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In The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo, Amy mines her past for stories about her teenage years, her family, relationships, and sex and shares the experiences that have shaped who she is - a woman with the courage to bare her soul to stand up for what she believes in, all while making us laugh.
Ranging from the raucous to the romantic, the heartfelt to the harrowing, this highly entertaining and universally appealing collection is the literary equivalent of a night out with your best friends - an unforgettable and fun adventure that you wish could last forever. Whether she's experiencing lust-at-first-sight while in the airport security line, sharing her own views on love and marriage, admitting to being an introvert, or discovering her cross-fit instructor's secret bad habit, Amy Schumer proves to be a bighearted, brave, and thoughtful storyteller that will leave you nodding your head in recognition, laughing out loud, and sobbing uncontrollably - but only because it's over.
Review:
Some people love reality television. They enjoy peering into the lives of celebrities like the Kardashians, and seeing what goes on behind the scenes. I don't watch those shows (actually, I don't watch much TV at all because I'm too busy reading), but I do the book reader's equivalent by devouring celebrity memoirs! Yes, they are my guilty pleasure. I particularly love listening to these kind of books as audio books, because the celeb usually reads their own book.
Now, I must say that I did not know much about Amy Schumer before I read this book. I know she has (had?) a show on Comedy Central called Inside Amy Schumer, and that she was in a hit movie called Trainwreck. If it seems like I have been hiding under a rock for not knowing about this actress, it's probably a generation thing. I am just not in the regular demographic that Amy Schumer aims for. And yet, her book, The Girl With The Lower Back Tattoo, was such a fun, honest account of how she sees life that I was charmed.
What I Liked:
Creative Process:
Although it seems as if she was an overnight success, Amy Schumer worked her tail off to get to where she is. Amy goes into great detail about how hard it is to do stand-up comedy. I appreciated how she explained the long hours and work needed to break through to stardom.
Honesty:
This person is brutally honest about her life, particularly about sex. Whey did this charm me? I think it is because I come from a generation that just doesn't talk that freely about sex. But it's more than that. I think that I admire how Amy feels free to be a sexual person without the shame that women can feel. While I would never speak so freely about these things (or use the same language), I liked that Amy was able to be frank about what she has learned over the years. It makes me hopeful for younger women that they are demanding more equal relationships with their sexual partners.
She also speaks about the abusive relationships she has been in. This couldn't have been easy for her to write about. But it is important because it shows how ANY person can get caught up in these situations. We can't judge people and smugly say to ourselves that it won't happen to us. Abusers target anybody who doubts themselves, and we are all vulnerable.
What I Didn't Like:
TMI:
While I appreciated Amy's honest talk about sex, I could have done without knowing about each individual act. Again, I'm sure it's a generational thing, but I just don't need to know such details as how clean her nether parts were or what smells she associates with her vagina. This book was unnecessarily crude.
This memoir was an empowering look at creativity, and a woman's acceptance of her body, her needs, and her worth. It was an entertaining read.
Rating:
Release Date: August 16th, 2016
Genre: Memoir
Source: Public Library
Format: Audio Book
Recommendation: Funny, and empowering, this book was a wonderful look into the life of Amy Schumer.
