I laughed out loud about two dozen times. This is especially impressive because some of the essays are quite sad. What is it like when your dad is a sI laughed out loud about two dozen times. This is especially impressive because some of the essays are quite sad. What is it like when your dad is a spy? Lonely. What is it like to be a little kid in Florida? Rather shitty, especially when your mom is poor and refuses to get rid of her abusive, erratic boyfriend. What is it like when your mom accidentally burns down the house she was in the process of selling? Well, your relationship with her certainly isn't going to get better.
DeRuiter seems to be a thoroughgoing optimist now, which surprised me given the circumstances of her upbringing. It sounds as if she married a delightful man, which certainly sweetens life. And she has never been on a diet. And she got a book deal! And I think she and/or her husband might be extremely rich?
One of the essay titles made me gasp: "Bikini Body of Christ." So if you find that title blasphemous or otherwise offensive, that may be a sign that this essay collection is not for you....more
I have met Samantha Irby a few times, and she is always super nice and wears the best glasses. I listened to the audiobook, and she is a terrific readI have met Samantha Irby a few times, and she is always super nice and wears the best glasses. I listened to the audiobook, and she is a terrific reader of her own work (not every author is). My favorites from this collection were the childhood sleepover party gone wrong, the time spent working for a political campaign, and her mother's last words to her, which were bewildering and awful. I also enjoyed the "let me be a guest at your party" essay, which has a great punchline....more
Leslie Jones once got so enraged at a Saturday Night Live colleague that she called up a murderer she knew and offered to fly him out to New York so hLeslie Jones once got so enraged at a Saturday Night Live colleague that she called up a murderer she knew and offered to fly him out to New York so he could kill this person. The murderer's response? "Les, it's Christmas. I just had a baby." The murderer suggested that Leslie simply stop communicating with this person "because it's cold in your shadow." Leslie tried this option and it worked! No homicide necessary! This audiobook is a wild, freewheeling, often teary account of the author's life, career, and philosophy. I enjoyed it very much, and I felt especially sympathetic to her when she revealed that she was unable to attend either of her parents' funerals because she was away making money to pay for those funerals. (One of her most strongly worded pieces of advice is to buy insurance so you don't burden others with those costs.) Today Leslie Jones lives in a 4,000-square-foot home in California with a swimming pool and a beauty salon and a pantry that is stocked like a 7-Eleven. And I'm so happy for her. She deserves all of that....more
Why has true crime become so popular? My favorite theory relates to crime rates dropping in the United States and some other countries. This theory saWhy has true crime become so popular? My favorite theory relates to crime rates dropping in the United States and some other countries. This theory says that if you just got mugged, or your favorite auntie just got mugged, the last thing you want to do is watch a cop show. The associations are too unpleasant. But if you feel safe, and you believe the people you care about are safe, you're more likely to get some thrills out of a 400-page book about, I don't know, ritual disembowelments.
As far as I know there's no solid evidence to back up this theory, but Hilary Fitzgerald Campbell's illustrated memoir sure seems to bear it out. She grew up in a loving, close-knit family with plenty of money and lots of kindhearted neighbors. At one point she lists the professions and former professions of the neighbors, and they're all middle class or upper middle class. (There were drinks and snacks at 5 p.m. most days on Pattie's Patio! I wish I had a neighborhood patio like that!) And much of the talk on the patio and at Thanksgiving dinner and on the weekends was about murder. Murder books, movies, TV shows, and (later on) podcasts.
HFC has had some success as a cartoonist and has done stand-up, both of which help to make this book appealing. She is a sincere and curious person who wonders about the world. And she wonders why she, her mother, her grandmother, and many other family members have fixated on murder for so long. She explores some ideas—genetics? empathy? a need for connection? a desire to figure things out? a craving for putting things in order?—but does not come to any definitive conclusions. She also discusses the fact that murder media usually focuses on white women, even though men are murdered at higher rates and there are plenty of people of color who are also murder victims.
