Book Review: xkcd: volume 0 by Randall Munroe


Many years ago I used to read a lot of webcomics. It was part of my daily routine to check each one for updates and then read through the archive of any new ones I’d come across or old ones I just wanted to revisit. One of my regular comics was xkcd. I even read through the archive a couple of times after I realised I’d been missing out in the extra text you get when you hover the mouse over the image. Unfortunately, due to a number of technical issues, I lost all my comics bookmarks and links and was so disheartened about setting them all back up in the order I liked to bother doing it at all, and I stopped reading webcomics.


This collection was published before I stopped reading xkcd so none of the comics were new to me, though there was some I’d forgotten. There was some added notes and marginalia that added extra interest beyond just the comics themselves. I think there is also some kind of secret code in there, which strikes me as something that would amuse Randall Munroe.
I’m always amazed by Munroe’s wit and humour and his ability to sum up complex human behaviour in a couple of sentences and a couple of stick figures. The comics about relationships can be heartbreakingly romantic, and they are eminently relatable. You read them and you want to shout out “Yes! That’s me!”.
I won’t deny there’s some of the mathematical and scientific comics that I just didn’t understand. On the occasion when I do understand one of these comics, I’m filled with a smug sense of self-satisfaction that I was smart enough to get it. I think this is part of the appeal of xkcd. The fact that it’s so popular when it frequently touches on science and maths and language shows that Munroe has a talent for making these things accessible to those who don’t have specialist knowledge in them.
Mostly what makes me happy reading this book is knowing that Randall Munroe has found what he should be doing. He’s well educated and tried numerous jobs that didn’t work out, you can deduce a lot about his relationship history from his comics, he’s a very intelligent person who has found his place drawing stick figures to make the rest of us laugh.. He’s doing exactly what he should be doing and he’s doing it perfectly and it’s worked out for him. That makes me feel good.


Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a couple of years of xkcd comics archive to get through.


4 out of 5 stars
xkcd: volume 0 meets criteria 4 for the 2018 Read Harder Challenge.
Have you read xkcd: volume 0? Did you enjoy it? Let me know in the comments below!

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