Always Look on the Bright Side of Life

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography by Eric Idle  289 pp.

I fell in love with the outrageous antics of the talented crew of "Monty Python's Flying Circus" at first sight when PBS first broadcast the show when I was in high school. Eric Idle wrote scripts for the show, as did all the other Pythons, as well as creating the lyrics for many of the songs including the title of this book which was the ending number in the film "The Life of Brian". Idle recounts his life as an actor and a Python from his fatherless childhood (Dad was killed in WWII) through the present. Idle created the legendary characters of Mr. Nudge ("Nudge, nudge. You know what I mean..."), Brave Sir Robin and the spokeswoman for the Batley Townswomen's Guild. He includes touching memories of the great friendships, he made during his career including Mike Nichols who directed "Spamalot" and especially George Harrison who mortgaged his palatial home, Friar Park, to pay for "The Life of Brian." At first I debated about reading the book vs. listening to the audio and I'm glad I chose the audio version, read by Idle. (I have the book on request just to see the photos.) He sings songs he wrote for the television show and movies and hearing his voice brought back so many memories. This is a must read for Monty Python fans.

The Last Black Unicorn

The Last Black Unicorn by Tiffany Haddish, 278 pages.

Tiffany Haddish's account of her life is both amazing and unique. She has had a surprisingly large amount of pain in her life. The accident that almost killed her mother, that led to Tiffany's stint in foster care, may have been part of a murder plot. That is unusual, and you know, might mess you up a bit. Part of the continued surprise of this book is that, as the author says and her co-writer states in the acknowledgements, Tiffany tells all the stories. She doesn't name names, but she does tell what happened, whether the stories present her in the best light or not. She tells the story of her marriage to an abusive stalker-ish ex-policeman, how he mistreated her, how he beat her, and she does a good job of explaining why she went back to him. Her account of her relationship with her co-worker Roscoe is also devastating, sad and, because she is telling the story, it's funny. The story of what she refers to as her most messed up relationship, with long time boyfriend Titus, is also a hilarious train-wreck. Train-wrecks, of course aren't funny. They're tragic. But if Tiffany Haddish was to tell you the story of a very tragic train-wreck, you would be laughing. A very interesting book. You really want everything to continue to work out for the author.

In Such Good Company

In Such Good Company by Carol Burnett  320 pp.

Carol Burnett penned this history of "The Carol Burnett Show" from it's beginnings to it's end eleven years later and beyond. There is plenty of television history plus anecdotes from the making of the show. Included are Burnett's comments on her favorite guest stars and tales of the antics that took place on and off the stage. This is one of those books like As You Wish, that you really should listen too rather than read. While Carol Burnett's narration of her own words is a bit uneven, there are recordings of interviews of herself and her famous co-stars from the long running variety show. If you ever found yourself laughing uncontrollable at the performances of Carol, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, Vicki Lawrence, Lyle Wagoner and their guests, you will enjoy this book. It is available on Overdrive as a downloadable audio book.