A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Year: Hundreds of Stories on the Pandemic

by Larry Smith (Editor)

The tenth book in the Six-Word Memoir series tells the story of a world we never expected to be in and can't stop talking about. Told through the lens of students, teachers, and parents around the world, A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Year offers hundreds of inspirational, playful, and profound takes on life during the pandemic. For some, this book will be a window. For others, a mirror of their own experience. For all of us, A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Year is a time capsule to be read, shared, and discussed and is certain to prompt friends, family, and neighbors to ask each other: "What's your six-word pandemic story?"

Genres: Nonfiction, Poetry, History, Memoir, Humor

168 pages, Paperback

Published October 15, 2021

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Larry Smith is the founder of The Six-Word Memoir® Project, a bestselling series of nine books, board game, live event program, and a global phenomenon found in classrooms, conferences, and corporate settings alike.

Larry speaks on the power of personal storytelling across the world. He has been invited to work with teams at Twitter, Levi’s, JPMorgan Chase, Snapchat, Dell, Yelp, Shutterfly, ESPN and Google; nonprofits including the Zen Hospice Project and Dress For Success, as well as foundations, philanthropies, and schools. He’s a frequent speaker at conferences such as TEDx, PopTech, Summit Series (called “Davos for the Millennials”), the AARP 50+ Convention. He teaches the class, “What’s Your Story? How to Deliver an Authentic Elevator Pitch” in private sessions and on-site at companies.

Prior to founding the Six-Word Memoir project, Larry had a robust career in journalism. He was articles editor of Men’s Journal, executive editor of Yahoo! Internet Life, senior editor at ESPN The Magazine, a founding editor of P.O.V. and editor-in-chief of its sister publication, EGG. While living in San Francisco, he was managing editor of the wire/syndication service AlterNet and an editor at Dave Eggers' Might Magazine. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, ESPN Magazine, Popular Science, Men’s Health, Salon, Slate, Buzzfeed, and has contributed essays to many anthologies, including Modern Love: 50 True and Extraordinary Tales of Desire, Deceit, and Devotion and The End of the Golden Gate: Writers on Loving and (Sometimes) Leaving San Francisco.

He lives in Berkeley, CA, with his wife, the writer Piper Kerman, and their son.

Reviews

[L.A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a teacher, we have recreated the classroom. We have zoom taught, social distanced taught, Google Classroom taught and some have even quit! We have been pelted by words that have been branded in our minds forever.
Whether a fellow teacher, yourself or the whole school system has been attacked, regardless it has hurt educators. We have stood in your shoes and wondered “What the heck?”
As a nation, rural schools, city schools or homeschool has felt the impact of Covid-19. We are still clueless what is right and what is wrong. We have leaders that throw their hands in the air and say “ Do the best you can!” We can’t please everyone so we please no one. Recently, I saw a meme Teachers are compared to the stewards on the Titanic. We all know how that ended.
So on a brighter note, this book is a reminder to 2020-2021….and however more years we have to experience this pandemic…..it has the many comments and quotes that were made by children and adults alike. I loved it and can’t wait to purchase it!! There were many “aha” moments and “I remember that!” I laughed aloud and also cringed at some reminders.
We have laughed, cried, lost many teachers, family members through this pandemic and most of all learned there are many of you that stand together and band with us. Some have offered their sympathy and prayers. Then there are those quick to point out the flaws as we struggle to regain our footing and keep educating a nation that has lost respect for a profession that continues to love your children…even the ones that have been told to disregard the adults.
Thank you NetGalley for this awesome book in exchange for my honest review.

[PattyMacDotComma · Rating 5 out of 5]

5★
“Numbers rose, but SUN did, too. - Paloma Lenz”

That’s one we all should remember.

Hemingway started it, famous story goes.
Challenge: write novel, only six words.
“For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”

Pandemic project challenged kids, teachers, parents.

Results terrific! Thoughtful, sad, funny, universal.

Illustrations, essays. Classroom kits are free.

Samples follow. Try this at home!

