Well, I can't say I know much about the ways of millenials. I've never been one. None of my three kids are millenials. I do have an awesome niece, Becca, who is a millenial. Maybe she would understand this book. Well, I do sort of, in that I'm a bit of a computer nerd and in that I was told by the minister of my youth, who was trying to help me select a decent college, that I was "socially retarded".

So, anyway, we have a socially retarded millenial, one Willow. I'm guessing she's late 20s. She works in a mindless cube farm. For all practical purposes, she has no friends, either at the cube farm, or outside. She's too shy, or something, to chit chat in the break room with the other inmates of the cube farm.

But, she lives inside her head a lot, and that's what we get to see. As part of this living inside her head, she thinks up with various ways to get into the good graces of young men. She tests these ways out, cerebrally anyway, by making and posting YouTube videos. She makes up elaborate scripts, she makes up visual prompts, and from time to time posts her videos on her YouTube channel. She has a small number of followers, some of whom comment. Her YouTube name, by the way is Kayleigh256.

She has become enamored with Somewhat-Square-Jawed-Bailey, or SSJ Bailey, or sometimes just SSJ. She desperate to make his acquaintance and get cozy with him. Her attempts pretty much fail. He works in a nut store, and she goes in regularly to buy salted Brazil nuts, which she then discards. But, someday, he'll notice her, right? Someday, her throat won't clench on her when she looks into those adorable blue eyes, and she'll be able to use one of the pick-up lines she features on her YouTube channel, right?

Well, one day at the mall, she is recognized by someone named Chloe. Chloe is all excited to have finally met her on-line mentor. But then, chloe-with-no-capital-letter poaches SSJ Bailey right in front of Willow/Kayleigh256, using pick-up lines she learned from Willow/Kayleigh256's videos.

Willow/Kayleigh256 is hunted down by three other of her followers, Mandy, Sanieka, and Anatova, and they want her to give them some in-person lessons. Show us how to do this stuff in the real world.

Then there's the problem of her father. Back when she was 9 or so, her father up and disappeared. No one will tell her why. Certainly not her mother. But suddenly, she is being stalked on her YouTube channel by OldMan1963, who purports to be her father. He wants to have a meet up.

There are also issues with her mother. In addition to not being willing to talk about what happened to her father, her mother is trying to manage Willow's life. She sets Willow up on a blind date with a creep and invites a young woman over to "play" tamagochi. Apparently, Willow and this young woman played tamagochi some two decades previously. The young woman hasn't outgrown it.

Well, obviously, Willow has "issues" of one kind and another that need resolution. I have a feeling that we'll be getting ourselves a sequel. Willow makes progress, but leaves a lot of loose ends hanging. Although YA fiction isn't my thing, I enjoyed this book and could see myself checking out Willow's further adventures once they become available.
( )

I saw a lot of Millennial generation social behavior in this book and I have mixed feeling about the social media frenzy. The internet persona thing does not really works for me. It is funny at times, but the story line is a bit flat and confusing, not sure where Alice fits in. The one liner of dating pick up line is also kind of grating on me. There must be something more interesting to say if you want to share something on the internet. The accident and its impact on Willow was also been brush through, did not quite get what the author's intention here. ( )

First, I am flattered that the author, Collyer, contacted me and requested that I review her book because she had liked my review of “Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine” and gifted me a book to do so. Thank you!

“Hermit Girl”, as the title implies, tells the tale of a highly introverted woman in her 20’s named Willow. She struggles in her relationships with her mom, her boss, her friends (or the lack thereof), and in her quest for a suitable mate in the form of “Somewhat-Square-Jawed Bailey”, abbreviated to SSJ. Her escape is the internet, specifically, her own YouTube channel where she gives dating advice. A bit of irony, right? Along the way, the reader will encounter two figures of her past, which are alluded to throughout the story.

“Hermit Girl” has a lot of similarities to “…Oliphant…”, so it’s easy to appreciate why Collyer requested reviewers from those who had read Oliphant. Collyer’s Willow is a bit darker and a bit more complex. She’s troubled by her relationship with her mom, by the ghost of an absentee father who walked out when she was 10, by her boss, and even a conniving colleague claiming credit of her work. She has two outlets – visiting her SSJ at a nut shop and filming scripts for her YouTube channel. With so many relationships, things get complicated quickly.

