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I'm Just a Person by Tig Notaro
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I'm Just a Person (edition 2016)

by Tig Notaro (Author)

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2981187,556 (4.01)7
One of America's most original comedic voices delivers a darkly funny, wryly observed, and emotionally raw account of her year of death, cancer, and epiphany. In the span of four months in 2012, Tig Notaro was hospitalized for a debilitating intestinal disease called C. diff, her mother unexpectedly died, she went through a breakup, and then she was diagnosed with bilateral breast cancer. Hit with this devastating barrage, Tig took her grief onstage. Days after receiving her cancer diagnosis, she broke new comedic ground, opening an unvarnished set with the words: "Good evening. Hello. I have cancer. How are you? Hi, how are you? Is everybody having a good time? I have cancer." The set went viral instantly and was ultimately released as Tig's sophomore album, Live, which sold one hundred thousand units in just six weeks and was later nominated for a Grammy. Now, the wildly popular star takes stock of that no good, very bad year-a difficult yet astonishing period in which tragedy turned into absurdity and despair transformed into joy. An inspired combination of the deadpan silliness of her comedy and the open-hearted vulnerability that has emerged in the wake of that dire time, I'm Just a Person is a moving and often hilarious look at this very brave, very funny woman's journey into the darkness and her thrilling return from it.… (more)
Member:BeckyWalton
Title:I'm Just a Person
Authors:Tig Notaro (Author)
Info:HarperCollins Publishers and Blackstone Audio (2016), Edition: Unabridged, 1 pages
Collections:Your library
Rating:***
Tags:audiobook, nonfiction, memoir, humor, breast cancer, weight loss, families, performing arts, stand-up comedy, C. Diff, Clostridium Difficile

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I'm Just a Person by Tig Notaro

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Showing 1-5 of 11 (next | show all)
If you know Tig Notaro and her story, there is not going to be much new in her book I'm Just a Person by Tig Notaro, but it is still a fun read.

The book is mostly about Tig Notaro's worst year- 2012. Within the span of a few months, her mother dies, she is diagnosed with a disease that only the elderly get (C-Dif), her girlfriend breaks up with her, and she is diagnosed with breast cancer and must have a double mastectomy.

The book is also about how these things and her famous Largo stand up set, launched her career into the stratosphere and gave her a new life. We all know Tig's story because we have seen her on HBO, her movie, heard the set, and have seen her tell the story on TV. All of it happened because of this horrible year and her willingness to be real with her audience.

As stated in the opening, I have heard much of this story, so it was not new material to me. I am a slightly more than casual fan of Tig's and have seen the documentary, her HBO specials, have listened to Professor Blastoff, and have seen her in a few TV shows. I enjoy her comedy and know the stories.

What I enjoyed about the book was how in depth she goes into her mother's life in the early chapters of the book. Her mother was a huge influence on her and her outlook on life and it comes through in the pages. Her mother's influence also showed in how she faced her own cancer treatments and surgery.

The other part of this book that is worth owning are the pictures that come within the book. There are the usual pictures that normally come with the memoir type books in the center, but there are also drawings of Tig's life throughout the book. Her mother liked drawing and passed that talent onto Tig who included original drawings throughout the book. Those were incredible and gave the book a little extra oomph.

The wonderful thing about Tig, besides her ability to stay strong and funny throughout this horrible time, is her ability to be vulnerable. She shares that things were not easy and she wasn't alway happy and things got rough, yet she does it knowing the end story. There is a lot of hope and courage in her story and for that, even though I have heard it several times, I still say it is worth the read.