“Well, sure didn’t see that coming. - Alexis Davidson”

Mask on. Zoom on. PJs on. - Sami Bell, 10

Noun: Zoom ... Verb: Zoom ... Adjective: Zoom - Jennifer Schneider, teacher

Getting handle on pandemic. Need lid. - Krystyna Fedosejevs

Quota of family time was exceeded. - Dana Calvo

DADDY, go put on some PANTS! - Hazel Hoffman, 11

For Sale: prom dress, never worn. - Caroline Richardson, 19

Finally meeting neighbors after eight years. - Jaylene Henderson

Alexa, play wash your hands, please. - Zoey Valles, 5

Finally finished YouTube. Ending is disappointing. - Clara Bijl, Isa’s mom

Wonderful project and everyone enjoyed it.

I did, too, and so will you.

Now you know how, try it!

Thanks to #NetGalley and Six-Word Memoirs.

[Richard Derus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.

My Review: November 2006...a date that should live in...whatever the opposite of "infamy" is...that's when Larry Smith started SixWordMemoir.com, and unleashed the haiku poet in every English-speaker's soul. My own first one: "Not quite what I had planned" submitted on Twitter in 2013.

Six words doesn't leave room for prolixity and overdramatization. It's what makes the idea so irresistible. It's what makes the original challenge, issued legendarily to Ernest Hemingway, to tell a six-word story (his, if you need refreshing, was "For sale: Baby shoes, never worn") so deeply memorable. We're creatures of story and we love to immerse ourselves in language. When we take a short, sharp plunge into the Otherness of others, we're happy, happy souls. As witness to this truth, the collection I'm reviewing is the tenth brought into print! This is like that delicious, anonymous, yet public confessional, PostSecret. It's similarly public, it's more concise, and it's possibly even more revealing...but it's all part of the same urge, the need I know so many feel to unburden themselves, to celebrate their milestones, and to be seen and heard where it feels safe, especially when it doesn't feel safe to be any of those things in their community.

So here we are in a pandemic. Over a year without anything like normalcy. I guess it's no surprise to anyone that there were some feelings that needed to be bled out, and SixWordMemoir was exactly the right tool to lance the thing. The choice to direct this collection at educators, students, and parents trapped in the nightmare of too much togetherness plus too little social contact was inevitable and also genius. I read these wondering how the hell I would even begin to cope with kids, job, spouse, house, and the free-floating anxiety of not knowing what the hell was happening and how soon it would kill someone I love!

For a measly $2.99 on your Kindle, get one for yourself. But if you want to give a paper copy to someone special, ORDER NOW! (And the tree book would be great because illustrations are just *better* on a paper page.)

Some SixWordMemoirs to show you what I mean:

Six feet never felt so far. — Ava Russ, 15
A young woman whose entire adolescence was interrupted by this awful event makes her private pain part of a national conversation. I admire her. I know many, many young people will relate to her.
It goes over your nose, pal. — Stina Perkins
Yes. Yes, it does.
Getting handle on pandemic. Need lid. — Krystyna Fedosejevs
Budding philosopher. Also comedian. Needs job.
For sale: prom dress, never worn. — Caroline Richardson, 19
Extra poignance points for emulating the Hemingway original. Brava. Now go get your MFA.
How can emptiness feel so heavy? — Lincoln H.
Turning friends to strangers...all alone. — Chelsea P.
Not happy. Not sad. Just empty. — Tristan N.
These are all culled from the same elementary school. No one ever gets to tell me how kids aren't ready for the way the real world works, or that they don't have the skills to process the adult world. This gives those lies their brightest exit sign.