This book is a bit rambling, which I know some other reviewers disliked, but I think it's part of the author's charm. What I didn't find charming was her frequent drawings of herself on the toilet. I didn't think this was immoral or disgusting, but I found it a bit odd. We all have to go sometime, I suppose. ...more
"The screaming was much louder than I had anticipated." —Cassidy Hutchinson, former special assistant to the president, describing what it was like to"The screaming was much louder than I had anticipated." —Cassidy Hutchinson, former special assistant to the president, describing what it was like to stand outside the Oval Office
This had way more horror-movie elements than I had anticipated.
Summary: Cassidy Hutchinson says she chose a life of public service to advance the policies she believed in (which she cannot or will not describe except in the vaguest terms), to increase bipartisanship (in what turned out to be one of the most partisan administrations in U.S. history), to support her colleagues (who overworked, assaulted, insulted, and abandoned her), and to live the values of her parents (whom she despises, and with good reason).
Horror-movie elements:
• Little-kid Cassidy feels sad when her dad repeatedly breaks his promises to her and her little brother, but then her dad tells her that he has left her and brother a special surprise for them in their mailbox. She unwraps the foil package and finds two deer hearts, still warm, dripping with blood.
• Teenage Cassidy wakes up in so much pain that she pees in her bed. She calls both parents and begs for help, but they refuse. One doesn't want to be disturbed while on vacation, and the other one has been sh¡tty to her for her whole life. Neither of them believes in doctors, whatever that means. She drives herself to the hospital and is immediately treated for appendicitis.
• On January 6, Rudy Giuliani sexually assaults her. Her description of his cold fingertips creeping up her thighs is nauseating. I found myself wishing that she had belted him with one of the binders she was always carrying, so he would have crumbed into dust.
• Matt Gaetz exists.
Funny parts in a serious book:
• Donald Trump gives her hairstyling tips. She submits to his will, but the results don't flatter her. (Now that I think about it, that last sentence describes this whole book.)
• Mark Meadows's staff accidentally gets him drunk. While he's out sick with Covid, they leave White Claws in his fridge and forget to remove them. He comes back and pounds a couple of them (the White Claws, not the staffers) because he is Southern Baptist and has never previously had a drink in his life and doesn't know from White Claw. He offers a third can to his colleague, a Latter-Day Saint, who is Not Pleased. The whole thing is acutely embarrassing and Meadows manages to avoid Trump until sobering up.
• Debbie Meadows (Mrs. Mark) is so stupid that she tells Hutchinson to forbid Mark from burning things in his office fireplace. He's done this so often that his suits all stink and she can't keep up with the dry cleaning. It never occurs to Deb to wonder why Mark is burning stacks and stacks and stacks of documents at work.
• Governor Ron DeSantis is such a self-obsessed ninnyhammer that Hutchinson scolds him for asking for special favors and wasting everyone's time, and he apologizes profusely.
• There is a thwarted attempt to pardon Kimberly Guilfoyle's gynecologist.
Unanswered questions:
• What is Cassidy Hutchinson going to do with the rest of her life?
• Is her father actually mentally ill, or does he just feign mental illness when someone asks for help or expects him to be responsible about something, or is he just a complete sh¡tstain with no redeeming qualities?
• Have her family members abandoned her since she published this book, or are they not capable of reading it?
My verdict: The first 15 percent of this book, which covers Hutchinson's childhood and young adulthood, is weak. I don't know if she just couldn't bear to talk about her childhood or if the editors didn't leave enough time for this part to be fleshed out fully. Her descriptions of working in the White House are interesting and compelling. Her descriptions of her testimony and its aftermath are a little bit self-aggrandizing, but on the other hand she was only 25 when she wrote the book and had been through a lot. It is appealing to see someone actually learn from history—during her crisis, Hutchinson becomes obsessed with former Nixon aide Alexander Butterfield and models her actions and demeanor on his.
