I'll Tell You in Person (Emily Books)

When I opened this book yesterday to read the introduction, I felt like a friend was confiding in me. That's because Caldwell's work is so personal, so intimate, her words read like the disclosure of secrets in a very relateable and approachable way. Her writing style is hilarious and evocative and observational. I often caught myself smirking at her humor and then a few minutes later grabbing a pen to underline a few sentences that gut punched me right in the feels.I discovered Chloe Caldwell's books and essays online about a year and a half ago have been waiting for this collection of essays to be published and man, 'I'll Tell You In Person' is an intense pleasure to read. She is so damn self aware in "Prime Meats" & "The Hungry Ghost" and "Yodels" felt like I could have written it myself if I was anywhere near as good as Caldwell is as a writer.She writes about her love relationships, a subject she embraces with the same depth and beauty that she does when she is writing about addiction, family, and friendship, and I just love this about Chloe Caldwell's work. Her writing in this collection is full circle lovely on so many levels. Reading this essay collection shows me on a deep level who she is as a sister, a daughter, a best friend, and a vulnerable woman letting go in a relationship.If this is the first book you buy by Chloe Caldwell, get ready to fall in love and quickly buy her other books. If, like me, you've been waiting for this book to be published, be prepared to see the growth in her writing, her style, her existence.

Reading this as I was about to move up to New York was interesting because the stories became relatable once I moved in.I really loved Chloe Caldwell's writing style. I really enjoy reading memoirs and I felt that this book did a great job at engaging the reader with every story. There were moments of humor and moments of sadness but she remained very candid and honest about each experience she recounted.My enjoyment of the book may have also been from a personal standpoint because I felt like her and I have very similar feelings and reactions to things. Although Chloe and I are very different people with different careers and upbringings I understood her moments of adrenaline and thrill while also understanding her moments of isolation introspection. She really conveys a sense of openness because she recognizes her own faults (I also relate to this a lot).Overall the book had some great stories and I liked the fact that I could pick it up and put it down for a few months and start up at a new story and still enjoy it.

Oh my goodness, where to start.... so I discovered this book randomly and was intrigued. Honestly, after reading this I feel like Chloe and I are best friends. She is relatable and honest and you just can't put this book down. The most memorable part of reading this book was when she was talking about buying candles at TJ Maxx and like randomly spending two hours there debating about buying sheets and then realizing that it would be ridiculous to buy $50 sheets for no reason whatsoever. This is SO accurate to life in your twenties. And going into her parents' home with a backpack to steal food and toilet paper. LITERALLY did that the day before I read that part hahaha. She hits the nail on the head with what it feels like to be a newly-minted "adult" just trying to figure out life and purpose. It honestly could have been such a surface-level book but the way Chloe writes and digs deeply into her emotions just resonates so powerfully within my soul. Oh my goodness, this is such a cleansing read for any single twenty-something or thirty-something because it is just so honest and pure. Her words brought me to tears at certain points. With her best friend, Nat, for example. The recollection of their experiences and then the events at his wedding. I was crying during this part because sometimes you don't realize how rare a relationship is until later in life when you realize all relationships simply aren't like that. After reading this, I feel closer to the core of humanity and what matters in life and at the end of the day. Chloe has a gift of writing about what could be interpreted as small things in life, but she makes them extravagant. Chloe, thank you for this book. It has been healing for my soul.

I typically enjoy memoirs and personal essays. This type of writing falls into two camps with me: the individual is so similar I strongly identify or so dissimilar that I'm interested in learning from different experiences. However, I had a hard time investing in these stories. They fell in a weird space between. They felt like stories your friend tells you over a cocktail that were only interesting because they happened to your friend. Without a connection to the author built, I found myself not really caring what happened next.

Chloe Caldwell is able to balance self-deprecation and humor - I was entertained throughout the entire book. I laughed out loud, covered my face, grimaced, etc. - if she's timid to share her sordid tales, it doesn't show through her writing. I enjoyed her essays so much that I almost didn't tire of reading about her by the end...almost. I'll Tell You In Person is a worthwhile read, especially if you enjoy the personal essay genre. I'm not sure I do (which may be why I'm critical).

Starts off good, then goes back and forth in her life which makes it difficult to follow. I didn't know it was so much about her drug addiction. I read reviews, thought it would be more light hearted.

Great, quick read, but didn't inspire me to venture further into additional books. The book starts off really strong but ends up being a little too whiney with no true conclusions.

Good story and tale of how a young woman goes through the throws of learning to grow through life all the while being young. She sounds like a girl who has been through a lot and decided to share her story with us. Great fun read!

Probably my favourite non-fiction writer. There's nothing else out there like this!

Holiday read maybe

Really loved her previous book "Legs Get Led Astray" and enjoyed this one as well. Thought it ended weaker than it started but still a good read. Passed it on to a friend who felt the opposite and enjoyed it more as it went on than at the start. Fast read.

Caldwell's prose is a little uneven (unsteady?), and it left no aftertaste, bad or good. It feels like the writer needs to give herself more time. These essays want to tell the truth -- but what truth?

I love this book. Chloe, you feel like a friend!