I love offbeat book titles. Ever since a publisher offered me a copy of Living With Killer
Bees at a library conference, I'm always on the lookout for the oddball. There are some real doozies out there, including Everything I Know About Women, I Learned From My Tractor. (Check out more here.) While scanning a forthcoming book list, Michael Ian Black's memoir title caught my eye. I know this sounds strange, but this is one of the first books I've read that "looks" like its author.
Navel Gazing: True Tales of Bodies, Mostly Mine (but also my mom's, which I know sounds weird) by Michael Ian Black, Gallery Books, 2016
When someone writes a memoir, they either choose an outstanding time in their life and share that "Oh, wow!" moment or they take something mundane and give it great meaning. Michael Ian Black does a little of both, and the result is a sincere story of a man/boy coming into his middle-age. Using his mother's cancer as a touchstone, Black provides a straightforward review of his life without so much as arching a comedic eyebrow. (His career as a comedian/comedic actor is barely touched on; he focuses more on his role as a writer.) He examines being raised by lesbians, his interfaith marriage, being a dad, his stint in a punk band, and why one should not picking a fight with another author, even an imaginary feud. Throughout the book, Black discusses becoming a runner, something he decided to do for health reasons, despising it at first, but ultimately coming to terms with it. The book is sweet without being mawkish and funny when it needs to be, leaving the reader nodding the head in recognition, especially if one is a member of the "sandwich generation."
They say it's all in the timing, and the timing for this (at least for me) could not have come at a better time. Jesse David Fox, senior editor for The Vulture, New York Magazine's pop culture website, gathered journalists, historians, and comedians to reflect on what are our most seminal jokes. Fox admits they defined "joke" rather broadly, and while one may not agree with everything on the list (or anything on the list), I think they did a darn good job. If you missed it, here it is. I'd love to know what your favorites are that were not included.
As a fan of the art of comedy, I feel the roots are sometimes neglected. Richard Pryor, George Carlin, and Joan Rivers are the modern masters, but we mustn't forget our Rembrandts, Da Vincis, and, especially, Artemisia Gentileschis.
I Am Sophie Tucker: A Fictional Memoir by Susan and Lloyd Ecker, Prospecta Press (2014)
Considering how little has been written about Sophie Tucker, who influenced so many performers, most notably Bette Midler, I so much wanted to like this book more. I can't fault the authors' passion for their protagonist; they've made a documentary about Tucker ("The Outrageous Sophie Tucker") and hope to bring her story to Broadway as a musical. The error they made was to write this biographical novel in the first person. Even if one is familiar with Tucker's raucous and raunchy voice, the book reads like a recitation of facts or a comprehensive "What I Did on My Summer Vacation" type essay. Even when the family secret that drives part of the narrative is revealed, it is more "oh" than "OH!" The result is an ambitious "fan fiction" rather than a novel as fully-fleshed as its subject.
I'm looking forward to seeing the documentary, and do hope the Eckers can bring the show to Broadway so as to introduce a new generation to the person whose influence can be seen, and sometimes acknowledged, in the performances of not only Bette Midler, but Bridget Everett, Lady Gaga, Amy Schumer, and others.
