I’ve been a fan and listener of Ira Madison III’s podcast Keep It! for a long time, so when I heard he was putting out a book of essays I knew that I had to jump on it. While I’m a Millenial/Gen Z cusper, I’m also Canadian, so our pop culture is skewed a bit behind the Americans so a lot of the ‘90s pop culture references that he makes resonate with me. That and I’m known to have made a bit of a study of pop culture from the ‘60s to now.

Through this series of essays, Ira tells us about different media properties that have meant a lot to him through his life – from TV shows, movies, to music, we’re brought on a nostalgic ride through the ‘90s and early ‘00s. Having not been alive enough to catch a lot of these things live, I was entertained by his insights and commentary on the pop culture landscape of the day and how it connected to his adolescence as the fat, gay Black kid at his very white high school.

That said, I felt that there was very little insight into Ira himself through the essays. I really didn’t learn anything that I didn’t know from the podcast, and what he did share of himself was very surface level to explain why he connected to a piece of media. While the insights into the piece of media were very thoughtful and interesting, it lacked a deeper level for me that kept me from giving this five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Books of essays, just like short story collections, are difficult. They can only be as good as the weakest story or essay. While I enjoyed reading this collection, particularly as I’m the same age as Madison and the nostalgia hit hard, I can’t say this was amazing or one of my favorite books. A couple of the essays for me just read too much like an encyclopedia of culture. Where the book was the best was a beautiful weaving of pop culture, nostalgia, autobiography and social commentary, and a few of the essays were beautifully successful. But the couple that felt more like a cultural lecture dragged down the experience for me. I’ll still recommend this one to anyone around my age especially, and I’m very glad I read it, but it won’t be a favorite of mine.

Reading Pure Innocent Fun felt like hanging out with Ira in real life. Almost feels like taking a peek at your best-friends journal, full of hot takes and vulnerable personal stories. Loved being dropped in to cultural moments.

An absolutely hilarious and warming take on many pop culture moments that we may have forgotten about (or think about everyday still).

Pure Innocent Fun effortlessly weaves family dynamics, sexuality, Blackness, and many other topics with the pop culture experience, reflecting on where/who the author was at the time.

I would absolutely recommend this, I was laughing out loud.

Note, there is a handful of grammatical errors in the ARC which I'm sure you have caught!

As a Keep It listener I was excited when I got my NetGalley email that I could read You cameo actor Ira Madison's book before the release date. I loved it. I could hear his voice while reading, and as a fellow pop culture lover I also remember time periods of my life through certain movies, tv shows, etc. He brought back so many memories I had growing up. When he talked about Timmy from Passions? Girl. I forgot about Tabitha and her doll/child and that whole insane storyline.

This book is a collection of memoir/pop-culture essays that touch on younger Millennial experiences. I don’t think there is anything life-changing in these essays but I definitely found them entertaining. The author is all over the place, and often interrupts himself in the middle of telling a story, to tell a different story. It is a chaotic and charming reading experience and I am glad I picked up this book. I received a digital copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Ira Madison III masterfully demonstrates why pop culture criticism deserves serious literary attention. Pure Innocent Fun serves as both a time capsule of the 90s and 2000s and a compelling memoir of coming-of-age as a Black gay man in Milwaukee.

Madison's writing style feels intimate and conversational, as though you're sharing inside jokes with a close friend. He is brilliantly observant about the intersection of media, identity, and society. His essays range from lighthearted to deeply introspective and maintain a consistent thread of wit and insight throughout. His ability to draw meaningful connections between seemingly disparate cultural moments showcases his talent for finding profound truth in popular entertainment.

The essays flow naturally, each building upon the last to create a rich tapestry of cultural observation and personal revelation. Madison's voice is distinctly his own – sharp, funny, and unafraid to challenge conventional wisdom while remaining deeply engaging.

Highly recommended for readers who appreciate thoughtful cultural analysis, memoir lovers who enjoy a strong voice, and anyone who believes that our relationship with pop culture helps define who we are. This collection stands as a brilliant example of how personal narrative and cultural criticism can combine to create something greater than the sum of its parts.

Fun short stories about different aspects of pop culture interwoven with the narrator’s own experiences and point of view. Wish that each story was a bit shorter and there were more of them!