I was very touched by the essays written by teachers and other education professionals. They're not long, maybe 500 words at most, but they pack a wallop in their palpable grief and frustration at not being able to do what they love doing. One librarian here in New York shared that their students were able to come together to have Zoom sessions (and may I just say that Zoom has earned my undying gratitude for keeping me in touch with my Young Gentleman Caller on the regular?) with writers and poets after reading their work. One such writer was Luke Dani Blue, whose story about a trans person crossing the country (Canada, one presumes, as they're based in Alberta) by Greyhound bus elicited this question from a student:

"You and your characters seem to thrive and dream of uncertain circumstances because they hold so much possibility, yet very often in life we are disappointed and miscalculate the trajectory of our new paths. What would you say is your margin of error when it comes to dream versus actual trajectory?"
Blue was so stunned by the question, all they could say was, "Woah, I feel so seen by that question. I'm going to have to think about that one."

Yes, "seen" is the right word for it. Seen, seen through, seen off, seen! Seen indeed. Teenagers are, and we forget this at our societal peril, adults without perspective or impulse control. Their intelligence will never be sharper. Their training in how to use it is all we have left to offer them...and this goddamned plague means we can not offer it to them in the same, personal way. But, and this is the reason I bring it up, permaybehaps this new, screen-intermediated way will offer the young learners some advantages. I doubt that question would've come out of the asker's mouth with that level of fluency. A chance to think about it, try different ways of phrasing it, probably made that the best question it could possibly be.

So there's a hopeful side to this misery after all....

Now I'm a barber. Who knew? — John Tehan
Golden lining. Career opportunity? Probably not.
Masks protect us from farts, too! — Ruby Bryan
Special Ed teacher whose kids are profoundly disabled. But still kids...farts are hilarious to kids.
Numbers rose, but SUN did too. — Paloma Lenz
Yes. It did indeed. And it rose a little higher for me today. Thanks, Paloma, although we'll never meet you've made an old, disabled stranger a lot happier than he was before he read your words.

That, in a nutshell, is the magic of the internet.

[Rosh · Rating 4 out of 5]

All of us have had a “terrible, horrible, no good” couple of years. In the emotional upheaval of these last two years (and running), the highest impact has no doubt been felt in the field of education. Everyone knows how the medical fraternity have been the heroes of the pandemic, but a very close second have been teachers. From personal connections to two-way communications to friendly interactions, everything was suddenly partitioned with a screen and educators had to figure out almost overnight how to teach through Zoom.

Six Word Memoirs are known on Twitter for their six word “American haiku”. In this collection, they bring together six word one-liners from various members connected to education – students, teachers, principals, special trainers, administrators, parents, and so on. In addition, there are also essays by professional educators on how they adapted their teaching sessions to the online mode. While I liked the one-liners, what won my heart was the essays. They truly reflected how much of unheralded efforts the teaching community has put in over the years of the pandemic.

Most people will of course opt for this book because of the six word memoirs. So here’s a little bit more about them. They comes from a variety of age groups, right from 3 years plus. They cover a variety of moods: joy, despondency, anxiety, hope… Some of them are outright funny while others will make you feel a strong empathy. The only issue is that you can’t read this in one go. This is a book to be savoured slowly else it gets repetitive too soon.

Some of the pages contain illustrated six word memoirs where talented artist students not just composed their six-word sentence but also sketched a matching image for it. These are brilliant.

3.5 stars from me.

In six words,
Read but not in one go.

My thanks to Six-Word Memoirs and NetGalley for the ARC of “A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Year”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.



***********************
Join me on the Facebook group, Readers Forever! , for more reviews, book-related discussions and fun.

[Oyinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ✨

[Elizabeth Jorgensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have the print copy, which is beautifully designed. This is a timely collection -- a primary source artifact from the pandemic. I particularly enjoyed seeing two of my creative writing students included inside!

[Marianne Sciucco · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a terrific little book! There is so much insight and inspiration in these 6-word memoirs from writers across the education spectrum: children of all ages and grades, teachers, administrators, parents. It’s an easy way to understand the feelings, worries, despair and joys of those who lost a year (at minimum) of in-person schooling, and met for classes face-to-face on an impersonal , 2-dimensional screen or in classrooms spread 6 feet apart and asked, instructed to fear each other because the virus lurked everywhere. . All lost out on tactile learning, camaraderie, friendship, teamwork, and so much more. These very short stories contain few words but carry the weight of experience. They are accessible, digestible, and enlightening. Some of my favorites:

I taught math; they taught resiliency.

