Into the World of Joey Graceffa

“It’s crazy how life changes and you can go from a school where no one may like you... to people loving you across the world.”

HELLO THERE EVERYONE!

The book that I chose was In Real Life: My Journey to a Pixelated World by Joey Graceffa. This book is a little different because Joey is a YouTuber. I’ve been watching YouTubers since I was in eighth grade. It was where I escaped to every day, so being able to read one of my favorite YouTubers books and being able to get to know them more, to me, is amazing.

This book started out talking about how he got a learning disability from eating paint chips that used to fall on his toys. So it talks about how he had to be in special education classes till they felt he was ready to be in normal classes again. He then talks about how he got teased for being in those classes and how he would have to sneak his way into that class every day. He talks about how he used to do everything his sister did. He would play with the same things she did and he would dress up like she did but he got teased a lot for that. So he then goes into talking about how he was bullied and at the end of the chapter he gives you tips on how to handle being bullied. He then talks about how he grew up with his mom being a heavy drinker. This had to be my favorite chapter, I know that sounds wrong but, in all honesty, it was because it was real. It gave me the chance to see that he wasn't afraid to say where he came from and what made him stronger as a person and how he faced similar problems we did. Being able to read this book and being able to jump into his life really made this book an awesome read for me.

Just like everyone finds their comfort in something, Joey’s comfort was YouTube. He began making videos more and more. Until one day he decided to move to L.A. where he met the friends that he has now. and that was the start of Joey Graceffa's YouTube channel.

There were a lot of things I like about this book. I loved how he put pictures of his fans and pictures of him growing up. It really brings each story he tells to life. I liked how this book is real. He talks about real experiences and real events that brought him to the career he has now. He gave every little detail, wherein most books that is not good but in this one, it helped the story. With every little detail, it helps show what really happened. To be honest there was nothing I didn't like about this book.

When I found out I had to pick a nonfiction book, I didn't really know what I was going to read, because I mostly read fiction books. But over the summer I had gotten a lot of my favorite YouTuber's books and I figured one of those would be the best for me to read. I figured this because YouTube was something I watched every day. So I picked Joey Graceffa's book, and I'm glad I did. When I was younger I used to think that most everyone on the internet or in California was fake. I used to think that they weren't “real” people. But becoming more fascinated with YouTubers and actually reading one of their books helped me realize that they are real people who go through real problems just like we do. I loved reading this book. In the future, I will definitely read more nonfiction books.

May the odds be ever in your favor, goodbye!