I gave this one 4 stars. ( )
  Nerdyrev1 | Nov 23, 2022 |
nonfiction memoir (cancer survivor grieving daughter comedian). ( )
  reader1009 | Jul 3, 2021 |
Deadpan is absolutely right about Tig Notaro’s delivery during her stand up routines. It translated to the audiobook as well (read by the author). Whether she was talking about her mother dying, or being extremely happy in a romantic relationship seemed to elicit the same emotional response.
Tig definitely went through the ringer and I’m glad I listened to this, but there’s a but ... I just don’t know how to express what it is that I’m finding is missing. Maybe it is the emotional delivery from the reader. ( )
  expatb | Jun 8, 2020 |
I’ve just discovered Tig Nataro’s comedy acts and am so glad I read the book. It is amazing that she can keep her sense of humor while going through so many health problems. Her writing skills are as good as her comedy routines. ( )
  brangwinn | Sep 27, 2018 |
Tig Notaro is extraordinary. How do you deal with the worst that life can throw at you and come out a stronger person? And how do you write a book that takes the topics of cancer and death and turn them into wry humor? Notaro did it, and her recent book, I’m Just a Person, tells of her sudden tumble when she suffered through pneumonia, C. diff, the unexpected death of her mother, and a diagnosis of stage II breast cancer, all in a period of four months. But when she climbed slowly out of this hole, she arrived at a positive and stronger place.

Notaro, a talented comedian and actor, is a native of Pass Christian, Mississippi. Readers may have seen her autobiographical and critically-acclaimed series on Amazon Prime, One Mississippi, in which the main character returns home to live in the not-quite fictional town of Bay St. Louisa (only a letter away from the real town of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi) after suffering illness and the death of her mother. Events portrayed in One Mississippi closely parallel the story in Notaro’s book.

I liked this book because Notaro tells her story without pretending to have faced her monsters fearlessly or with a plan. Instead, she deals with her situations as anyone would: with ups and downs and scares and surprising moments of laughter.

It’s the story of someone who was suddenly dropped into a hostile wilderness without a map or training, yet somehow she finds her way home. And she wrote the book with intelligent humor and without appearing maudlin.

Much of the book focuses on the author’s relationship with her mother. Notaro’s love and respect for her mother, Susie, clearly comes through, in no small part because of Susie’s quirkiness, loyalty and in-your-face honesty. This book is a commemoration of Notaro’s mother almost as much as it is about Notaro’s survival. Or perhaps the story here is that Susie gave Notaro much of the strength to survive.

Other friends and family members have important roles in her life, too. For example, Notaro discovers relationships with her stepfather, Ric, and her brother, Renaud, that she may not have found but for the tragedy of Susie’s death.

In another part of the book Notaro tells of her now-iconic comedy performance, taped just a couple of days after her cancer diagnosis, in which she riffs to the audience: “Good evening. Hello. I have cancer. How are you? Hi, how are you? Is everybody having a good time? I have cancer.” Bluntly honest, her performance brought tears to the audience, but also uproarious laughter. The recording went viral, and literally overnight became one of the most widely-sought comedy albums available. The soundtrack, entitled Live, is distributed under the Secretly Canadian label. Live, by the way, rhymes with give.

I’m Just a Person is not a long read, but it is engrossing and worth picking up. ( )
  MWarner2018 | Aug 6, 2018 |
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One of America's most original comedic voices delivers a darkly funny, wryly observed, and emotionally raw account of her year of death, cancer, and epiphany. In the span of four months in 2012, Tig Notaro was hospitalized for a debilitating intestinal disease called C. diff, her mother unexpectedly died, she went through a breakup, and then she was diagnosed with bilateral breast cancer. Hit with this devastating barrage, Tig took her grief onstage. Days after receiving her cancer diagnosis, she broke new comedic ground, opening an unvarnished set with the words: "Good evening. Hello. I have cancer. How are you? Hi, how are you? Is everybody having a good time? I have cancer." The set went viral instantly and was ultimately released as Tig's sophomore album, Live, which sold one hundred thousand units in just six weeks and was later nominated for a Grammy. Now, the wildly popular star takes stock of that no good, very bad year-a difficult yet astonishing period in which tragedy turned into absurdity and despair transformed into joy. An inspired combination of the deadpan silliness of her comedy and the open-hearted vulnerability that has emerged in the wake of that dire time, I'm Just a Person is a moving and often hilarious look at this very brave, very funny woman's journey into the darkness and her thrilling return from it.

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