Finally, I can mute my teacher.

Internet down: the new “snow day.”

This was just one big emotional rollercoaster.

I’m inspired to write my own collection of 6-word memoirs!

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

CW: COVID-19 pandemic

Thank you to NetGalley and Six-Word Memoirs for an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This time capsule of a book asked people, "What's your six-word pandemic story?" This was specific to education - teachers, students, and parents. As a teacher through all of this - and currently teaching remotely - I knew I had to read this. It was refreshing to see some of my thoughts and feelings reflected in the words of others, that amidst the chaos, we "get" each other. I also like the six-word concept in general.

You're linked to schools? Read this

[Lisa Denton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before hearing about A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Year, I had not read any of the "6 word memoir" books. For anyone else unfamiliar with these collections, here is my understanding of how it works (simplified, I am sure): people are invited to write 6 words that capture the feeling of the book's topic; these 6 word memoirs are collected across all ages and groups of people and published to express society's diverse feelings on the subject.

The topic of A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Year is the COVID-19 pandemic, and all of the 6 word memoirs are written by students, parents, and teachers. The collection also contains illustrated 6 word memoirs, again created by students and art classes.

The collection is funny and touching and insightful. The thoughts are grouped by theme; for example, all the memoirs mentioning Zoom disasters (online school!) are grouped together, all the mentions of new hobbies, pets, and baking endeavors are grouped together, and all the thoughts about children who miss their grandparents, need their friends, and fear isolation are grouped together. Remember, these giant feelings are all packed into just 6 words by each contributor; that's the part that makes this book so impactful.

I love the idea behind this book; the 6 word memoir is such an amazing activity for students to express themselves and capture their big thoughts in a tiny snapshot. Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Deana · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book of "American Haiku" poems in the frame of 6-word stories. This book centers around student (with some teachers and parents) during COVID. It's amazing how 6 words can make you laugh, cry and be left speechless.

This is a great snapshot in time during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns where students learned via computer screens and not with teachers in person, with friends all around, with schedules full of activities. Where teachers had to suddenly shift plans and learn how to teach all over again.

A quick read and a good way to remember that tough time that we are still trying to recover from.

Thanks to NetGalley for the access for an honest review.

[Missy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a great snapshot of what young families and educators went through during the COVID-19 pandemic. Six-word stories were interspersed with short articles about what life was like in 2020. Some stories were funny, many profound, and many were sad. It showed the range of responses we had to being stuck at home. A representatuve six-word story: "COVID-19 taught us resilience amidst adversities."
I was given an advance reader's copy by #NetGalley for my review. #terriblehorriblenogoodyear

[Voyage · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was fantastic surprise!

I didn't expect much of Six-Word Memoirs - after all, how much can one say with 6 words? Well, I was wrong, because summing up a pandemic in six words really allows writers to dig deep into the experience to extract the most relevant phrase, or feeling, or event of the lockdowns. Some sentences even came from 3 or 5-year-olds and were incredibly thoughtful!

Put together, these Six-Word Memoirs really capture this unique moment in history through the lens of children, parents and teachers, with clever, deep or funny short sentences.

"Big plans today: oh, never mind"
"Social distancing myself from the fridge"
"Lost some friends and found myself"
"Hun, you're still on mute"
"Extrovert became introvert. Hesitant to revert."

While the book could have gotten slightly repetitive with only these short, 6-words sentences, they are interspersed with drawings and testimonies from teachers that allow us an even better dive into the experiences of those affected with school closures. We lived through the same pandemic, and being an university student, I expected to imagine well what school closures would be like, yet reading these sentences allowed me to better grasp how momentous the pandemic was for many of these pupils, teachers and parents.

*I received an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion*

[Nisha Joshi (swamped, will review whenever possible) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing, amazing endevour to describe the last year in six words. Some of the descriptions are funny, some poignant, some sad, but all of them remind you of the year that went by.

