Obviously cover art

Obviously

Stories from My Timeline

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Obviously

By: Akilah Hughes
Narrated by: Akilah Hughes
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £8.99

Buy Now for £8.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

 "A refreshingly funny and blisteringly unsentimental coming-of-age memoir." -John Green, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Turtles All The Way Down and The Fault in Our Stars

In Akilah Hughes's world, family--and life--are often complicated, but always funny. Through intimate and hilarious essays, Akilah takes readers along on her journey from the small Kentucky town where she was born--and eventually became a spelling bee champ and 15-year-old high school graduate--to New York City, where she took careful steps to fulfill her dream of becoming a writer and performer. Like Tiffany Haddish's The Last Black Unicorn or Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? for the YA set, Akilah pens revealing and laugh-out-loud funny essays about her life, covering everything from her racist fifth grade teacher, her struggles with weight and acne, her failed attempts at joining the cheerleading team, how to literally get to New York (hint: for a girl on a budget, it may include multiple bus transfers) and exactly how to "make it" once you finally get there. Biographies Women New York Funny Witty Nonfiction

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Nice Try cover art
The One You Want to Marry (And Other Identities I've Had) cover art
Yes, My Accent Is Real cover art
Wild Dances cover art
No Job for a Man cover art
A Little Bit Broken cover art
Weird but Normal cover art
So Close to Being the Sh*t, Y'all Don't Even Know cover art
The Way I Heard It cover art
You're Not Special cover art
Tough Titties cover art
Pride High, Book 1 cover art
Survival of the Thickest cover art
Lily's War cover art
A Very Punchable Face cover art
How Do I Un-Remember This? cover art

Critic reviews

"Oh cool, you have a hilarious new best friend now! (It's Akilah. And her book.)" --Samantha Irby, New York Times bestselling author of We Are Never Meeting in Real Life

"This book is like Akilah: vulnerable but tough, positive without being annoying, and so, so funny. Through all these stories-some happy, some sad, some insane-there's always a message that says don't give up. Boyfriends let you down. Raccoons fall through ceiling vents. Sh*t happens. Keep going." --Jon Lovett, co-host of Pod Save America

"Akilah Hughes is a light in the darkness. Her laughter runs through this book. Read it and make it your friend." --New York Times bestselling author Maureen Johnson

"Akilah is one of the best and brightest writers of our generation. If funny mixed with wit and honesty is the dish, Akilah Hughes is a five-star chef." --Roy Wood Jr., Correspondent, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah

"These laugh-out-loud accounts read like warm conversations with an older cousin who provides helpful advice--sandwiched between love and laughter--on growing up." --Kirkus Reviews

"Hughes' lively, humorous memoir is a fast, enjoyable read and indispensable for young people." --Booklist

"In terms of drive, wit, and confidence, look no further...Hughes presents a charming and surprising essay collection." --SLJ

"Funny, bittersweet, thought-provoking, and deeply sobering." --PW
All stars
Most relevant
I wanted to savour the book but ended up gorging on it. Very well written and filled with such wonderful anecdotes.

Dagnammit, Akilah! Excellent book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Truly Awful. Don't waste your time with this, life is too short. That is all.

Poorly written, poorly performed....obviously

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.