is “a memoir according to Kathy Griffin,” so it may have a little bias to it. If you’re reading this book as a serious autobiography, you may be disappointed by the very casual, nonchalant tone Griffin sets; it is almost like a monologue, in the way that it is easy to understand and is about the content, not the form. Casual as it is, she does not shy away from serious topics, though. In fact, she tackles them head on in a very matter-of-fact way. She does not beat around the bush to keep the book light and fluffy. The book is exactly like her life, entertaining and funny, yet very real and down to earth, as well.
Kathy’s gift of gab looses nothing in transition to the page. Reading the words, it is very easy to hear her voice reading the page. She did use a ghostwriter, but Kathy probably had to see everything before it went to press.
Do not expect the book to be a light and fluffy walk in the park. Although there are laughs throughout the entire thing, this book is about a person’s life. Everyone has had dark moments, and Kathy is no exception. Without giving too much away, there are things no one would be able to guess have happened to Kathy. She does not bemoan all the bad things that happen to her. She does not make herself out to be the victim. Instead, she recalls everything as a lesson. She takes a bad situation and does the best she can with it, one of her most outstanding characteristics.
The book offers an insight into how she took her admittedly mediocre star-quality and paired it with her brain to make her dream come true. She sets an unusual life goal and takes all the steps to get there. From an early age, she does not delude herself and is very pragmatic. In one recollection, she describes doing six shows in various parts of the greater Boston area because it was slightly more money than the one in Boston-proper. She says several times she never turns down work and is very conscious of her financial affairs, which is refreshing in the conspicuous consumption-driven world of Hollywood.
The book is not organized as a sporadic series of anecdotes, but instead as a continuum. Some time of her life do get more attention than others, but nothing ever feels left out. What is interesting gets the most time and the boring stuff is left to the wayside, but not entirely eschewed completely. The book gives a look into Kathy’s childhood and shows how she became who she is today.
The easily flowing narrative and the conversational quality of the writing make it very difficult to put down the book. Each chapter leads into the next, drawing the reader in further until suddenly it’s 3 a.m. and I still have not finished Media Device Architectures homework. This book is great for just putting the reader’s mind on a shelf and diving into a different world. The ease with which the book reads is in part due to the tone and simplicity of intention but also because of the slightly fantastic, surreal atmosphere that trying to “make it” in Hollywood creates.
For those of you worried that this is just a book about Kathy, fear not, for it is a book about Kathy and all the people around her. She talks abut her relationships, intimate and not, with both the famous and the not so famous. She hilariously confesses her penchant for donut shop workers and the perks of dating them. She also dishes on some unexpected, high profile celebrities (Jack Black) and some less so on both counts (Andy Dick).
If you enjoy Kathy’s , or any of her stand-up, this book is a must-read. It is hilarious while being honest and heartfelt. She comes clean on the dirty truth on both celebrities she has encountered in her prolific career as well as herself. She looks back with the same cynicism that she chides young starlets with. The book is insightful to Kathy’s character and life. It is funny, and most importantly it Kathy’s characteristic funny. The book delivers to readers looking for a life story, to readers looking for a laugh, to readers who just love Kathy and to those who love these readers. Whether you and Kathy go way back (in your head, anyway), or whether you cannot remember if it is “Griffen,” “Griffin” or “Griffith,” this book will stand out among the current inundation of “celebrity tell-all” books as belly-achingly hilarious, heart-breakingly honest and never faking a thing.