I'd love to have a print copy of this book one day.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Stacie · Rating 5 out of 5]

With 3 kids at home finishing out the school year of 19/20 and then teaching during 20/21, I remember the struggles, feelings of overwhelm, and disbelief that this is what school had become. But, I also remember resilience, perseverance, and a community of support like I had never felt before.

This is the tenth book in the Six-Word Memoir series and focuses on the parent, student, and teacher perspective told with just 6 words. The six-word story was made popular by Hemingway who was once challenged to write a novel with just six words. He wrote, “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” Since then, many classrooms have challenged students to write their own six-word stories. In fact, I was just given this assignment in a writing class I took this summer. I had to write both a scary six-word story and a funny one.

Rain, howling wind. House is gone.
No tip. Barista adds vinegar instead.

It was a fun assignment and one that I encourage other teachers to try in their classrooms. In this book, students, teachers, and parents both in the Midwest and on the East and West Coasts were given the challenge to share about the pandemic school year in a six-word memoir. Their perceptions and feelings resonated with me both as a parent and a teacher. Some of them I’m sharing below:

“Numbers rose, but sun did, too. ~ Larry Smith
“Synchronous. Asynchronous. Hybrid. Virtual. Zoom hell. ~Shelly Moran
“Protected kids mental health, neglected mine.” ~ Kelly Croasmun
“Pandemic epiphany: teachers are sorely underpaid.” ~ Mishell DeFelice
“Grace is more important than grades.” ~ Lisa Casillas

There were so many stories that had me laughing and crying. A music teacher who longed to share music with kids and was used to passing instruments and letting kids try making music was suddenly teaching kids over zoom which isn’t ideal for collective singing and playing music. Even once they had returned to in-person they were still forbidden to sing or even pass instruments. Instead, she turned to history and teaching kids about music greats, listening to their music, and allowing kids to study their favorite musicians. I laughed out loud with the teacher who works in a behavior classroom and found that masks not only kept her from getting COVID but also kept her from smelling her students’ farts.

From March 2020 to the present day, schools administrators, teachers, parents, and students have traveled through new experiences no one ever expected. Did some good things come out of this experience? Sure. We have learned new ways and maybe even better ways to teach and communicate with students through different sources of technology. Did we also suffer greatly? Yes. I still see ramifications of the pandemic in both elementary and high school classrooms that students may never overcome. Did we all make mistakes? Of course. But, we also learned so much from each other, and in reading this book, I learned that kids are smarter than we realize, more perceptive, and yet are quite adaptable. They learn from us and we learn from them.

If you have a teacher in your life, I recommend sharing this book with them. Let them know you appreciated all their efforts during the pandemic and maybe they will be encouraged to share their experiences and feelings in a six-word memoir. If you know of a classroom that might like to try writing their own six-word memoirs, but sure to check out the website, https://sixinschools.com/ to get their own classroom kit.

Six-Word Memoirs® is a simple way to engage and inspire anyone and everyone to get to the essence of who they are and what matters most.

[Jackie Hunter · Rating 3 out of 5]

One thing I think we can all agree on is that the pandemic has had an impact on our lives in some way. There were good parts, bad parts, and just about everything in between.

Educators and students in particular had their worlds turned upside down and had to adapt quickly to everchanging rules and guidelines while trying to maintain some semblance of normalcy. This book memorializes their (and parents!) experiences in the six-word story format.

Some were funny:

"Pandemic: zero out of five stars." - Penelope Williams, 11
"This doesn't spark joy at all." - Kimberly Ann Jardenil
"It goes over your nose, pal." - Stina Perkins
"My cat is tired of me." - Titus P.

