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I have an addiction to celebrity memoirs, especially those of comedians. I've read and/or listened to dozens of them, and though I'd never heard of Guy Branum, the cover and his work credits made me interested. To be honest, I expected something... funny. All of the comedian memoirs I've read have been funny, or at least, tried to be funny. My Life as a Goddess: A Memoir through (Un) Popular Culture didn't. The book is really a memoir of someone's life as an outsider in a medium-sized, admittedl...
My Life as a Goddess (A Memoir Through (Un)popular Culture)By Guy BranumPublished by Atria (division of Simon & Schuster), 2018Five starsGuy Branum’s brilliant memoir is essentially J.D. Vance’s overly-praised “Hillbilly Elegy” as written by a funny gay man. I surely didn’t expect that when I bought it, but there you are. What this book really drove home to me – again – is that gay men need to write our stories, because we’re still largely getting left out of mainstream history (which means tele...
I LOVED this book. I'm familiar with Guy Branum's work but wasn't really a superfan or anything coming into this, but I was so impressed with how smart and funny and insightful he is. From the subtitle (and from other books I've read) I was a little nervous about this being a deep dive into sitcoms I never watched, but instead it's something much more universal. (While also specifically being a powerful story of growing up a closeted gay teen and later coming out as an adult, and processing the
I got this book as a goodreads giveaway not knowing anything about Guy Branum. I was looking forward to a funny memoir, but this book was mostly Guy describing tv shows and movies. I don’t feel like I learned many things about him and I certainly didn’t laugh.
This was kind of a slog and sometimes had so many digressions that I lost the thread of whatever the essay was originally about. I also wish that he treated the reader like less of an adversary with whom he couldn't possibly have anything in common. That said I really enjoyed some of the essays (especially the one about finding yourself in narratives you are meant to be excluded from, but also the ones about fatness, his Passover seders, how he came to stand-up, and the epilogue).
I loved this book. I started with the Kindle edition and then realized that I should switch and listen to it in audio. I have no regrets about this book. This is NOT a cohesive and chronological memoir, but a collection of bio-essays on Branum's thoughts, experiences, strengths. I will be going back through the Kindle edition because there are quotes from this book that I need in my life. His ability to look at a larger subject and then reflect on its components before returning to the whole is
Guy Branum's book is an interesting case study in the benefits and limits of what we might call "woke comedy." On the one hand, the way that he mixes humor in with sociological insight can be good; when it works it makes the jokes feel more substantial and it makes the sociology feel less ponderous. But when it doesn't work - well, then it ruins both of them, by sucking the fun out of the jokes and by making the sociological sections feel petty.Overall I think Branum gets the balance right - the...
4.5 stars."We talk about nature and nurture when analyzing a person's character. We see two ways that an identity is formed. One is biological, the mean of parents' traits passed down genetically. The other is environmental: How did the world around this person guide and encourage him? The problem is that by either of these methods, I shouldn't be me. I should be shorter and dumber and not at all concerned with what pairs well with star anise syrup in a cocktail." (BTW, it's notes of orange.)At
In a world where people don't have space for you, you have to make your own space.…Pardon me for a moment while I digress from my digression.…There has hardly been an argument with a loved one in my adult life that did not involve the words "You think you know everything!" being launched at me. It is true. I do, often, think I know everything.I’ve heard Guy Branum several times on one of my favorite podcasts, Lovett or Leave It. But I had no plans to read his book until I needed it to fill a cat...
I hate critiquing memoirs. Who am I to judge someone else’s life and experience? This book was difficult to slug through. 50% of this book was fascinating and I could deeply relate to. There were lines from the book I wanted to share with friends and family and be like, wow, this guy is me! His college experience, coming out story and fascination of all things pop culture resonated deeply with me.But then 50% of the book were strange allegories that I could not connect with. Guy devoted an entir...
I didn’t actually finish this book because the parts I loved and felt super seen by didn’t nearly make up for the incredibly entitled and unempathetic attitudes that pervaded it. Happy Endings is a subversive triumph and it’s embarrassing that a comedy writer wouldn’t see that. Freddie Mercury was bi. *Gay white men still experience white privilege and male privilege*. You can still be classist af even if you grew up poor. Being smart enough to use the language of social justice without truly ex...
I was reminded recently when hearing Guy on a podcast that I've been meaning to read this book and while I am not very familiar with him, I immediately became a fan. The world of celebrity/comedian essay/memoir books is growing and while there are several very strong entries, they can also be a bit of a mess. But Guy's book carves out its own unique space, examining many of the central moments in his life through pop culture, and has a distinctive voice that makes it a real joy. I loved his ridi...
I will admit, I had no idea who Guy was before I read this book, not even an iota. After reading this though, I am in awe that I somehow completely overlooked his whole career. He's so funny! How did our paths never cross? Part memoir, part humor, part history and pop culture lesson; this memoir is unique and entirely fun to read. I'm a huge fan of footnotes and there are A TON of footnotes; humorous asides, sarcastic comments, clarification, etc. It's genius! The stories I enjoyed the most were...
I wanted to like this more than I did. Bits are laugh out loud funny, but over all it feels flat. Mr Branum is obviously quite smart and witty but I was hoping fore more in the vein of David Sedaris and less in the vein of a literary journal.
There are countless celebrity memoirs in the world and almost as many where people tell their story about coming out but few are as insightful and powerful as Guy's. He manages to tell his side of the story while also thoroughly breaking down the aspects of his story beyond himself. He is well read, quick witted and hilarious. I've long enjoyed his stand up and his comedic writing but the aspects of this story that really moved me are when he uses unflinching honesty to explain his relationship
this book really did not live up to the hype!! Lots of people I like and podcasts I listen to recommended it but it was so underwhelming. I think the thing that bothered me the most was the tone, it was v pretentious. And I know it’s in the title that this book covers unpopular culture so I should’ve been prepared but I just did not enjoy reading extended metaphors and analyses of shows and movies that I have not and will never see
I didn't know anything about Guy Branum previously, but now I am a huge fan. Branum is a stand-up comedian/actor/writer/lawyer/all-around talented fella. He is also gay, very tall, and very large. And he's very, very good at trivia and quiz bowls. (You will be better at both those things as well if you read this book and remember even 1/3 of the references - there's a Jenny Holzer allusion, FFS!)Though this book is full of humorous autobiographical essays, it's also got a ton of great insights i...
I expected to like this book, and to find it funny. I did not realize the levels of humanity, thoughtfulness and heart I would experience as well. I loved this book and I absolutely think you should read it. Yes, you.
"From a young age, Guy Branum always felt as if he were on the outside looking in.Self-taught, introspective, and from a stiflingly boring farm town, he couldn’t relate to his neighbors. While other boys played outside, he stayed indoors reading Greek mythology. And being gay and overweight, he got used to diminishing himself. But little by little, he started learning from all the sad, strange, lonely outcasts in history who had come before him, and he started to feel hope.In this collection of
This was a lovely read. I'm mostly familiar with Guy from his podcast, Pop Rocket, and I loved his thorough analysis of multiple topics in this book.Guy is incredibly funny, but he also manages to convey incredible pain and general cultural analysis. Many parts of this book aren't a laugh riot, but that's fine by me. In my opinion, the purchase was worth it simply for the amazing chapter "The Man Who Watched The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance."