LOB Book Club - Bossypants - Part I
Just to start things off, I was a bit surprised that a book I thought would be more about her professional life and development started out with her elementary and middle school years. Funny, certainly, although how many speculum jokes must we endure? (For you boys out there, a speculum is not funny. Not now, not ever.)The description of her climbing a mountain at night with two friends had me howling, even as I cringed at her soul-baring recollections of her relationship confusions.
Was this because I saw me in her descriptions? Or just because her ineptitude contrasts so starkly with the wildly successful performer she has become? I'm still noodling on that one.
Discuss!
posted by Bivalve88 @ 7:38 AM
3 Comments:
Thanks for organizing this reading, Bivalve. I too was struck by Tina's focus on her childhood in the first sixty-odd pages of "Bossypants." It seems important to her to emphasize the socially awkward kid inside the famous performer exterior that the audience sees.
She establishes the project of the book alongside some priceless photos on pp. 5-6, where she writes: "For me this book is a simple task of retracing my steps to figure out what factors contributed to this person (next to a very unflattering picture of Tina in her tween soccer playing stage)...developing into this person (next to a glamour-puss shot)...who secretly prefers to be this person (next to a photo of tween Tina again in roller-skates with impish grin)."
It's a charming stroll through her early life too. I too had a great time chuckling along to her teenage hiking anecdote. I also was quite moved by her lovely tribute to her dad Don.
But at a certain, I suppose I thought that she "doth protest a bit too much." The bottom line is that there are a lot of socially awkward kids who don't end up writing NBC sitcoms and appearing on the cover of Cosmo. Several times, my internal monologue cried out - "Get over yourself, Tina!" as I occasionally do at the TV when she plays on the running joke that she's an unattractive singleton on "30 Rock." I don't buy it.
Did you have the same reaction?
Did I offend you with my comments, Bivalve? If so, I take it all back. Totally love Tina - no criticisms at all.
Sorry, BD. Was on vacation camping in Vermont with no cell or WiFi access. Just got back this evening.
Yes, I think "the lady doth protest too much" - definitely! Hopefully the next few chapters will be more interesting.
Shall we read through "Dear Internet"?
Post a Comment
<< Home