Bossypants by Tina Fey (2011)
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Usually, I’m not one for contemporary memoirs. The history buff in me prefers to wait at least a hundred years before reading about anyone, historical or celebratory. But when I saw that Tina Fey, the creator of one of my current favorite TV shows (30 Rock), had a comic memoir out, I knew I had to give it a try.
First of all, let me state for the record that I think Tina Fey is comic gold. She could write a version of the tax code and I’d probably read it from cover to cover, chuckling all the way. For the most part, Bossypants was an entertaining chucklefest but it wasn’t hilarious nor terribly compelling. It felt more like a series of amusing New Yorker pieces cobbled together as a book. Perhaps enjoying it in small bits over time would have been preferable to a straight-through reading. About three-quarters of the way in, I was starting to get antsy to wrap it up and start something new.
All this sounds like a mediocre review, but it’s more positive than that. I’d definitely recommend it to fans of Fey, and for those of us in the Chicago area, there’s a lot to enjoy during Fey’s early years at Second City. There are even shout-outs to Evanston and a hilarious bit at the YMCA.
2 Things @ Once 