While others invoked sadness:

"Six feet never felt so far." - Ava Russ, 15
"Connectivity issues disconnected teachers from me." - Phoenix Galicia
"Depression is more depressing without hugs." - Maya Sanchez
"Sadly, kids seem quieter after COVID." - Mario Montanaro, teacher

And some were all too (personally) relatable:

"Give me a break. I'm tired." - Paulina Bautista
"I'm sorry. I was on mute." - Kay Raye
"Tiger King. Schitt's Creek. Ted Lasso." - Krish Mukerjee
"Social distancing is this introvert's dream!" - Phoebe W.

One word that comes up over and over again is resilience. Humans are a resilient species but we all have our limits...which leads me to another word that appeared in this book many times: grace. If nothing else I hope we've learned to give each other (and possibly more importantly, ourselves) a little more grace. There's no denying that we all have struggles and things we're trying to manage through a little goodwill can go a long way.

In the spirit of this book my six word review summary is: Interesting takes on an unprecedented time.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Vidya Tiru · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recall reading Six-Word Memoirs on Love & Heartbreak a few years ago. While I did not review it, I do recall going through a roller-coaster of emotions as I read it.

Just like that one, this book is sure to evoke a multitude of emotions from its readers. It is a poignant, tugging-at-heartstrings that makes you smile. It is sweet and truthful, filled with humor and hope, and wisdom beyond the years. Though this book focuses on the pandemic as viewed by students, teachers, and parents, it will strike a chord with you. No matter who we are, or where we live, everyone has gone through the pandemic now; so everyone will find a lot to relate in this book.

Each six-word memoir had me fall in love with humanity, with the power of words, and made me hopeful for us. I also loved the included longer essays (a few of them) which talk about ‘Lessons Learned’ and the interspersed visual six word-memoirs with artwork by students.

We can chose to devour it in just a little time, and yet, we can spend endless hours dipping back into its pages, and pondering over our own six-words for, just about anything.

The SixWordMemoirs website offers resources for teachers to use in the classroom (ideal for homeschools too), and so much more as well.

Random Selection of Six-Word Memoirs
If I had to pick my favorites, I would simply have to share the whole book. Instead, I randomly picked a few across the pages:

Exercise in futility; P.E. on Zoom. – Elsie Thompson, 14
Mask Pivot: Smile With Your Eyes
Social distancing myself from the fridge. – Maria Leopoldo
Traded homegrown avocados for toilet paper. – JL Nuss
My heart misses a MILLION people. – Lucette Cortese, 5

Disclaimer: Thanks to Netgalley for the digital review copy of the book. These are my honest opinions of the book.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Year took me back to the first few months of the pandemic when we were all trying to get used to being at home more and doing what needed to be done to stop the virus.
Now for some of us were still having to do that, and I am one of those people. Because of this reading how so many other people were feeling the same thing that I am and was still feeling.

This pandemic made us all realize and change some things in our life. From trying to figure out how to do almost everything remotely. But it also made us realize the important things in life and the things that mean the most to us. From family and friends to getting to go out when we choose to instead of just when we have to do. It's been a lot for all of us and it's been a very memorable and teaching experience.

I felt so much connection to so many of the 6-word stories and I loved all the little art pieces thrown in to illustrate some of the stories.

Overall I enjoyed and appreciated this book. It helps show that we're all not alone and it's not over yet, but we've learned a lot in the past almost 2 years now, and we can do this and make it finally end hopefully soon.

[Becki · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a teacher, so I found this "Six Word Memoirs" book especially poignant. While the book contains some short essays by educators, the majority of the book is made up of the memoirs themselves– from students, teachers, and parents. (Some of the memoirs include artwork, too!)

This book was a quick and easy read, but the memoirs moved me...
"Not happy. Not sad. Just empty. (Tristan N)" stopped me in my tracks. How did this kid so concisely sum up my entire pandemic experience?
"Social distancing is this introvert's dream. (Phoebe W)" made me laugh. Right on, friend!
"Senior class president. No senior class (Whisper Schroeder)" made me mourn again for my adult children's pandemic losses (my youngest graduated HS in 2020 and my oldest graduated college in 2021).

Some really beautiful insights in this book, along with information for teachers about creating Six Word Memoir lessons for students.

