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hollyrebeccasmith's review
5.0
Really interesting history of a famous stripper. Abbott compellingly tells history and is honest about how she tries to bridge gaps in knowledge. And if this quote (directly from Gypsy Rose Lee) doesn't make you want to read about her, then I don't know what will: "Mother says I'm the most beautiful naked ass—well, I'm not. I'm the smartest."
stephaniepoli's review
informative
reflective
slow-paced
2.0
Narrative jumps around unnecessarily. Mostly about mother Rose and sister June, and burlesque evolution.
coleycole's review
5.0
Currently listening to this and LOVING it! Hooray for nonfiction/biography that reads like historical fiction!
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This was excellent. Highly recommended -- especially the audiobook version, which has a great reader. History plus crazy family dynamics plus burlesque equals winner, apparently.
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This was excellent. Highly recommended -- especially the audiobook version, which has a great reader. History plus crazy family dynamics plus burlesque equals winner, apparently.
beth_s98's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
4.0
This book was written in a way that made it very easy to read, and I thought it was constructed in a way that allowed the different versions of the story to intermingle. While I didn’t love how the textual notes were structured from a historian perspective, the book still felt very well-researched. The story of Gypsy and the over-arching story of burlesque was well written and interesting to read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death, Toxic relationship, Pedophilia, Animal death, Child abuse, Murder, Body shaming, Cancer, and Alcoholism
This book touches on a lot of stuff that could be troubling, but nothing is described with lots of details.cemoses's review
3.0
My rating system:
***-good read
****better than average good read
*****-one of the best books I ever read;game changer.
I found the book readable but it had flaws. I saw no reason for why the biography was split into two periods rather than just straight chronological order-I might have given it four stars if not for that. I felt it had too much information on the Minsky's. I felt the biography took to uncritically the point of view of June Havac Gypsy's sister when she and Gypsy's and different memories of what happened.
I remember reading Gypsy Rose Lee's autobiography and found it quite readable though I read it many years ago. I felt a good biography should make some reference to that book. I remember Gypsy saying she went into burlesque because she needed the money which I found believable.
***-good read
****better than average good read
*****-one of the best books I ever read;game changer.
I found the book readable but it had flaws. I saw no reason for why the biography was split into two periods rather than just straight chronological order-I might have given it four stars if not for that. I felt it had too much information on the Minsky's. I felt the biography took to uncritically the point of view of June Havac Gypsy's sister when she and Gypsy's and different memories of what happened.
I remember reading Gypsy Rose Lee's autobiography and found it quite readable though I read it many years ago. I felt a good biography should make some reference to that book. I remember Gypsy saying she went into burlesque because she needed the money which I found believable.
laurazdavidson's review
2.0
While parts of this were fascinating, I couldn't keep up with the shifting timelines. Even within a chapter, I'd be reading along and then... Wait. When are we? It was extremely dificult to keep the narrative straight. I would have enjoyed it much more if the story had been told in a more straightforward fashion.
blissfulbookworm's review
2.0
I *really* wanted to like this book--after all, I loved the musical Gypsy ever since I was an extra in my high school's production. While Jean Louise's life, her evolution into Gypsy Rose Lee, and her toxic relationship with her mother is a compelling story, this book ruins it with terrible sense of timing and flow. There are constant jumps in the timeline with no rhyme or reason-- Gypsy's a woman, a girl, a struggling performer, a successful burlesque actor, a teenager about to lose her virginity, a fading star, etc... The book is so disjointed that you can't get into the story, and it felt like a real missed opportunity to narrate what could have been a fascinating tale.