Ever meet someone and feel like they just get you? Judy Greer may be that person for me.
I’ve read a bunch of these celebrity memoirs at this point and Judy Greer’s seemed like a good one to bridge my time between Bossypants and Amy Poehler’s upcoming book this fall. I was very, very right.
Even if you don’t realize it, you know Judy Greer. She has been in more movies and TV shows than I can count- I think she and Kathryn Hahn have gone one for one on every romantic comedy best friend role of the past decade and a half. (Not that I’m complaining.)
In any case, Judy Greer is just as funny a writer as she is an actress. Though she’s had success in her career, she has never really enjoyed the fantastic lead role success that you might find in a Tina Fey or Mindy Kaling book, which leads to a healthy dose of self deprecation. The self deprecation- my favorite form of humor- starts with the amazing title and continues steadily throughout the book. She writes in such a way that it feels like you’re laughing with her, not at her…but there’s a lot to laugh with her about.
I was also serious about relating to her in a major way. From her super long awkward phase (I’ll admit it, whatever) to her love of CVS/retail therapy in general (she uses the phrase “CVS is my happy place” which is something I say verbatim at least five times a week) to hysterically crying over sad commercials (Google, you’ve got me hook, line and sinker), I spent most of the book fairly certain that someone had written this as a joke based on my life. I haven’t fully ruled that out as a possibility.
She also brought to the forefront that apples may be a thing for Sarah Chalke outside of the Elliot Reid character? In fairness, the advice SC gave to JG is worth mentioning anyway, but I can’t resist a Scrubs reference:
“The best time to plant an apple orchard is twenty years ago; the second best time is today.”
Between the humor, she shares some good life lessons. She’s clearly someone who has put a lot of work into her life and her career and she sees it pay off frequently, though not in a way that goes uncriticized. Judy Greer is a testament to the value of hard work and understanding that things can work out even if the situation isn’t what you imagined at first. I really enjoyed this- worth checking out for sure.
You’ll like this if: “Say goodbye to these!” means something to you. Also, if you liked Bossypants or Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? but would have preferred an author with less name recognition.
Happy reading!
carlyreads 