So Sad Today: Personal Essays by Melissa Broder
After revealing herself as the mastermind behind the mysterious @sosadtoday Twitter account, writer Melissa Broder was shunted into the position of having a new, depressing pen name. Her emergence as the voice behind @sosadtoday nabbed Broder a column at Vice, finally manifesting into the collection of personal essays that aligns her more closely with the account than ever before. Across the assorted essays contained in So Sad Today, Broder takes a macro look at the topics she’s regularly addressed in 140 character chunks. Whether it be the difficulties of an open marriage, her vomit fetish, or simply the painful nuance of living with depression, So Sad Today is uplifting and dispiriting in seemingly equal measure. It’s a book that’s incredibly human in the way it allows for deep self-reflection alongside Broder, which speaks not only to her powerful writing but also the internet’s magical ability to foster connections. [David Anthony]
ModCloth’s “I Love Your Dress”
I’m late to the ModCloth vintage fashion wear bandwagon, which is good because otherwise I suspect that my kids’ college fund would be empty. One of my first purchases—which I share here even though there’s a risk that I will soon see it everywhere or worse, sold out—is its creation called “I Love Your Dress.” It comes in a variety of colors (I Love Your Dress In Plum, I Love Your Dress In Olive), and there is something downright magical about the dress’s shirrs and gathers, which add curves to non-curvy people, and makes curvy people (ahem) look fantastic. ModCloth’s site helpfully supplies photos and comments from people who have purchased these clothes, and that dress looks amazing on every single woman (representing a variety of different body types) who sent in a picture. For now, you can wear it with tights and a cardigan, and in summer it will work everywhere from post-office cocktails to even a beach coverup. I’m hoping I can wear it in at least three different colors before my wardrobe gets redundant. [Gwen Ihnat]
The Jackbox Party Pack 2
I know I’ve got a good game recommendation on my hands when I see it start popping up in the PSN libraries and Steam collections of every single person I show it to. That’s definitely the case with The Jackbox Party Pack 2, the sequel to the already-recommended-by-us Jackbox Party Pack from Jackbox Games. Every friend I’ve forced into one of the games on the pack has ended up buying it, spreading the party game infection around the country, and even spawning a bi-weekly online streaming event for some of my improv friends. The game plays exactly as elegantly as its first incarnation, with players using their smartphones as buzzers and entry devices. Except now, the games have been tweaked in ways that are pretty much all improvements. (No duds like Lie Swatter and Word Spud here, even if Bidiots is needlessly complex compared to the first pack’s Pictionary-esque Drawful.) The highlight is the joke-generating Quiplash XL, which takes the “let’s say something outrageous” allure of a Cards Against Humanity and infuses it with some actual creative work by making players come up with all the jokes. For my group of friends, it’s become pretty much the default good time, the only time everyone sitting around with their phones in their hands actually turns into something fun. [William Hughes]