Fierce, Funny, and Female: A Journey Through Middle America, the Texas Oil Field, and Standup Comedy by Marti MacGibbon is a 2017 Stay Strong publication.

Marti MacGibbon has truly led a very challenging life!! However, she is also a bold inspiration, and living proof that if there is a will, there is a way.

This memoir follows Marti from her teenage years beginning in 1969 up to present day, where she is enjoying the realization of a lifelong dream.

Marti’s story is not an easy one to read about in many ways. I’ll be completely honest and say that most of this book is harrowing, and one should be prepared to read about some uncomfortable topics. Marti lays it all out there, with blunt honesty, with no holds barred. The story is a heavy one, which can take a toll on one’s emotions. I had to take a break from Marti’s reality from time to time for what I nicknamed ‘bleakness-breaks.”

However, if you want to see true feminism, follow Marti’s story. She has worked in male dominated fields her entire life and carved out a niche for herself despite the odds. Finding women out in the Texas Oil Fields was a very rare occurrence in the eighties, but Marti stuck with it, making me feel a little abashed complaining about the ‘good ole boy’ network I had to cope with, back before I retired. She stuck it out, in a rough environment, which, in the end, helped her build both a physical and mental toughness that prepared her for the next stage in her life.

Although she was victimized, suffered through addictions and mental health issues, and made some whopping errors in judgment, she also had guts, grit, and determination, and became a survivor. She is a true trailblazer and has come out on the other side of her tribulations to become a successful stand- up comedian, motivational speaker and author. Seriously, this lady has rubbed elbows with some very well-known comedians!! Not only that, she pays it forward by helping others who have battled the same demons she has.

There is only one hole in the book, which is centered around Marti’s daughter. The fight for custody was one of Marti’s main reasons for toughing it out in the oil fields, but we were never updated on how things turned out on that front.

Other than that, Marti’s voice is genuine and realistic, and the story flows with a steady pace. I was able to visualize Marti’s life and the various people she introduced me too, as well as the landscape she describes. The ‘oil field’ language can be colorful, so one should be prepared for that, in advance, but I’m glad she didn’t water anything down.

There is only one hole in the book, which is centered around Marti’s daughter. The fight for custody was one of Marti’s main reasons for toughing it out in the oil fields, but we were never updated on how things turned out on that front.

Although the positive aspects of Marti’s life took a while to surface, it makes her success seem that much sweeter.

One thing that strikes me is how far we’ve come in the time span covered in this book, with Marti paving paths in ways she never realized at the time. Sadly, her last comments in the author segment were written in a time when new and exciting prospects seemed possible. Although there was still much work to be done, we could look back with pride and see the great strides we’d taken over the past decades.
However, some of the major progress we’ve made in women’s rights and in civil rights are once more threatened. But, if there is anything I gleaned from Marti’s story, it is to keep fighting the good fight, to face challenges head on, and to never give up on your hopes and dreams!!

4.5 ( )