Apparently Alexandra Fuller’s first memoir, Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight, caused a bit of strife between her and her mother (who refers to herself as Nicola Fuller of Central Africa, and to Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight as “that Awful Book”, which cracked me up on multiple occasions). Not surprising, since Nicola does not come off as the greatest mother in that book. A lot of fun, perhaps, but not the nurturing type. In Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness, Alexandra delves a bit more […]
A memoir so good that I immediately got copies of her other two!
“How you see a country depends on whether you are driving through it, or live in it. How you see a country depends on whether or not you can leave it, if you have to.” Alexandra Fuller grew up in Africa, the daughter of a manic depressive alcoholic mother, and a father who scratched out a living on various farms while also serving in the army, fighting the rebellion in order to ensure white rule. She and her older sister Vanessa learned how to kill […]
All the trigger warnings
I read Ashley Rhodes-Courter’s first memoir, Three Little Words, recently and was horrified and memorized by Ashley’s journey through the Florida foster care system. In her follow up memoir, Three More Words, Ashley shares her experiences on the other side of the foster care system- as a guardian, foster care parent and prospective adoptive family. Ashley begins her book recapping the first and then delves into her college experience; she had some struggles because her public persona made being a “regular” college student difficult, particularly […]
“Maybe I was just crazy. Maybe it was the 60’s. Or maybe I was just a girl… interrupted.”
I have seen the movie Girl, Interrupted once or twice, although it’s been a while. From my vague memories, however, it seems like they adapted the book pretty closely — with maybe some fleshing out/embellishments. The characters I remember, and even some of the lines, exist fully in this short book. Whether or not you’ve seen the movie, I definitely recommend reading this one. “Actually, it was only part of myself I wanted to kill: the part that wanted to kill herself, that dragged me into […]
Finally, a celebrity autobiography that isn’t a total waste of time!
Usually, celebrity autobiographies are pretty boring. Even if you like the actor, it’s tedious to listen to them blather on about their craft and how lucky they are and blah blah blah (the obvious exceptions are the WW2 celebrities, who made movies and punched Nazis). Neil Patrick Harris gets this-not enough to resist the urge of writing an autobiography-and makes his book pleasant and clever-and surprisingly heartfelt. Framed as a Choose Your Own Adventure book, the reader is an active participant in the book, flipping […]
I wish Tina Fey was my boss
Reasons to read this book: 1. You’re a fan of Tina Fey 2. You’re a fan of smarty, funny women in general Reasons not to read this book: 1. You want all sorts of dirt on celebrities she’s worked with 2. Smart, funny women make you uncomfortable. I was certainly familiar with Tina Fey’s body of work and, like many other women, I related to Liz Lemon. I’ve also been adding many biographies of women I admire to my To Be Read Mountain lately […]
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