I’m glad Collyer chose the subject of introverts; there aren’t enough such characters in literature and the arts. The physical awkwardness is well addressed. Collyer is also right to explore social media aspects of introverts, as they tend to have a strong presence. Collyer had some good lines, too.
On life/relationships – we all need people in our lives:
“We’re not that different from the quantum particles we’re made of: we don’t feel we truly exist until someone observes us.“
On being an introvert:
“But now it’s time to unwind. Shutdown all the mental apps needed for social interaction, switch off hosting mode, and go back to being Loner-Willow (my default state).”

Alas, I did not develop affinity towards Willow. I WANTED to like her, but I simply didn’t. A few things didn’t jive:
A. AFAIK, an extremely introverted person typically obfuscates his/her identity on social media. Hosting a You-Tube channel seems extreme.
B. Willow has ten-ish followers on her account. Why she doesn’t outright notices “OldMan1963” in the comments confuses me.
C. Willow supposedly didn’t have friends, but she gets along with her (non-conniving) coworkers just fine too. I thought this wasn’t properly delineated.
D. The book did not address Willow’s mother’s point of view (POV). The father can’t walk out for reasons that are later explained without also noting the hardships that the mother picked up in the process.

If I was the editor, I would advise Collyer to do more search on introverts. Several strong medical field endorsed statements sprinkled throughout the book can add realism to Willow’s behaviors. I would also modify how the mom and the dad are presented, increasing presence and POV of both. I would also re-define Willow’s social media presence. Lastly, I would increase emphasis on the transformation of Willow’s character at the end. Those pages can be more powerful and influential to the reader. Lastly, I shared with the author that I found 7 typos and a chapter that was unclear to me which she clarified was a dream sequence. I completely missed that. ( )

The author of this book contacted me and offered me a copy of it in exchange for a review. She thought I'd like it, based on other books I've reviewed here on LT. Bottom line: she was right....very right.

Willow is a young woman, whose father has left years ago, who has a boring job with a bad boss, and who lives in a time when dating and social media are intimately linked. Other than having once been a young woman, I can't relate to her circumstances. But Ms. Collyer has done a wonderful job in developing Willow's character; she is both quirky and unique (as we all are to some extent) and, in some ways, a common person facing universal issues such as loss, lack of confidence, unrequited love.... I came to not only care about Willow, but even to identify with her at least some of the time. (Okay, to be perfectly honest, I also identified with her mother some of the time.)

I also found the book very insightful. Other reviewers have commented on the discussion about being alone vs. being lonely. For me, the insight that really grabbed me was on page 130, where Willow's alter-ego Kayleigh asks her You-Tube followers to think about their last breakup. She says "Did you really miss HIM? Or did you just miss making that cool little future happen, the one you'd secretly planed out in your head? Did you miss the person or the story?"

The story is presented in a very creative way, making use of both traditional first-person narrative, and new ways of communicating such as texting and posting comments on line.

So, thank you so much to the author for sharing her work with me. Now, E.M., go write something else! ( )

Hermit Girl by E. M Collier is an unusual book. Willow breaks the stereotype of shy quiet girl who wants to please others, instead she withdraws from the world and has her own vlog on U-tube. Willow is very sarcastic.

Her father left her family without any warning and her mother wants Willow to wear more feminine clothes and have a boyfriend. Willow has a secret crush on Bailey in the mall. She makes numerous trips on her lunch hour to buy peppered Brazil nuts, which she throws away. Willow hopes to start a relationship with Bailey if she can control her anxiety and not mess when talking to him.

Her work as a temp at a Quality Assurance job, there is no joy in her work. it is just on the computer, her boss is always confusing her with another worker.

But one day, she gets out of her rut and is recognized by one of her few followers and she thinks that maybe a friendship will come of it. We learn more about her dad and her feeling of abandonment. Finally she starts to take charge of her life and makes some changes

I was not used to reading about a person so full of sarcasm but also one who genuinely cares. I like reading a story in first person, it was so easy to know what her emotions were. Also enjoyed the unexpected moments of humor. I loved one of her followers, an older Russian woman who delighted me her ignorance, Anatova. I would love to read a book about her experiences!

I received an Advance Copy of this book from the author and my thoughts and feelings in this review are my own. ( )