The Odd 1s Out: How to Be Cool and Other Things I Definitely Learned from Growing Up (The Odd 1s Out #1)
Published July 31st 2018 by Tarcherperigee, Paperback 240 pages
Hilarious stories and advice about the ups and downs of growing up, from a popularYouTube artist and storyteller.
Like any shy teen turned young adult, YouTube star James Rallison ("The Odd 1s Out") is used to being on the outside looking in. He wasn't partying in high school or winning football games like his older brother. Instead, he posted comics on the Internet. Now, he's ready to share his hard-earned advice from his 21 years of life in the funny, relatable voice his fans love.
In this illustrated collection, Rallison tells his own stories of growing up as the "odd one out": in art class with his twin sister (she was more talented), in the middle school locker room, and up to one strange year of college (he dropped out). Each story is filled with the little lessons he picked up along the way, serious and otherwise, like:
* How to be cool (in seventh grade)
* Why it's OK to be second-best at something, and
* How to survive your first, confidence-killing job interviews
Filled with fan-favorite comics and never-before-seen material, this tongue-in-cheek take on some of the weirdest, funniest parts of life is perfect for both avid followers and new converts.
User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
Cute illustrations with stories that had me rolling. Enough said.
Rating: really liked it
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway and got and uncorrected ARC, so things in my copy of the book are subject to change.
If you enjoy his channel this book has the same humor as his stories on YouTube. Some of the stories are from the channel but there are also stories that are new and give reason for even the biggest fan of James to buy the book.
People who havent viewed his channel will still love the jokes and stories that this book provides, from stories about his evil dog to accidently dating his sister there are laughs to be had throughout the book.
Overall this book is great, I do wish it had more stuff that wasn't from his YouTube channel, but the new material is a great addition to a great book. It's filled with charm and fun from the dedications at the front of the book until the last page.
Rating: really liked it
A hilarious, laugh-out-loud book about James Rallison/Theodd1sout, an artist I have been following/reading his comics for some time. Delighted there is a book about him.
First up, thanks to my boyfriend for gifting me this book for Christmas! I am so happy that I now finally have the chance to read this book. Secondly, I thought this would be comics/comic bundle with all/selected comics, but instead it is a mix-up of stories about James's life and comics.
We read about his school life, about his family (I had such a laugh when a teacher mistook him and his twin sister as boyfriend and girlfriend, really, how?), about his art, about dreams, about popularity, about bugs (I still stand that bugs are creepy and butterflies are cute, no matter what he says), and tons more. We really get to know the artist (and I finally found out about who his artist name is Theodd1sout, I was already wondering about it). I had such a good time reading this, laughing so many times, and also dragging my fiance in laughing as I read some parts aloud. And I am betting (on those last Christmas chocolates) that he will also be reading this book when he has the chance).
I already knew I would love the humour, but sometimes the humour works better in comics, but I can honestly say that this guy can write stories as well as he can do comics. He really pulls you into his stories, into his life. I know I couldn't stop reading so whenever I had time yesterday, I read, read and read some more.
Now I am just hoping that he will write more books or makes a book with all his comics. Either would be perfect. \o/ Oh, and I would recommend this book to all who want to know more about this artist or are fans of him (like me!).
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
Rating: really liked it
This was a fun book to read. I've been a fan of James and his videos for awhile, so I was pretty excited when he announced he was making a book.
However, roughly one third of this book contains info that is already explained (hilariously) on youtube channel. I get that it's nice to put in some details for those who have never heard of James, but it kinda made me enjoy the book a little less.
It's hard to write a book, so I will say I think it's still a good read (ha, get it?-ok I'll stop now) for anyone who is a big fan of theodd1sout.
And also it was fun to learn more about one of my favorite youtubers.
Rating: really liked it
I normally spend a lot of time reading books found on bestseller lists, Pulitzer lists, etc, but the Odd 1s Out was an X-mas gift from my oldest daughter so I thought I would finally give it a try. All my kids are big fans of The Odd 1s Out YouTube channel and I am too. When you are a parent and find you have similar tastes in comedy as your children — well savor those moments. Also I didn’t know that I had a snort when I laughed — but you uncover revelations about yourself when something is this funny.
This book is a recap, with illustrations, of some of the better Odd 1s Out episodes. There are thirteen chapters and half a dozen of them are laugh out loud funny. My favorites are the Moth story, The Laser Tag Outing and The Killer Dog. Some of the most hilarious stories I’ve read.
4 stars. You get a better sense from the book — versus the videos — of how talented James Rallison is at writing episodic scripts. In fact, I think his storytelling may be better than his animation skills. I guess that may sound like a backhanded compliment. I would give even more stars but the videos are online and even more enjoyable than the book.
Rating: really liked it
I don't watch much YouTube. I know that once I get on, I won't get off for at least two hours. My brother, on the other hand, probably spends over half his day on YouTube, so you can imagine he's pretty well versed in YouTubers.
That being said, he tends to show me some of his favorite YouTubers from time to time, and the only one I kept watching after he showed me a video was, you guessed it, The Odd1sOut. James is literally the only YouTuber I consistently watch (excluding BookTubers). So when my brother found out I was watching The Odd1sOut in my free time, he handed me this book. I'm (obviously, I'm the one with a Goodreads) more of a reader than him, so he was more than happy to let me borrow his copy of this book.
