I Hate You, Kelly Donahue has one of the more alarming titles on the humor shelf. Mark Svartz’s book, published by Adams Media in 2012, is presented as the private journal of a twenty-something man who meets a coworker on his first day at a new job and decides, for no reason he can explain, that he must defeat her in a fight to the death.
The format is the fun
The book does not look like a book. It is handwritten and hand-drawn, with “taped-in” emails, instant messages, Post-it notes, diagrams of elaborate battle plans and the occasional fake classified ad. Turning the pages feels like snooping in someone’s desk drawer. Svartz, who came from advertising, clearly enjoyed the craft of it, and the design does most of the comic work.
The premise, and the worry
A reader may reasonably flinch at a man plotting violence against a woman, even as a joke. The book defuses that in two ways. The plots are cartoonish, involving lead pipes, escape routes and David Hasselhoff, and never close to real. And it soon becomes obvious that the “hate” is the oldest story there is: a boy pinching the girl he likes, in grown-up form. The journal tracks the feelings as they curdle, soften and change. The dedication is to the author’s mom and dad, and Svartz has said the idea came from an office joke among friends about a real, very sweet colleague named Kelly Donahue.
Verdict
This is a gift book, short at 112 pages and best read in one sitting. Readers looking for a story will find it thin. Readers who enjoy a well-made joke stretched to its limit, and anyone who has ever had an irrational rivalry with someone down the hall, will enjoy it.
Sources: I Hate You, Kelly Donahue, Mark Svartz; Mr. Media interview with Mark Svartz.