Pure Innocent Fun by Ira Madison III is a funny, sharp collections of essays about pop culture, particularly focused on the 90s and 2000s. I'm a longtime listener of Keep It, Ira's podcast, and could hear his voice so clearly throughout the essays. I really enjoyed dipping in and out of this very millennial collection of pop culture over a couple of weeks, getting to read about many pieces of pop culture I haven't seen commentary on recently and get a good dose of both nostalgia and analysis. The essays are a bit meandering and could be tighter, and hopefully got a a closer edit since this ARC version to catch some mix-ups and repetitions. Still, Ira's voice and point of view are so strong - I bet this will be great on audio as well - and he did a good job weaving in his personal life and reflections of how pop culture and millennial life shaped his own experiences.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

A truly delightful romp through pop culture nostalgia intertwined with memoir. I was the tiniest bit disappointed that there was nothing about Bravo, since that’s how I found Ira!

I am a big fan of Ira's work, I'm a longtime listener of Keep It! and I love his commentary. I felt like this meandered a little too much for me and ended rather abruptly. And I know this was an uncorrected proof, but there was a lot of stuff I couldn't believe was left in?? Tom Cruise was not in Day After Tomorrow, and The Nutty Professor was Eddie Murphy! Just seemed a little lazy honestly.

That said, it went down quickly and I giggled a fair amount. I think there's more to this well, though, and I would've liked to have seen more.

If you're thirty-seven years old (plus or minus four years), grew up watching Erica Kane marry half of Pine Valley with your grandma during the summer, set your analog TB to record early 2000s teen dramas on a blank VHS, have ever been deeply offended when someone insists Justin Timberlake is the most talented member of NSYNC, or were involved with high school theatre state crew, you'll likely devour Pure Innocent Fun. If that sounds oddly specific, you're clearly not a queer millennial. Our shared experience of reading Buffy fanfiction at 1 AM, watching basically the same ten music videos every day after school on Total Request Live, being allowed to watch Jerry Springer but NOT South Park or the Simpsons, and watching soap operas with entire plots about the ghost of Princess Diana is truly the glue that binds us as a generation.

Aside from recognizing Giordano's as good Chicago pizza, Ira's essays were a perfect balance between memoir, stream of consciousness, and pop culture critique. It was an inviting book that felt like revisiting the early aughts with a friend.

I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are honest and my own.

4.5/5 stars rounded up to 5

This was so fun! I love a good pop culture critique and this essay collection did not disappoint. I was easily transported back to the days of my childhood growing up in the 90s and 2000s and each essay was crafted with such humor and wit.

Definitely some good pop culture stuff and memoir stuff here, but I found the essays to be too meandering to totally land.

"Pure Innocent Fun" by Ira Madison is a sharp, hilarious, and unapologetically bold read that doesn’t hold back. Madison’s wit and humor shine throughout, making even the most outrageous moments feel relatable and oddly endearing. The characters are larger than life yet grounded in real emotions, which adds depth to the story’s wild twists and turns. It’s the kind of book that keeps you laughing while sneaking in moments of reflection about society and relationships. The writing is fast-paced and addictive, making it hard to put down once you start. If you’re in the mood for a clever and wildly entertaining ride, this book is definitely worth picking up.

Are you a millennial who watched too much TV as a child? If yes, this book is for you. Pop culture combined with memoir perfect for those who came of age when MTV ruled the airwaves but before smart phones. If you were dialed in to music, film and television at the time or are a younger person who wants an idea of what growing up in the 90s and early 2000s was like please check out Pure Innocent Fun. Funny, heartbreaking, insightful, reading this book was an all around enjoyable time.

New year, new books! Look no further than Ira Madison III's new book of essays titled Pure Innocent Fun. He is the host of pop culture podcast Keep It. He has written for many publications including MTV News and GQ. He's also appeared on WWHL with Andy Cohen and The Wendy Williams Show. To say he is qualified to write about pop culture is an understatement.

In this nostalgic collection of original essays, Ira combines memoir and entertainment criticism. The essays are written strong enough to stand alone but together, they create a worldview of pop culture in the 90s and 2000s sprinkled with Ira's coming-of-age as a Black gay man. Key cultural moments shaped him into the funny talented man he is today.

