Book Review | Rating – 4/5 | Genre – Nonfiction / comedy
I’ve said before that I’ve never really been one for non-fiction books, yet when it comes to the odd autobiography, like this one, I feel compelled to at least give it a try.
When it came to this one, it was a no brainer, I love the Ramseys’ podcast. It never fails to make me laugh enough so hard that often enough I end up with tears in my eyes. So, I thought that I’d give the book a try, wanting to know a little more about them and find out some more hilarious stories.
SH**GED: Saturday nights out on the tiles, undying crushes, dating like it’s a competitive sport, awkward tales of dating woes, one-night stands, the walk of shame, ghosting, tears and break-ups.
MARRIED: Finding ‘the one’, meeting their parents, first holidays and romantic weekends away, engagement rings, big moment proposals, wedding bells, the hen do, the stag, the much anticipated – and feared – best man speech, the honeymoon of a lifetime.
ANNOYED: Who stacks a dishwasher like this? Empty milk cartons placed back into the fridge, pregnancy, sleepless nights, toilet seats up, toothpaste everywhere, less and less frequent date nights, DIY weekends, divorce. (synopsis from Goodreads)
What did I think?
Its fairly easy to say that I really enjoyed this book, not that there was any worry, they’re hilarious on the podcast. I just wasn’t quite expecting the book to be as laugh out loud funny as it actually was. So, here are some of the more specific reasons I enjoyed the book…
- More hilarious stories: very similar to the podcast, the book is packed full of hilarious personal stories from the Ramseys. Their honesty and opinions on certain accounts felt much more like hearing them from a friend. Then there are the “questions from the audience/reader”, I was impressed they managed to keep these in and so many of them.
- Great writing style: like many others who listen to the podcast, I often heard them both mentioned how they couldn’t believe they were writing their own book. There was no need for them to worry, it was brilliant to read and managed to pull off the same amount of hilarity and comfort you’d get from the podcast. Even their vernacular comes through which just really emphasises their great personalities in the book.
Why not a 5* rating?
Its worth explaining why I enjoyed this book but not enough to give it the full rating. Its fairly obvious that I really enjoyed the book, yet I still couldn’t bring myself to give it full marks based solely on the fact that it isn’t the podcast. Now, I know thats not a fair judgement that the book isn’t able to overcome. But for me, the Ramseys are at their best when you can listen to more of their back and forth through the podcast.
At the end of the day…
This was still a stand-up book, it provided me with the usual entertainment and laughs that I would’ve expected from these two hilarious geordies. The South Shield pair manage to re-create their usual format and provide more stories that could bring anyone to tears with laughter.
Like most autobiographies I don’t tend to go back and read them again, but the stories are that funny I might have to go back through at some point and see if it is still just as funny the second time round.
The Next Big Opinion 
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