The Guy Who Decides: Australia's funniest social media sensation

by Jimmy Rees

Have you ever wondered who made the call on imperial measurements, collective nouns for animals, horoscopes and Olympic sports? What were they thinking? And why do parents insist on naming their children after cities, cars and smoothie ingredients (Paris, Mercedes and Kale, we're looking at you...)?

The Guy Who Decides, Jimmy's first book for adult readers, expands upon his hilarious videos lampooning the absurd conventions and rules of our modern world through the outlandish characters of The Guy Who Decides (who appears to be several martinis deep at all times) and his underling, Jason. Meanwhile, from Brighton to Byron Bay and beyond, prepare to meet a bunch of Australians who are as funny/scary as they are uproariously familiar!

Genres: Comedy

362 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 27, 2022

Reviews

[The Book Squirrel · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was funny but not as funny as his videos and I'm not entirely sure the style of humour translates well onto the page.
That's not to say people won't love it. I can see fans giving the book 5 stars.

[Melissa Riley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun and easy read, not sure a book was the best format for a very visual style of comedy though. I could hear the voices of Jimmy’s characters as I was reading, because I was quite a fan of his skits during the Covid lockdowns, so I still had a good time!

[Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jimmy is probably the funniest man on Earth. After watching practically all his videos, I was overjoyed when I received this as a birthday present!
This is a really quick read, only taking me about two hours but it was probably the best 2 hours of my day!
Please make a sequel with all meanwhile in Australia scripts!!

[Eva Siperki · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is hilarious and I was crying laughing for the whole book.

[Kylie Dunn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kept us going through Covid. Very funny man!

[Lacey Cronick-Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first discovered this author on Instagram reels and went down a rabbit hole of watching his videos. When I saw he had a book I was straight to the bookstore!
Jimmy Rees has crafted a perfect way of putting his ideas and comedy sketches into an easy format that's just as funny to read as it is to watch.
Fan favourite skits such as 'The Guy Who Decides' and 'Pass the Test' are shown in all their glory.
If you're a fan of Jimmy or just looking for a funny book to pass time 'The Guy Who Decides' is worth a read for anyone who appreciates good, and at times very Australian, humor.

-Lacey A.

[Greg · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is pretty much the script from the author's Meanwhile on Australia tour. I saw his live show and it was funny but the book was a bit flat for me because although there were many good jokes in the book they're not the same when they are not delivered by Jimmy.

[Renae Unwin · Rating 2 out of 5]

The whole book is just screenplay of his instagram account. So it's hilarious but there's really no need to read it, just follow on IG. It doesn't translate to text anywhere near as funny as his videos.

[Rochelle Redding · Rating 2 out of 5]

I absolutely love Jimmy Rees’ videos! He’s “Meanwhile in Australia” series during COVID lockdowns was the highlight of each day. But can’t say I enjoyed this book as much. “The guy who decides” isn’t my favourite Rees character so I might be a bit biased, but the video content just doesn’t translate to the written form (majority of the book is back-and-forth dialogue format).

That being said, it’s a quick, easy read I got through in three short nights, so it’s good if you’re looking for something simple (and you’re familiar with Jimmy Rees’ content).

[Peter Stuart · Rating 4 out of 5]

Observational humor at it's best. having watched, indeed waited, for Jimmy to post his You Tube video's during the looooong lockdowns in Melbourne during COVID, reading these scripts was like re-visiting an old friend, complete with this voices in my head.

So, if you want to visit, or re-visit, the writings of a man with exceptional observational humor and talent, then this could be the book for you.

[Grim · Rating 5 out of 5]

A pretty quick read. Basically just a written version of his youtube videos. I found it bloody funny but I've watched the videos so if you havent it might be hard to read/understand as it doesnt translate well from video to book. Otherwise something good if you want a bit of a laugh.

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oookay. And now, a ream of paper?
Ah, paper is very delicate, Jason. You don't want the paper to get wet. So wrap all the paper in another piece of paper.
...
DVDs?
Put them in a box that doesn't break.
CDs?
Put them in a box that does break.

[Kristen Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jimmy Rees is an Australian comedian made famous from making videos during COVID lockdowns. I enjoyed reading the script style short chapters that make you laugh at how some things in our world don't seem to make sense!

[Stephen Swan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great to get a second swing at these bits after a few years. Read it with the kids in a passable half drunk Guy Who Decides accent and they were in stitches. Jimmy Rees will, for us, forever be the zeitgeist of COVID

[Ruby Kinnersly · Rating 1 out of 5]

Simply, I don’t think this needed to be a book. It is just a dialogue type layout of themes similar to his social media skits. I also don’t know how easy it would be to understand if you didn’t already know the characters from his TikToks.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love, love, love these skits.

But, prefer seeing the video clips.

[Kim Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

He's hilarious. Very quick & talented.

[Sherry Mackay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun but much better on YouTube!

[Ebonie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious! Laughing constantly and read it in one day! Highly recommend

[Ju Ju · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the content to just be the same content as on his Instagram. Nothing really new

[Amber Aitken · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for a laugh if you like Jimmy’s videos!

[Alex M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny! A great christmas present. Thanks for all the good COVID times.

[Cally73 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basically the transcripts of his videos. Definitely helps if you've seen the videos because you have the voices to put to the words on page.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

He’s very funny. My favourite are the packaging guy skits… and he did help find the humour throughout covid. That said- much funnier to watch them than to
Read them

[Bernadette Rose · Rating 1 out of 5]

Doesn't translate well to book. The only reason I skimmed through it was because I could read it in his voices.

[Melody · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think Jimmy Rees is hilarious, however I didn't really understand the point of this book. I'd rather just watch him on YouTube! Way funnier!

[Jeanette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just loses a lot without watching the videos. Don't feel like some of these translated well to a written book.

[Nic Edwards · Rating 2 out of 5]

The online posts are far better than the written word. Loses the impact without the visual. If I hadn’t of seen the videos it wouldn’t have made any sense.

[Adam Smith-Platts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Watch some of his YouTube sketches first, and you'll absolutely love this.

[Russell Murphy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Like watching a YouTube video with the sound and pictures off, and only subtitles.