Hutchinson seems like a hard worker and a hard drinker. I hope she finds better friends and colleagues and is able to lead a peaceful life. She has bought herself a dog, which is a good start....more
This is a tell-some rather than a tell-all. And that's fine. Jill Duggar was exploited and abused for years—by her oldest brother, her parents, the teThis is a tell-some rather than a tell-all. And that's fine. Jill Duggar was exploited and abused for years—by her oldest brother, her parents, the television industry, and the media. So I understand why she doesn't want to reveal some details. What she includes is plenty. I knew the dad was a former used-car salesman and cult member who repeatedly covered up pedophilia, but I didn't know about the tax fraud. I wonder if the IRS will have anything to say about that. I suppose I should have guessed.
At one point the parents threaten to reduce Jill's inheritance. Which they just said was going to be split 19 ways. OH NOOOOOOOO. These people were missionaries in El Salvador. They don't want your filthy money.
The most devastating take-down in the book is from Jill to her dad: "You treat me worse than my pedophile brother."
I didn't know that the pedophile behavior happened before the Duggars were ever on television.
Jill reminisces about how things were so much easier when she was younger and there were "only" eight siblings in the family. (Now there are 19, plus Jill mentions her mom had some miscarriages along the way.)
Jill says the kids were happy when the documentary crews came because it meant they would get lots of food from Costco. So they ate all-beef chimichangas rather than bean sandwiches. BEAN SANDWICHES. I guess I shouldn't be surprised because there were already 14 kids by the time they did the first docu.
It's amazing that the oldest brother committed so many horrifying crimes that he finally did what Jill couldn't—he made it so that the dad would never again profit from the media phenomenon he helped to create. Golly, what will the dad do when all he has are a big house and multiple rental properties and multiple airplanes.
I understand that just because I read a memoir doesn't mean I know the person. But I worry that Jill's husband will turn out to be a jerk too. After all, Jill's dad picked him out for her.
Jill frequently describes incidents when her parents (especially her mother) acted honestly, kindly, and reasonably. Somehow this makes the other incidents seem even worse because it's clear she's trying to remember the good times and to honor her father and mother that her days may be long upon the earth. ...more
Based on the cover, I thought this was going to be an oral history of the movie Airplane! It's actually an oral history of the origins of Zucker, AbraBased on the cover, I thought this was going to be an oral history of the movie Airplane! It's actually an oral history of the origins of Zucker, Abrahams, and Zucker plus Kentucky Fried Theater plus Kentucky Fried Movie plus Airplane! So there might be stuff in here that doesn't interest you, especially if you've never seen KFM. Lots of celebrities stop by (Sarah Silverman, Maya Rudolph, Bill Hader, Jimmy Kimmel, Trey Parker, Matt Stone), as do many cast members.
I got excited when I realized that Julie Hagerty contributed audio. "Great!" I thought. "I'll finally find out what her real voice is like!" But it turns out that she really talks like that. And she insists that she had no idea about the sexual connotations of blowing the autopilot, no matter what Shelley Long thinks. (Long was angry about being turned down for the part.)
And yes, ZAZ do mention working with OJ Simpson. One of them says something along the lines of, "He got a little better with every movie, but overall, his acting technique was similar to his murdering technique: He got away with it, but nobody really believed him."
Airplane! contains the standard FBI warning with a couple of extra words at the end: "This motion picture is protected under the laws of the United States and other countries. Unauthorized duplication, distribution, or exhibition may result in civil liability or criminal prosecution. So there." Did the FBI like that? No. ZAZ got a scolding. At the end of the credits of this book, the narrator says, "So there."
