Chick Lit, My Style: The Bedwetter and Suck It, Wonder Woman!
Humility is easy to find in this life. Just weeks after having an “over it” moment when I saw Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work, I found myself pleasantly surprised while reading Sarah Silverman’s The Bedwetter and Olivia Munn’s Suck It, Wonder Woman!. Looks like I too was guilty of not giving a couple of funnyladies the credit they deserve. My bad.
Olivia Munn never really did it for me on Attack of the Show. But my interest was piqued by a Vanity Fair interview where Munn seemed a lot cooler than G4 had led me to believe. Munn’s book confirmed my suspicions: it’s funnier than the stuff she’s already done, and gosh darn it, she has the psychic scars to be a real comedienne.
The essays detail several different topics. Among them is Munn’s life growing up as an outcast, army brat, and unpretty geek — and yes, there are pictures to prove it. Munn’s advice to men is hilariously up front, and I really enjoyed her tales of Hollywood horror. I’m now wondering if she gets to write her own material on her shows, and guessing maybe not. Admittedly, it must be difficult for mostly male teams to write for a woman like Munn. But having read her book, I’d love to see her do standup about the subjects she covers.
With Sarah Silverman, it’s the opposite case: she’s got standup chops, definitely writes her own material, and even headed up her own show. I think her comedy has moments of absolute brilliance, but other moments of not-so-brilliance. So I had mixed feelings about her before reading the book.
After reading it, however, I really appreciate Silverman’s comic craftsmanship, as well her devotion to producing a quality product. And of course her blunt honesty — not surprising given her jokes, but perhaps more poignant when turned to her own young life. It’s also fascinating to read her side of the story regarding her VMA jokes about Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. (Come to think of it, Russell Brand had debacles too — maybe it’s just not a good idea to host the VMAs?) Silverman’s book shows a nice turn of phrase and (of course) some outrageously inappropriate stories of the sort you’d expect, but it’s also really well-written.
Both books include some interesting illustrations and pictures. And both give an interesting view on being attractive, smart, and funny — somehow that never seems to work out very well in the show business world. Which may be why both women have such great comic material to work with.
I’d recommend these books to any general reader who isn’t too much of a prude — a picture of a naked penis appears in Silverman’s book, and Munn gives sex tips. Even if you don’t think these gals are funny performers, you might be surprised at how much you like their prose. I know I was.