Reading Pure Innocent Fun was like meeting an old classmate at a reunion brunch and reminiscing. Ira had me cackling and nodding my head in agreement throughout most of the book. He captured the sentiments of Gen X / millennials that grew up watching a lot of Black families on TV.

His takes are hilarious on Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Steve Urkel vs. Stefan Urquelle, Marlena Evans being possessed by the devil on Days of Our Lives and the younger daughter from Family Matters that was written off the show with no explanation. I thought I was the only one that remembered she was sent up to her bedroom and never came back downstairs!

Ira could not have picked a better title. It is pure fun to read this collection of essays, especially if you were born in the 80s. Prepare to be entertained!

Happy Early Pub Day, Ira Madison III! Pure Innocent Fun will be available Tuesday, February 4.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

Thank you to NetGalley for a preview of this essay collection in exchange for an honest review. Finding that my favorite podcaster had an essay collection being released that was all about early 2000’s pop culture felt like a real gift, and thankfully my expectations were met. Ira Madison III has such a distinctive voice as a writer and comedian, and reading this book felt like sitting with him in front of a warm fire hearing him spin his tales. The chapter towards the end about him coming out were particularly strong and moving. It’s not often that someone has connected with so much of the same popular culture as you. And it’s even less common for them to have similar opinions! I feel really lucky to have discovered Madison’s voice for myself. Check this one out! Only complaint is I wish it was longer!

This is a fun read! Ira Madison III has always been a reliable figure in pop culture commentary. He was one of the first people who I consistently recognized across social media platforms, from Twitter to Letterboxd to Spotify to Threads/Bluesky. (I mean, I don't have Bluesky because I just can't handle another social media site, but I know Ira Madison III has an account.) I've always enjoyed his takes on Housewives and he's just a fun, fresh voice. This translates to Pure Innocent Fun. There's nothing controversial in these essays. There are no huge hot takes or takedowns. Just encyclopedic knowledge of the shows that, if you were born between let's say 1983-1995, you grew up watching. It's a fun look back at everything from soaps to TRL to Dinosaurs (Ira, thank you for reassuring me that the show was not just a fever dream, and informing me that Jessica Walter has been that bitch longer than I realized), this book has it all and some relatable tidbits about growing up in the closet. I ended up drinking a bit of wine and going down a rabbit hole planning my 1999-themed murder mystery party after reading about TRL, so overall I say this book was a big win. How do we put this book in a time capsule so gay kids can read it in 5, 10, 20, 50 years?

Here's what Ira Madison III, author of Pure Innocent Fun, and I have in common: we're both Millennials, and we were both enamored of Chuck Klosterman's 2003 pop culture essay collection Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs as teenagers.

When I heard of Madison's new book, directly suggested by the publisher as being a deeply Klosterman-inspired but distinctly Millennial voice, this seemed directly targeted to me & like a fresh way for me to get into the genre.

And I think that that explicit comparison is what made this book suffer in my estimation. Neither the personal memoir aspect nor the pop culture essay aspect of this book really felt deeply fulfilled enough to capture my interest. Ostensibly about the ways that pop culture shaped him throughout his upbringing, somehow I still don't really feel like I have a strong sense of who the author is as a person from the personal stories. And as to the pop culture element, it felt like each essay lightly brushed against too many different topics, only loosely related, rather than diving deep into one or two connecting topics. If reading Klosterman's essays is like watching an episode of a television show and then changing the channel, Madison's essays were like watching six minutes of a show and then changing channels during the ad break without ever finishing an episode of anything. I think it would be better if this book had been marketed without that comparison, because for the right audience, it will stand on its own.

The Internet suggests to me that Madison is a well-liked writer & podcast host, and I bet that for his existing audience, who already appreciate his writing style & tone & share interests & maybe have more interest in him as an individual, this book will be a fun way to enjoy more of what they like about the author! It was not a bad book, and it made for reasonably fun, breezy reading. Madison is clearly a very intelligent, somewhat self-deprecating, funny guy. If nostalgia is your thing – and c'mon, we're Millennials, of course nostalgia is our thing - you will definitely get plenty of nostalgia to feed on here! It just wasn't what I thought it would be and perhaps I am simply not the target audience here.

Would I recommend to a friend?: Potentially yes, I could certainly see myself recommending it to particular friends who I think would enjoy it. Not across the board to all my friends, though.

Would I reread this book?: No