and it has no functional value beyond flipping through it for ten minutes and putting it back.

It's $15 to buy it new, guys. Don't buy it new. Unless it's a jokey graduation gift for someone, and even then, buy them coffee or a new pillow case instead: they've probably cried all their stress into their old one and could use that more than this little book.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this up purely for memorabilia's sake. I'm a sucker for an alluring title. I remember playing this classic game in elementary school and always being frustrated that we weren't allotted more time in the computer lab to explore the trail.

As another reviewer pointed out, I was expecting this to be short, but not so short I could finish it over the course of breakfast. The book may have elicited a chuckle or two, but nothing was really laugh out loud funny. Besides stirring up some fond memories from childhood, I'm not sure what this book would be good for, other than making a quick buck (if that) at the local Half Price Books.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick and Fun read.
Had to go back and play a game of Oregon Trail because the color illustrations threw me off as I only remember playing the black and neon green DOS version
Which makes me as OLD AS THESE HILLS!

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was expecting this to be a lot funnier than it was. There were a few really funny ones, but the majority of them didn’t do much for me.

Here are two of my favorites:

“Bad news is best delivered swiftly,
like a rattlesnake bite.


Anyway, Timmy’s dead.”

(Ugh, that used to annoy me so much!!! “______ was bit by a rattlesnake and died suddenly.” Like, jeez, there was no time to administer the tourniquet/suction method????)

And...


“Deal with your haters by naming
your wagon party after them.


Sorry you got diphtheria and died, Janice!”

(We all did this!!!)


The art was a really great nod to the old school graphics of the first Oregon Trail game. It was cool to see, even though I primarily played Oregon Trail II.


**read for book scavenger hunt - a book with an unusual title**

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably closer to 2 stars but I’m rounding up for pure nostalgia. There were a couple of moments that were truly funny and I did laugh at the intro, but I think Lauren’s Oregon Trail game was fancier than the one I grew up playing on the Apple II-e computers at school, so it missed the mark a bit for me. Also, there’s not much in the way of real life lessons. It’s mostly just clever illustrations with snarky quips that mostly aren’t funny. The illustrations are fabulous, though, and I think the book is worth taking a look at for those alone. My life lesson from this book that I will share with you is borrow a copy, enjoy it for what it is, and save your cash for food or oxen. Oxen would be a better investment.

[Erin Cataldi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute little coffee table book that is sure to garner some laughs and inspire some conversation about the fucked up past time of playing the Oregon Trail. Everyone remembers their first death - this book combines adulting with life skills we learned from playing the classic computer game, The Oregon Trail. The illustrations/graphics go along hilariously well with each maxim and this cute book will make a great stocking stuffer. I wouldn't mind having some of these "life lessons" framed and hanging. A quick but fun read.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was cute, brought back many memories of trying to survive the Oregon trail from junior high. “If you’re not careful, thieves will ransack your wagon and steal ammo, oxen and good while you sleep. So hide your kids; hide your wife.”

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh man so many good memories playing that Oregon Trail game!! Humorous and light hearted read that made me chuckle.

[Cook Memorial Public Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

A 2018 staff favorite recommended by Ellen B. Check our catalog: https://encore.cooklib.org/iii/encore...

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

LAUGH OUT LOUD Hilarity and realness and fun pix-elated imagery for anyone of my generation who played this awesome game. Everything about it is both true, accurate and funny!

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing, but very short. It took me 10 min to read!

[Alicia Bayer · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a disappointment. My oldest kids and hubby were big fans of the game back in the day, even though it was already old when my kids were playing it. This is not what I was expecting. Each two page spread is a pixel drawing and one line about something that might happen in the game in the game, with another line that's supposed to be funny and modern. Think hashtags about sponsored posts and jokes about vegans and liberal snowflakes. It's literally a five minute read. Someone else compared it to a buzzfeed list and I'd agree with that. This is definitely not book-worthy, and will probably not appeal to the kind of people who actually liked The Oregon Trail.

My husband picked it up at the library for me after I ordered it through interlibrary loan and he told me he was excited to read it from the cover and hated it, so that one star is from both of us. So glad I got it from the library and didn't spend money on it.

[Emmy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a rather disappointing little book. I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't this. Mostly, we get a laundry list of memes and references that aren't even going to be popular (or possibly even remembered!) in about five years. There are lessons tucked in here, to be sure, but I didn't think it was really worth the eight minutes it took me to read this (yes, I timed myself).

[Linnea · Rating 2 out of 5]

The introduction is quite nice and the pixelated art is good, but the rest...nah.

Short pieces of text which are, supposedly, funny "life lessons"/"lessons in adulting" learned from the Oregon Trail games. Most of them I don't find particularly funny, though I'll admit to a chuckle here and there, and retro game nostalgia certainly helps. As for life lessons, I see where the book is aiming but I don't think any of the ideas are profound enough to be "lessons" in anything, and some of them are real head-scratchers as to what point was.

[Lissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to enjoy this book, because when I was young, I LOVED playing The Oregon Trail whenever I could (we didn't have a computer at home, so I basically had to beg my teachers to let me stay inside during recess so I could play the game). Some of the illustrations are mildly funny, but the humor mostly falls flat for me. I didn't really see anything memorable in the book, and the jokes will be completely dated within a few years. Meh.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mildly amusing, but not as funny as I'd hoped. The title was probably the funniest bit (and the whole reason I picked it up). I'd expected a collection of short essays, but the "lessons" turned out to be one-liner jokes, with illustrations. As another reviewer commented, this is just a glorified Buzzfeed listicle, full of pop culture references that will be dated in less than a year. Overall, disappointed.

[Lindsay Clark · Rating 1 out of 5]

I checked this out of the library expecting it to be about the generation that grew up with The Oregon Trail. I even hoped it would be scholarly. It was neither of those things. The only way in which I would consider this a “book” is that it is bound like one. It’s really more like someone printed out a bunch of not-funny tweets and strung them together.

[Rhonda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not at all what I expected. It's a picture or graphic and 1-2 sentences tying the Oregon trail game experience to current life. A few were clever but mostly this book gets a solid "meh." Was really looking forward to it so maybe expectations were too high. Read in 10 minutes.

[Jan Polep · Rating 4 out of 5]

It will only take 10 minutes to read this book and I guarantee you will snort laugh a couple times even if you aren't old enough to have played Oregon Trail on an Apple IIe. Look for the pages that talk about inadequate grass for oxen and the one about delivering bad news like a snake bite.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

2 for the book, an extra star for the artwork.

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute and quick read, especially for those of us who grew up playing Oregon Trail. This would make a great gift for graduates and anyone who loves Oregon Trail.

[Sarah Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was hilarious and a very quick read. My co-worker had read it and passed it to me so I read it on a break. It made me LOL so loud that people thought I was laughing at something else! It mixes Oregon Trail with pop culture of today. So if you are familiar with both you will probably find this book funny, but if you are not you will miss some of the jokes.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh.