Ken Denmead, who edits the Geekdad blog at Wired, wrote a review of The Happiest Days of Our Lives this weekend:
This is a wonderful little book. I hate to use a diminutive like "little," for fear of implying that THDOOL is less-than significant in some literary way; it isn't. It is a charming, heart-warming, laugh-inducing, tear-jerking, and even envy-inducing read. It is not, however, long. I'd like to argue that this is a plus. Indeed, I think THDOOL is enjoyable in part because of its length (or lack thereof). It is, after all, a collection of short-form writing (blog-posts), collected, expanded, massaged, and served with a steaming side of post-modern nostalgic recollection. This is the face of contemporary introspective non-fiction, and it is exactly what we all like to read and write nowadays. Reading THDOOL is all about getting the quick-fix of checking your RSS feeds in the morning and skimming the new posts, but then getting to take a little longer to sit down and savor something just a bit more significant.
Have I pointed out that everything in this book, though it started online in one form or another, was completely rewritten, updated, expanded upon, and "de-bloggified'? The Happiest Days isn't just a cut and paste, and maybe I should have made that more clear before? Anyway, I'm very happy that Ken noticed that, and mentioned it.
There will be good reviews and bad reviews, and not everyone will like what I write, or how I write it. I've learned over the years to make a conscious effort not to give too much importance to any of them, but I have to admit that getting such a positive review from someone who I respect and enjoy reading every day made me squee just a little bit.
Okay, a lot.