My thanks to the author, publisher, and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of this book.

[Lahars_little_library · Rating 3 out of 5]

I teach, my preschoolers watch TV.
More on that later...

A Terrible Horrible No Good Year
Six Word Memoirs
By Teachers, Students, and Parents
Edited by Larry Smith
Described as "America's hiaku" teachers, students, and parents described their remote learning experience in 6 brief words. I enjoyed reading these but this books real value lies in the the possibility of your own creation. I'm already thinking of how I can teach my students how to write in this simple style!

...I remember teaching remotely to be a "never enough" scenario. Everyday I tried to give quality instruction to struggling readers virtually, with my just barely 4 and 2 year old in the background. It was all I could do to squeeze feeding and potty training in between zoom sessions. I knew I was asking for way more independence than a 3 and 2 year old should have to give. I felt inadequate in every way but especially as a Mom. So that's the story behind my 6 word memoir.

I teach, my preschoolers watch TV...

Thank you #netgalley and @six.word.memoirs for this book in exchange for an honest review!

[Debra · Rating 5 out of 5]

For those who are just learning about this 6-word phenomenon, you are in for a treat! This book is the newest installment in a series of 6-word memoirs inspired, so the story goes, by Earnest Hemingway. These memoirs are the reflections of students, teachers, and parents during and about their COVID-19 school-related experience. Art and essays, also reflecting on the pandemic learning experience, are interspersed among these observant and heart-wrenching memoirs. Although I am not a student or teacher in the traditional sense, these shared experiences recalled my own pandemic life (past and present)--both positive and negative. These memoirs are observant, inspired, and heart-wrenching. They are clever, brilliant, concise, touching, funny, and inspiring. I highly recommend!
I received an advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I just reviewed A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Year by Six-Word Memoirs. #NetGalley

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hadn't heard of the six-word memoirs before, but I was intrigued. Describing something in six words sounds like a challenge, especially for someone who is as wordy as I am (just ask my editor). However, I can definitely see how it can appeal to students. Instead of the pressure of writing a full paper, they can express their thoughts in six consise words.

Through six-word submissions as well as essays from educators, this book describes the pandemic in words that we all certainly thought:

"You're muted. You're muted! You're MUTED!"

"Not enough sweatpants for this gig."

And plenty more about surviving life in quarantine, homeschooling, teaching on Zoom and more. It was cute, it was fun, but it didn't say or provide anything new than many of us saw in memes on Facebook. The stories/essays were interesting, but this book was just cute. I love the idea of a six-word memoir and I think this did a good job with capturing a pandemic, especially from an educational perspective.

[Ioana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like reading about education and about how other people make school better. Well, the spring of 2020 was something else for everyone, whether they had to do with education or not. Reading A Terrible, Horrible, No Good Year, a collection of short memoirs reminded me that it's never just us.

Some of the poems/ stories/ memoirs are relatable, some are gut-punchingly true, others are funny, others very sad. The entire collection captures what school has been like since the pandemic started. Although the entries are from people in US, I can vouch it's been the same for educators in many other countries. I personally saw myself in many of them, as well as my students.

This idea is also wonderful to implement in the classroom atany level, in any subject. It gave me something to think about and I can't wait to get my students writing. After all, six words can tell a story.

I received a free e-book copy of the book from the publisher via Net Galley. All thoughts expressed here are my own.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a former teacher, I’m no stranger to 6-word memoirs — I wasn’t sure this book would be anything too unique. However, I’m happy to say I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I had things to do, but couldn’t stop reading and finished it all in one sitting. Numerous students contributed their 6-word memoirs, and there were enough heavy, light and funny ones to make this readable without feeling sad. The memoirs are grouped by topic, with some art pieces included, along with some short accounts of teaching or learning in the pandemic. My favorite story was about a teacher figuring out how to teach her students in a juvenile detention facility who already had so many constraints. Although I no longer teach, I found this enlightening and interesting to read. No stories are about any personal deaths due to covid. It mostly centers around learning in the pandemic and dealing with home isolation.
Thanks to NetGalley for a copy.