I noticed pretty quickly that a lot of the chapters were basically the scripts of his videos, with a few extra lines added in. I still read them, because
you can't just skip the chapters of a book that's so wrong they're in that order for a reason, you heathen. My only complaint for this book was that they were basically his videos in book form. I still enjoyed them, and I still kinda sorta read the book instead of studying for my college midterms, but I was hoping it was different from his videos.
All that said, I am still very happy I read this book. Yeah, it may be more aimed at middle school boys and
not college age girls, but I still laughed at a lot of the jokes (yes, even the ones I had already heard on YouTube) and I enjoyed it all the way through. Only reason it got 3/5 stars was because I had already seen half the stories before I read them.
So, if you want to read a funny, light hearted book and you watch none of The Odd1sOut's videos, you should pick this up. Trust me, it's a really refreshing change of pace to go from reading a textbook on criminology, to a goofy story about "Things I Do That Most Adults Probably Don't Do." Especially because I also do some of those things.
Just know that if you've already obsessively watched most of his videos instead of studying, a lot of it is repeat. But it's James, so who cares, he's hilarious.
Rating: really liked it
Now personally I love The Odd 1s Out. He is one of my favorite YouTubers and when I found out he had a book I just HAD to get it! I read this book right before my last manga classic so getting both of those books I just had high exceptions for this book and let me say how they met them with flying colors! This book is as relatable as "Adulthood Is A Myth." You should read this book.
Rating: really liked it
Love this hilarious book!
Rating: really liked it
MY RATING: 4/5 STARS
A copy generously provided by Penguin Random House Canada in exchange for a honest review.
Guys! I am a huge fan of TheOdd1sOut on Youtube and there might have been two days where I binged watched all his videos when I first discovered him. If you guys don't know who James is, he's a cartoonist who is known for his funny stories told through cartoons he draws himself. My favourite were some of his workplace stories and of course, him growing up as a kid.
This book is exactly like his Youtube videos. His cartoons are so adorable, expressing the exact reactions I would imagine certain characters would feel in that very moment of the story that I often found myself bursting out in giggles. James' writing is similar to his monologues in his videos so don't expect literature but expect easy writing that gets you right from the start. He has this dry silly sarcastic humour that is contagious.
The only reason why I knocked off a star was because he recycled two stories from his videos in his book so I just skimmed those. Good thing the whole book wasn't just his videos written out or else I would have been really annoyed. Next, I didn't think the subtitle to be applicable to what he was preaching in his book. It wasn't actually a guide to be cool but it was just more like this is what happened to me when I was younger. And that's it.
MY RECOMMENDATION
Definitely recommend to you if you're looking for a gift for a younger reader or someone who is a fan of James or just looking for something cute to flip through!
Rating: really liked it
So I love James and have a been a fan of him since he was only at 2 million subs but this book was a cheap cash grab on his part. So many of the stories were already featured on YouTube channel. The ones that weren’t were great but it felt very cheap, if you know what I mean. The writing in this book was also pretty eh, if you know what I mean.
Rating: really liked it
Amusing enough to start. I've seen Rallison's videos listed on YouTube, but before reading this book I don't recall that I ever watched any. In the middle of the book, I watched his Sooubway tetralogy to get a feel for his voice and that just left me realizing how young he is and how that was his only job before making YouTube videos for a living.
And then all I could think was:
Rating: really liked it
This book was great! I was looking for something fun and lighthearted and this was perfect. I needed a bit of a pick-me-up and this did the job. It actually had me chuckling at times! I love that this book mixed his art/comics in with his anecdotes. It was great. I highly recommend it!
Rating: really liked it
This book made me feel so happy, oh my gosh!!π
Rating: really liked it
This was a fantastic book and I couldn’t put it down. I’ve been watching James also known as, “The Odd 1s Out” for quite some time, so I was especially excited to find this book at the library. His name The Odd 1s Out basically comes from him feeling sort of different from everyone else and really just having a more creative mind. He thinks outside the box and has a sarcastic and different sense of humor, which I found funny. This book included some crazy and funny stories from his life growing up. It mainly focuses on his middle school and teen years which is a pretty weird time in your life, so a lot of his experiences made me laugh and the cartoons to go along with them were very original. One of James’ strengths would be that he is incredibly interesting. He can manage to keep someone entertained even while telling a not so intresting story. For awhile I actually wanted to be an animator and that’s how I discovered him. Although, I’m not a great artist, James’ tells that with hard work you can do great things. I really can’t name any weakness about the author because I really loved the book and would recommend it to anyone of my friends. You would really enjoy this book if you’re interested in cartoons, enjoy stories, and like to laugh. This would also be a great gift for a friend and I think almost anyone can enjoy it.
Rating: really liked it
Very funny, very re-readable. I loved this a lot. Ofc this is not the best book ever but it is very fun and a real good time and you can read this over a lazy afternoon, had a good few chuckles to yourself and yeah idk then get up and work out and study and realise all this book-reading is killing your academic career. But fun book haha.