This was a fun book to listen to while my spouse and I are stuck at home over Thanksgiving week because he has Covid....more
I'm giving this four stars because I found it compelling and because I feel so sorry for Britney Spears and all she's gone through, carrying her entirI'm giving this four stars because I found it compelling and because I feel so sorry for Britney Spears and all she's gone through, carrying her entire money-grubbing family on her back since childhood and being sexualized since then, too. But based on this book, this author does not have a rich inner life. The whole thing is a list of "This happened to me, and this is how I felt about it. And then this happened, and this is how I felt." There are few insights into the events she has participated in, the creative work she has done, the people she has met, and the places she has traveled. Others' feelings and motivations remain opaque to her.
I wish her editors had limited or forbidden the use of "amazing" and "nice" and "mean" and pushed her to be more descriptive. On the other hand, if you're Britney Spears and you were institutionalized against your will, do you really want to let others tell you what to do? And if you're the editorial and marketing team for this book, do you really have to push to make it top quality? It's going to sell millions of copies regardless because tens of millions of us are interested in Britney Spears.
I enjoyed that Spears mentioned how much she liked Paris Hilton—somebody else who has been flambéed in the media—and how kind Hilton was to her at a time when she really needed a friend. Unfortunately, their friendship sounds as if it was shallow and temporary, and Spears describes her as "sweet" with little other information.
When it comes to romantic partners, it sounds as if Spears has a bad picker. Justin Timberlake cheated on her and she pretended she didn't know. She knew that another woman had just had Kevin Federline's baby but she married him anyway. (Why did she pick him? Because he thought she was fine the way she was, or at least that's what he pretended to her. Also he would hold her for as long as she wanted him to. Wouldn't you think that legions of men would be willing to do that for her? But that's not how it worked out.) She knew or should have known that the photographer she dated was married. And she speaks lovingly of the most recent husband but doesn't mention that he filed for divorce this summer. I hope she is able to find someone who treats her kindly.
If you're looking for celebrity memoirs that have similar themes but are more insightful, I recommend ones by Mariah Carey, Jessica Simpson, Dolly Parton, and Elton John.
What's it like growing up in a household where your family members dislike you? The Scottish comedian Fern Brady knows. Brady has autism, but it wasn'What's it like growing up in a household where your family members dislike you? The Scottish comedian Fern Brady knows. Brady has autism, but it wasn't diagnosed until adulthood. She also grew up poor. She had advantages too—including intelligence, musical ability, and beauty—but her family's bafflement with her and her feelings of not-wantedness were corrosive. To be fair, if someone in my household had meltdowns regularly and scowled when spoken to and scratched their own skin when anyone touched them, I would probably dislike them too.
Brady is a comedian, but I wouldn't call this memoir funny at all. It's heartfelt and smart and useful and sometimes bizarre (the chapters on working in strip clubs are something else). I learned a lot about autistics, allistics (people who aren't on the autism spectrum), Scotland, and finding a way to win. Also she reads the audiobook, and I could listen to her voice all day....more
Fascinating, often harrowing account of a long career as a death investigator in New York City. The author is no-nonsense but feels deeply and suffersFascinating, often harrowing account of a long career as a death investigator in New York City. The author is no-nonsense but feels deeply and suffers a great deal. Her account of succeeding professionally and creatively, despite troubles with alcohol and depression, was inspiring but never sappy.
Most interesting case, to me: a husband's diabetic overdose in which the wife and the husband's psychiatrist seemed to have a passionate connection and most likely got away with murder.
Most interesting scandal, to me: The author's supervisor and one of the author's coworkers both called off work "sick" one night and then got caught . . . cuddling . . . on a Jumbotron . . . at Yankee Stadium during a game. This would be fun office gossip except that the non-cuddling coworkers had to investigate more deaths that night, over a larger area of the city, and had to meet with the relatives of all the people who had died while hospitalized that day. This isn't like Office Space where people slack off and the TPS reports pile up but nothing really terrible happens....more
More of a memoir than a book of practical advice. In a nutshell: • Everybody's different. • If you decide to retire, make a plan for your retirement. • UMore of a memoir than a book of practical advice. In a nutshell: • Everybody's different. • If you decide to retire, make a plan for your retirement. • Understand that no matter how carefully you plan, circumstances will change and your wants and needs may change too.