[Lisa Cudd · Rating 5 out of 5]

A dear friend gifted me this book.

I loved it because it's one of those books you could read for a few minutes, put it down, and pick it up 2 days, 2 weeks, or 2 months later, and you never miss a beat.

But mostly I loved it because I saw how I felt throughout the shut down through the eyes of our parents, teachers and students - in all levels of life - pre K to college, black to white to Asian, public school to private school to art institutes.

Two passages that obviously resonated with me (because I bookmarked them) are 1) Maybe hard, but we survived this! - Dylan age 10, and 2) the Lesson Learned by Desperate Dad who decided to take his 2 daughters, their girlfriends, a tutor and her boyfriend who was the activities director/nurse on a month long "DIY Camp" that included hiking, swimming and math. (Read about it on pages 136-137).

I encourage everyone to read it. Definitely a 5/5 rating!

[Christi Flaker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, as a teacher this book really hit home. It encapsulated the good, the bad and they ugly of all that is teaching during a pandemic. From young children to parents to educators it really doesn't matter the age in 6 words so much can be conveyed. Without looking at ages I would not have always been able to tell which came from which ages.

I also enjoyed the little interludes of personal stories of growth and learning from the pandemic. The mini essays interspersed throughout broke up the 6 word memoirs which I feel helped to keep them more meaningful.

I would really love to try this concept of six-word memoirs with my seniors to see what they can come up with reflecting on their educational careers.

The art-work was another amazing aspect of the book. I would love to own this one in a physical copy to revisit and have in my classroom as a reminder of the year(s) we will never forget.

[Nana · Rating 5 out of 5]

These six word memoirs by students, parents, and teachers reflecting on the pandemic, for me was unique. As one teacher said, using only six words teaches students to break things down into smaller bites. While reading the book, I thought this most of helped so many people, take them away from all that was happening around them, to change the way they think about it to sum it up in a six-word sentence.
It was nice to read the stories, their six-word sentence, and it got some excited, and it was a way of taking a terrible, horrible, no good year, and make it memorable. I think this will become a treasured time capsule, of making it through the pandemic.
I received an ARC from six-word memoirs through NetGalley and I highly recommend you read this with your family. It seemed to take me away from all that was going on and into a quiet place.

[Pam Withers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ask students, teachers and parents to comment on the pandemic in six words, and you get clever lines like:
Finally I can mute my teacher.
Tired. This making history is exhausting.
Internet down: the new “snow day.”
I am working. I’m researching sleep.
For sale: prom dress, never worn.
Not enough sweatpants for this gig.

Sprinkled amongst this collection of thoughts (these new cousins of haiku) are short essays, mostly by teachers. That makes it a book for all ages, one that readers might find amusing/reflective/inspiring now (and will start them creating their own), and a poignant reminder of the ups and downs we’ve all experienced when we read it again years from now.
This review also appears at www.YAdudebooks.ca

[Elisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Terrible, Horrible No Good Year: Hundreds of Stories on the Pandemic is a collection of six word memoirs and a few essays on the events of 2020 from students, teachers and parents. It shows the sadness, frustration and in some cases relief around lockdown, the COVID virus and how the world changed in that time.

It is poignant, often funny, and highly relatable. I especially loved the stories by the students, and then the follow-up response from their parents or teachers. I felt this gave a clearer persepective and was often funny too.

I highly recommend this book as a fun and clever way to reflect back on a year that was hard but at times gave us great insight and maybe even a little bit of joy.

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Larry Smith has edited and written several books of Six Word Memoirs. THIS book is by students, parents and teachers about the pandemic year.

Different fonts are used. Beautiful colored pages are created by students at Kansas City Art Institute. Families’ memoirs are on the same page.

A variety of teachers wrote a few paragraphs about their experiences — the librarian, the music teacher, the physics teacher, a teacher of incarcerated students. Each had to create ways to overcome barriers given during the year.

Unusual and delightful book.