• Quietly Hostile

  • Essays
  • By: Samantha Irby
  • Narrated by: Samantha Irby
  • Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (195 ratings)

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Quietly Hostile  By  cover art

Quietly Hostile

By: Samantha Irby
Narrated by: Samantha Irby
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Publisher's summary

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A GLAMOUR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • A hilarious new essay collection from Samantha Irby "engages readers with her characteristic combination of laugh-out-loud moments, heartfelt passages and plenty of awkward experiences.... Quietly Hostile will delight established fans and newcomers alike (Parade).

“Brilliant and one of the funniest people I’ve ever read.” —Roxane Gay "The king of sparkling misanthropy and tender, loving dread." —Jia Tolentin

"Absolutely hilarious.... If you are feeling down, or you feel like you haven't read anything you've loved in a long time, all you need is Samantha Irby.... She will make you laugh on every page." —Emma Straub, bestselling author of This Time Tomorrow, on The Today Show

Samantha Irby’s career has taken her to new heights. She dodges calls from Hollywood and flop sweats on the red carpet at premieres (well, one premiere). But nothing is ever as it seems online, where she can crop out all the ugly parts.

Irby got a lot of weird emails about Carrie Bradshaw, and not only is there diarrhea to avoid, but now—anaphylactic shock. She is turned away from restaurants for being inappropriately dressed and looks for the best ways to cope, i.e., reveling in the offerings of QVC and adopting a deranged pandemic dog. Quietly Hostile makes light as Irby takes us on another outrageously funny tour of all the gory details that make up the true portrait of a life behind the screenshotted depression memes. Relatable, poignant, and uproarious, once again, Irby is the tonic we all need to get by.

A BEST BOOK from Vogue, Esquire, PopSugar, Glamour, The Skimm, and more

©2023 Samantha Irby (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK from: TIME Magazine, The New York Times, Elle Magazine, Oprah Daily, TODAY, Harper’s Bazaar, Lit Hub, USA Today, Entertainment Weekly, Parade, Zibby Mag, Sunset, Good Housekeeping, San Francisco Chronicle, The Millions, Electric Lit, Publishers Weekly, BookRiot, Autostraddle, The Week, She Reads, and more

A BEST BOOK: from
Vogue, Esquire, PopSugar, Glamour, Barnes & Noble, The Skimm, The Philadelphia Inquirer, HuffPost UK, and BookPage

“Queen of the laugh-out-loud hot take . . . Perfect for a beach day [and] takes on the real issues: poop, public defecation, intimidating teens and the ‘Lane Bryant that’s now a Chipotle in downtown Evanston.’” The Chicago Tribune

“No one describes the human body quite like Irby. She’s a poet of embarrassment: Her confessional style is frank and unashamed. . . . her writing about the great transition from being ‘young and lubricated’ to middle-aged is reliably moving in its own way, and consistently hilarious.” The Atlantic

“The Midwest’s most loveable misanthrope, triumphantly returns. . . . Reliably and painfully funny. . . . Irby has the remarkable ability to make the utterly banal, and even the tragic, uproariously entertaining. . . . Irby simply doesn’t miss.” Chicago Reader

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What listeners say about Quietly Hostile

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  • Overall
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    5 out of 5 stars

I’m inviting you to my party anyway….

I love everything she puts out. The way she organizes the topics and her delivery of content is spot on. Shes open and honest, never shying away from the real issues in life- many of which we have in common. She manages to make these things funny for a change and lighten the load. Not to mention her wit and perspective on so many random things that I otherwise wouldn’t have thought about at all- Samantha Irby works her magic, making the most mundane topic into a complete riot. Shes the best!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Hilarious and relatable as always!

I had to play the first few minutes for several friends. SO funny and feels like hanging with your close pal.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Enjoyed this a lot but

When I listen to a book like this, I want it to feel like I’m having a conversation with the author. I loved the essays themselves, the humor was right up my alley, and it felt like conversations I’ve had with my best friend. However listening to it, it really felt like she was just reading off the book, I wish it sounded like I was having a conversation with my best friend instead.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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loved it 👏🏼

Samantha Irby’s previous writings are sharp, witty, and charmingly honest — and this book lives up to that reputation! Loved this book and the chance to hear some more stories from Irby’s life. 10/10 💗

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    5 out of 5 stars
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I don’t want the book to end

Love her, love the delivery, the humor, the cultural references. In a very cringey way, I have been referring to Sam as my bestie while tell my partner about this book.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Refreshing!!!

I just loved this thinking out loud!!! Samantha is hilarious and to hear her voice narrating the essays was so refreshing!!!

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Narration

She always kills. I wish she narrated everything on my audible queue. Ready for the next book of essays.

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Another great one!

When’s the next book? I already am sad that I’ve finished this one. Thanks Sam for another hilarious book.

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Hilariously brilliant!

Quickest audiobook I have ever listened to. Samantha Irby is hilarious, relatable, and raw. One million stars.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Some funny stories

But others…not. Not into play by plays of tv shows that were never made or lists of the contents of a fridge. I wanted to like it more than I did.

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1 person found this helpful