I liked the idea that if you're able to find a job that you enjoy and that you're good at, work can be a form of continuing education.
López interviews celebrities, local heroes, spiritual leaders, friends, acquaintances, and regular people. But I would have appreciated interviews with economists, financial planners, and insurance experts. The author claims he hasn't got much money, but this is really a book for upper-class people with education and training and the chance to choose whether or when they retire.
The author is a little unusual in that he is 67 with an 18-year-old daughter, the result of a second marriage. He writes about her with great affection and admiration. But he barely mentions the two sons from the first marriage. He doesn't even thank them in the acknowledgments! Was the divorce so bad that they've never spoken to him since?...more
Why do people shame others and/or feel shame themselves? How do some people and organizations profit from shame? And how does technology spread and amWhy do people shame others and/or feel shame themselves? How do some people and organizations profit from shame? And how does technology spread and amplify shame to sometimes deadly proportions? Cathy O'Neil explores all of these ideas in a blend of rigorous research and personal essays. She mentions that in a few cases, shame can benefit society. For example, the Sackler family got rich by frequently lying about drug side effects and blaming victims. Therefore, they deserve to be publicly shamed, required to pay reparations, and endure having their names scrubbed off museums, universities, and other cultural institutions. ...more
"After Daddy had his leg cut off, I didn't see him laugh again until the pope died."
I read this book because the author's tweets are so hilarious. The"After Daddy had his leg cut off, I didn't see him laugh again until the pope died."
I read this book because the author's tweets are so hilarious. These are essays about growing up in Derry, literally on the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland (a wall on the family property was part of the official border). His mother died of cancer when he was five, and after that his father had to raise eleven children solo. The author reads the book himself, and his accent is lovely—though I had to slow the speed down to 0.8 in some places to fully comprehend what he was saying....more
This book is called Year of the Tiger because it was published the year the author turned 48, her fourth Tiger Year under the Chinese zodiac and far lThis book is called Year of the Tiger because it was published the year the author turned 48, her fourth Tiger Year under the Chinese zodiac and far longer than many people expected her to survive. Wong is a disability rights activist, writer, visual artist, and enthusiastic consumer of ice cream. This is a collection of her essays, letters, podcast appearances, and art, plus writing and art she commissioned from others. Some pieces are serious, while others are playful. Wong contends that just because she's publishing a memoir doesn't mean she's a zoo animal. The rest of us don't get to peer at her and learn everything about her just because we invested a little time and/or money in her. Wong is writing another book, this one about sexuality. ...more
I read this one because the first sentence sounded so intriguing: "I am in a bar in Brooklyn, listening to two men, my friends, discuss whether my lifI read this one because the first sentence sounded so intriguing: "I am in a bar in Brooklyn, listening to two men, my friends, discuss whether my life is worth living." This memoir is about travel, struggle, motherhood, friendship, the lure of the new, the fear of the new, disability, feminism, Peter Dinklage, and Roger Federer. My favorite quotation from it is "It is a deft act of erasure to be told how to process a situation by a person who would never experience it."...more
Great title, but the author struggled with shaping the material.
This is a revenge book: Francart got fired, after reporting years of sexual harassmenGreat title, but the author struggled with shaping the material.
This is a revenge book: Francart got fired, after reporting years of sexual harassment and abuse from a superior, because people at her job believed she was writing a book about her work. She wasn't, but she decided to write one since she suddenly had free time. (Her abuser eventually resigned, but not until after she left the job. It sounds as if nobody was willing or able to back up Francart's complaints, but after she left another person or people reported other bad behavior.)
