3 hand-picked essays/criticism and cultural commentary books curated by NextBookAfter.
Pulphead hooked you with Sullivan's sharp dives into American absurdity, blending wry humor and eccentric characters in overlooked cultural corners. Tim Kreider's We Learn Nothing echoes that magic, turning personal failures and societal quirks into mythic, melancholy tales with self-deprecating wit. Perfect for overeducated underachievers craving non-preachy insights on identity and irony.
If Dolly Alderton made you feel seen in your messiest romantic disasters and quarter-life spirals, Samantha Irby will validate every chaotic decision you've survived with the same unflinching honesty about bodies, bad dates, and the friendships that actually show up when love implodes. This is brutally funny personal wreckage that celebrates platonic bonds over romantic delusions, skewering millennial anxieties without pretending therapy fixed everything or adulthood means having answers instead of better jokes.
If David Sedaris's Naked had you cackling at unflinching self-exposure and family oddballs, you'll adore this follow-up's raw dive into personal neuroses and awkward urban mishaps. Samantha Irby's Wow, No Thank You. mirrors that episodic charm with eccentric characters and biting sarcasm skewering suburbia's absurdities. It's the perfect cathartic laugh for self-loathing intellectuals craving dark comedy without the preachiness.