THE IDIOT GIRL AND THE FLAMING TANTRUM OF DEATH: Reflections on Revenge, Germophobia, and Laser Hair

Another thigh-slapping, side-splitting, self-deprecating read from favorite funny lady Laurie Notaro.

Leave it to my favorite nerd girl, Laurie Notaro, author of the fabulously funny The Idiot Girls’ Action-Adventure Club, to kick out yet another thigh-slapping, side-splitting, self-deprecating read. The Idiot Girl and the Flaming Tantrum of Death is a bluntly hilarious collection of real-life essays, served up with plenty of Notaro’s signature sarcasm, supersize wit, and a characteristically unhealthy helping of chocolate Twizzlers. Notaro’s keen insight and uncanny ability to whip even the most mundane events into something marvelous is represented throughout her stories, whether she’s avoiding late-night junk-food runs because of the convicted rapist who lives next door, waxing on her childhood fear of being a hermaphrodite, getting giddy by getting carded while flirting with the big 4-0, having her nose broken by her cat, or arguing for the formation of female-only airlines. And freeways. And golf clubs (brick-and-mortar, not putters and drivers). According to Notaro, it may not be easy to be hair-free, germ-free, or even look like a badass while driving a Prius, but she’s definitely convinced me that it’s a helluva lot easier to get through this thing called life with a good chuckle—and a Milky Way candy bar.