A deputy coroner is someone who arrives at a death scene, evaluates the corpse for injuries, takes samples to send to toxicology, and talks with the decedent's family members. Francart had worked in the travel industry for many years but started volunteering for the coroner's office. She had just gone through a divorce, she had two sons to care for, and she needed something meaningful to fill the weekends when she didn't see them. Eventually she got a full-time job in a funeral home and continued to volunteer for the coroner on weekends.
The author believes in ghosts (including ghosts of pets), poltergeists, reincarnation, psychics, guardian angels, angel numbers, and many other signs and portents. I don't share those beliefs, but maybe I would if I'd had her experiences in work and life. Francart has been abused and assaulted at many times in her life, and I hope she's able to find peace. At the time of writing, she was hanging out with members of a motorcycle club and felt respected and protected.
I wish there had been more material about her work for the funeral home and the coroner and less about psychics and spirits. Also, I wish her editor had stripped the clichés out of the book and encouraged Francart to find better words than "wonderful" and "amazing" to describe her own mother....more
Can an extremely shy person who has never once dreamed of a life in show business in his approximately 30 years on Earth become a beloved comedian witCan an extremely shy person who has never once dreamed of a life in show business in his approximately 30 years on Earth become a beloved comedian with many stage and TV shows to his credit? Yes! This memoir alternates chapters between descriptions of Bob Mortimer's emergency triple bypass and his childhood, adulthood, and show business success. I suggest getting the audiobook version, which includes enthusiastic singing and about two dozen different accents.
At the end of the book, he tells the reader that if there's a shy person at their office or school or social gathering, they should try to include that person in conversations, outings, and so on. And he advises shy readers to try to come out of their shells, even if it seems scary.
Bob Mortimer thanks the heart disease that almost killed him. He also thanks the "Hell's Angels farmer" he caught having sex with his girlfriend when he came home early from work one day. In short, he is a remarkable person even setting aside the comedy success.
My favorite random trivia in this book is that Mortimer is pals with Damien Hirst, the tremendously successful artist. When Mortimer revealed that he would soon need heart surgery, Hirst got an ox's heart, ran a silver arrow through it, preserved it in a vitrine full of formaldehyde, and gave it to him. I wonder if Mortimer ever sold it. I imagine it would be worth hundreds of thousands of pounds....more
Gorgeous essays about Patchett's past, her everyday life today, and her astonishing friendships. I wish I could understand how she makes her writing sGorgeous essays about Patchett's past, her everyday life today, and her astonishing friendships. I wish I could understand how she makes her writing so compelling....more
Compulsively readable (to me) essays about romance, expectations, marriage, separation, divorce, and estrangement. Kimberly Harrington's parents were Compulsively readable (to me) essays about romance, expectations, marriage, separation, divorce, and estrangement. Kimberly Harrington's parents were young when they got married and had her fairly quickly. Harrington felt that her parents either didn't want her or cooled on the notion of parenting early in her life. And that not-wantedness or not-wanted-enoughness has stuck with her throughout her life so far. Despite all her accomplishments and successes and good qualities, she has felt unappreciated.
My friend who is a divorce lawyer (sorry, I mean a family law attorney) tells me that she works with her clients when they are not at their best—when they are at a low point in their lives. Harrington wrote this book during a two-year period when she was separated but not divorced. So that low point seems to taint many of her recollections going back to childhood.
Harrington's first book was about motherhood, and the second one is about separation and preparing for divorce. I wonder if the third one will be about life after divorce.
Be warned: The author relies heavily on rhetorical questions. One essay is nothing but rhetorical questions. ...more
Rough life, rough marriage. Author gets a searing memoir out of it—and two great kids—but I keep thinking she could have written ten books in the timeRough life, rough marriage. Author gets a searing memoir out of it—and two great kids—but I keep thinking she could have written ten books in the time she spent caring for her loving yet troubled husband. Anyway I hope this book sells well and wins all the awards so she will have some money to throw at the problems....more
Loading...
