Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
- BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
My teaser for today:
“I was always seeking such moments, clinging to them feverishly when they arrived, never fully embracing an accomplishment unless it had been acknowledged and appreciated by him first. I suppose most people seek out parental approval, but I often think that a performer’s thirst for this praise is even more heightened – perhaps unquenchable.”
From Take your Shirt Off and Cry, Nancy Balbirer (ARC)
That title certainly gives nothing away. What is this book actually about?
It’s touted as a “memoir of near-fame experiences,” following a young woman through her college theater experience and the hunt for comedic acting opportunities in the real world. The title comes from a quote she attributes to David Mamet, who told her when she took a class of his that all women are ever asked to do in “the business” is take off their shirt and cry.
The title intrigues me also. I’ve not familiar with the book. I like the way you’ve used the LibraryThing widget as your header. Very clever.
Thanks, Margot! My eventual goal (especially now that collections are live and I can customize the widget to reflect selected collections) is to update the widget as I post reviews and currently reading selections, so the selection is specifically relevant to the blog.
I got this ARC through the LT ER program; in a lot of ways, it makes me glad I abandoned my theater ambitions before I went to college!
I want to start reading more memoirs. Maybe I’ll look this one up. Can’t wait to hear what you think. Here’s my first teaser and here’s the other.
Welcome, Jaqueline :) It’s decent so far, and I’m pretty picky about nonfiction. The prologue wasn’t a great representation of the voice for the rest; she must have had a good editor, or else the whole thing might feel a little like she was pitching you, the reader, for a comedy gig. The only problem with memoirs around showbiz on any level is that the name-dropping can get a bit thick.
I’m loving the lyrical prose of your teaser for of Bees and Mist; I’ll be interested to see the review when you’ve finished!