Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded (Hardcover)

by John Scalzi (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
On September 13, 1998, John Scalzi sat down in front of his computer to write the first entry in his blog "Whatever" -- and changed the history of the Internet as we know it today.

What, you're not swallowing that one? Okay, fine: He started writing the "Whatever" and amused about 15 people that first day. If that many. But he kept at it, for ten years and running. Now 40,000 people drop by on a daily basis to see what he's got to say.

About what? Well, about whatever: Politics, writing, family, war, popular culture and cats (especially with bacon on them). Sometimes he's funny. Sometimes he's serious (mostly he's sarcastic). Sometimes people agree with him. Sometimes they send him hate mail, which he grades on originality and sends back. Along the way, Scalzi's become a best-selling, award-winning author, a father, and a geek celebrity. But no matter what, there's always another Whatever to amuse and/or enrage his readers.

Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded collects some of the best and most popular Whatever entries over the history of the blog, from some of the very first entries right up into 2008. It's a decade of Whatever, presented in delightfully random form -- just the way it should be.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Subterranean; Signed Limited edition (September 13, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596062118
• ISBN-13: 978-1596062115
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #779,306 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Distilled and concentrated Scalzi, now on cellulose., October 14, 2008

By	Marko Kloos (Enfield, NH) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded" is a collection of blog posts from John Scalzi's long-running blog, "Whatever". Scalzi is a very good fiction writer, but he's also a terrific essayist, and his blog posts often turn out to be thoughtful, well-reasoned, humorous, and sensitive essays on subjects as varied as entertainment, current affairs, religion, politics, world history, and parenting.

(Scalzi is also a goofball of the first order, so all those gems are interspersed with application of pork products to household pets, and the inventive utilization of Photoshop skills. Sadly, the print version leaves out much of the Photoshop goodness.)

"Hate Mail" is sort of a "Best of..." collection from Whatever, the distilled essence of the blog. Scalzi routinely knocks the ball out of the park when it comes to "big" blog posts, the kind that gets linked on Instapundit and ends up getting emailed to everyone with an email account in the Northern Hemisphere. "Hate Mail" is a whole book full of such gems, and it also serves as an interesting evolutionary record of "Whatever", which Scalzi has maintained continuously for ten years.

Best of all, this blog content now comes on fantastically portable wireless technology that requires no batteries, and no Internet access.

For fans of Scalzi's writing, "Hate Mail" is a handy compilation of some of his best work...and for those who want to see how to write compelling blog entries on a wide variety of subjects, here's a great collection of examples.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best of Whatever , October 26, 2008

By	Monkey "Monkey Moniker" (Seattle) - See all my reviews

If you are a fan of John Scalzi, then you want to get this book. John is also a blogger, and his whatever blog is one of the best blogs to read to dive into the mind and antics of a writer. Whatever features the crazy, the insane, and the mundane world view of John directly, unfiltered, unedited, and unexpurgated. From pumpkins to cats to kids to fans, "Your Hate Mail Will be Graded" is the best of the whatever blog, meaning nothing but hours of entertainment without having to wade through a Google search to find the good stuff.

Whatever has been around for about 10 years now, and it is difficult to wade through, as he has gone through various hosting companies, various blogging software, and various upgrades that just never seem to go right. Finding the best stuff in one location makes things tons easier for the Scalzi fan club, or anyone who is interested in a semi-random stream of consciousness style that permeates the blog. The book does the blog a great service, and really is a fun enjoyable read.

Rates 5 of 5, fun, entertaining, and generally wacko, just what you need to brighten your day.

5.0 out of 5 stars Smart, Funny, and Easy, February 24, 2009

By	douglas mann (hayward, ca United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Enjoyable to read and packaged in nice convenient entries. Scalzi's blog entries will not only cause laughter but will also leave you pondering the subject he has discussed. Best read in short bursts but how can you stop when the writing is so good.