She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother: A Memoir
by Bryan Batt
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Book Summary Information
Author: Bryan BattEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2010-05-04
ISBN: 0307588858
Number of pages: 288
Publisher: Crown
Book Reviews of She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother: A Memoir
Book Review: A Little Over the Top at Times, but Still a Really Fun Book
Summary: 5 Stars
My wife and I recently discovered the Mad Men series which the author of the book reviewed here, Bryan Batt, has played in regularly. A friend of ours who really likes Mad Men told us that Mr. Batt was a native of New Orleans, his family had owned the Pontchartrain Beach Amusement Park there and that he had written a book about his mother that was really funny, so we got a copy of the book.
To put this in perspective, our friend is from New Orleans and my wife and I are from Louisiana and have lived in New Orleans. Given that we know that New Orleans is peculiar in usually amusing ways, we looked forward to reading the book reviewed here. I have just finished it and my wife will read it soon.
I did like the book, though it was a bit over the top at times - Mr. Batt likes to use a lot of adjectives and it seemed a little stream of consciousness at times, among a few other things. But, it still is a fun book.
I was a little surprised that he spent so little time on Pontchartrain Beach; I used to go there as a kid, and it was a great place - unfortunately closed since the 1980's. Also, there was next to nothing on Mardi Gras - and this book is New Orleans based in large part. Someone told me there will be a sequel, so maybe he will take these topics up there.
My two favorite parts in the book were the chapter "Beep" which is solely a very long phone message from his mother - really funny and so New Orleans - and the chapter "Let Us Pray" which describes praying for relief of constipation when his mother was ill. Don't be out off by the latter if you are religious, since they meant it to be respectful, but when you read it, I am fairly certain that you will laugh, a lot - I cried I laughed so much.
The book is really about Mr. Batt and things that his mother did and said as his life progressed. Gayle Batt (the mother) is, even for New Orleans, quite a character. I am not sure if people who never lived in New Orleans will get all the nuances, but most are hard to miss regardless. Mrs. Batt is very "zany" and very charming like many ladies I have known from New Orleans, but she is an extreme example I guess - and I mean that in a good way. I wouldn't mind knowing her, believe me. She does deserve to be immortalized in a book. By the way, the cover cartoon of her really captures her essence well.
Ignore the over the top parts and have fun with the rest.
Summary of She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother: A Memoir
Gayle Batt is the kind of lady who throws elegant cocktail parties while wearing layers of silk chiffon, dripping pearls, and eight months? pregnant. She is the kind of woman who says ?anyhoo? and calls everyone ?Dahlin?? or a special pet name. With hair, makeup, and nails always done to perfection, she triumphs rather than crumbles when infidelity, alcoholism, cancer, or any form of adversity attempts to shatter her family. Endearing and enduring, Gayle is a big-hearted, strong-willed true Southern belle?and she taught her son everything he knows about being a man.In She Ain?t Heavy, She?s My Mother, Bryan Batt, the actor who plays Sal Romano on the Emmy, Golden Globe, and Peabody Award?winning Mad Men, chronicles his life?and his mother?s supportive presence in it.
From growing up gay below the Mason-Dixon Line to landing principal roles on Broadway (his first was on roller skates playing a singing and dancing boxcar in Starlight Express!) and later on the picture-perfect sets of TV?s Mad Men, to opening the ever-popular Hazelnut boutique in his hometown of New Orleans with his partner, Bryan weaves a touching and hilarious story of the South, showbiz, and an unshakable bond between mother and son.
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