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sweeneysays's review against another edition
1.0
deeply disappointing nf book club book https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nfn-NRgE2KI
heykellyjensen's review against another edition
I blurbed this! Here's what I said (in a nutshell -- I said a lot more because I had a lot of positive things to say!):
"A nuanced, thoughtful exploration of funny women past and present. An excellent addition to feminist bookshelves everywhere."
Also, there is so much talk about I Love Lucy and how at the forefront of feminism and women's rights she was, even if she didn't necessarily have the labels at hand for what it was she was really doing.
"A nuanced, thoughtful exploration of funny women past and present. An excellent addition to feminist bookshelves everywhere."
Also, there is so much talk about I Love Lucy and how at the forefront of feminism and women's rights she was, even if she didn't necessarily have the labels at hand for what it was she was really doing.
auroradawn's review against another edition
3.0
While I enjoyed reading this book about women's success in comedy, the writing was hard to follow at times and it could have been about 100 pages shorter. Maybe I just got confused because Fields references specific scenes from comedy shows and sketches that I have not seen, but I felt that she also jumped between subjects a lot. However, it was still a fascinating read and I would recommend it to anyone interested in feminism and film/media studies.
Thank you to Netgalley and Arcade Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Netgalley and Arcade Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
sever_selwyn's review against another edition
3.0
I was hoping for a book that went into details about women in comedy. While there was definitely discussion of that, there were also a lot of parts that just talked about feminism in general, including a whole chapter on Row vs Wade. That bored me as I am already knowledgeable about feminism. I also wished she had more quotes from her interviews with female comics.
dunneniamh's review against another edition
3.0
Feminism + comedy + popular culture: it should be something that's completely up my alley, three things I love about the world. And though I did enjoy this book, I just thought it was OK, rather than something more revolutionary. If anything, it read like a history of some first/second wave feminisms comic heroes: Lucille Ball, Gilda Radnor, Moms Molsley, Joan Rivers etc, rather than analysing at length the presence of more recent comediennes. Though they're definitely mentioned, I was a little disappointed by how little Fields relied on them for analysis. I also wasn't so sure on the inclusion of a whole chapter on Roe vs Wade at the end, seeing as it had little to do with comediennes.
Well researched and put together, including interviews from some prolific comediennes and actresses, there were some very poignant moments in this book, particularly regarding how women put their own emotion and fears into their work. There was a lot about female comics with depression and how they channelled that into creating characters that made others feel better, which I really connected with. It's a good book, but not something that I'll return to anytime soon.
Well researched and put together, including interviews from some prolific comediennes and actresses, there were some very poignant moments in this book, particularly regarding how women put their own emotion and fears into their work. There was a lot about female comics with depression and how they channelled that into creating characters that made others feel better, which I really connected with. It's a good book, but not something that I'll return to anytime soon.
themaliciousreader's review against another edition
4.0
I was provided an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I seriously thought I'd never finish it.......
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The Girl in the Show is a nonfiction about Comedy, women’s place in it and how it reflects our society.
This was a very interesting book with captivating, funny and touching moments.
However, the chapters were so long I had trouble staying focused. it took me forever to finish this book. Same problem within the chapters, some sentences were so long, they lost me from time to time...
Still, I learnt a bunch of stuff, it was kinda great.
I seriously thought I'd never finish it.......
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The Girl in the Show is a nonfiction about Comedy, women’s place in it and how it reflects our society.
This was a very interesting book with captivating, funny and touching moments.
However, the chapters were so long I had trouble staying focused. it took me forever to finish this book. Same problem within the chapters, some sentences were so long, they lost me from time to time...
Still, I learnt a bunch of stuff, it was kinda great.
kellyhager's review
5.0
I can't even imagine the extent of the research that Anna Fields did for this novel. It's smart and funny and so interesting. I never really thought about the...we'll say sociology of comedy, especially female comics (or the way that I gender comedians, like I JUST DID).
Like Anna (and a lot of the women mentioned here), I absolutely love Gilda Radner. Part of it (on my end) has nothing to do with how funny she is (although she is hilarious), it's because I have hair that's a lot like hers and it's the first time I saw someone who looks like me be funny and get to do things. It meant a lot. And I know women younger than me probably feel the exact same way about Molly Shannon and Tina Fey and Amy Poehler and Mindy Kaling.
What I didn't understand before reading this book was the sort of throughline connecting Gilda to the women after her and how all of that really began with Lucille Ball, who was the first woman to be a really powerful comedian. She created and wrote a show, and she was protective of her character. She set rules for what Lucy would and wouldn't do, but also made rules like, "Lucy can make fun of Ricky's accent; nobody else can." There was no way any earlier lady could've even made a rule like that, let alone have it be listened to.
This book is smart and important (and relevant) but it's also really fun. If you like to laugh, read this book. Highly recommended.
readmemarie's review
3.0
Full Review also posted on my blog: https://lotsoflivres.com/2017/10/01/the-girl-in-the-show-by-anna-fields-book-review/
The Girl In The Show explores how comedy has developed over the last 3 generations (20th Century onwards) in terms of women’s involvement and the way that comedy is portrayed to a wider audience, with a focus on feminism and culture. I found it a particularly interesting read, especially to see how and why comedy has changed and to learn more about some of the groundbreaking acts that I didn’t know much about beforehand.
Admittedly, I didn’t know many of the acts that Anna refers to throughout the book, so although it was great for me to read about specific jokes and performances that I didn’t know about, I imagine for people who have seen them, it was probably a bit repetitive. In a way, it does make this book appeal to a larger audience, both younger and older, because it was easy to follow and understand the point of the examples.
Although this book is all about comedy, it isn’t funny – and it’s not supposed to be. It’s informative, with it being very clear that Anna has done a lot of research in this field, especially when interviewing various comedians. I wish there was a little bit more said about contemporary comedians, but overall, I do think it had a good balance between the “three generations” as said on the cover.
If you want to learn about the history of comedy in relation to the emergence of women, and the effect that feminism has had, this is the book for you! It’s very informative, clear, and easy to understand. A great feminist read!
*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
The Girl In The Show explores how comedy has developed over the last 3 generations (20th Century onwards) in terms of women’s involvement and the way that comedy is portrayed to a wider audience, with a focus on feminism and culture. I found it a particularly interesting read, especially to see how and why comedy has changed and to learn more about some of the groundbreaking acts that I didn’t know much about beforehand.
Admittedly, I didn’t know many of the acts that Anna refers to throughout the book, so although it was great for me to read about specific jokes and performances that I didn’t know about, I imagine for people who have seen them, it was probably a bit repetitive. In a way, it does make this book appeal to a larger audience, both younger and older, because it was easy to follow and understand the point of the examples.
Although this book is all about comedy, it isn’t funny – and it’s not supposed to be. It’s informative, with it being very clear that Anna has done a lot of research in this field, especially when interviewing various comedians. I wish there was a little bit more said about contemporary comedians, but overall, I do think it had a good balance between the “three generations” as said on the cover.
If you want to learn about the history of comedy in relation to the emergence of women, and the effect that feminism has had, this is the book for you! It’s very informative, clear, and easy to understand. A great feminist read!
*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
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