Reviews

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A Memoir of Going Home by Rhoda Janzen

shlymiller's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective slow-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse

Moderate: Religious bigotry, Mental illness, Suicide, and Abandonment

pagesofpins's review against another edition

2.0

Anyone who comes from a small-town religious family and has ever looked around at their off kilter clan and whispered, "What is even HAPPENING right now?" will appreciate some of the solid-gold anecdotes in this book. That being said, the really great material in here could be chopped down to a book half the size, you need a strong appreciation for fart and pee jokes, and if she tells us one more time that her husband is an atheist who left her for a guy named Bob on Gay.com, SO HELP ME.

gemie's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

msjaquiss's review against another edition

5.0

I started laughing out loud on the first page and laughed all the way through the book. This memoir is one of the funniest I've ever read.

goodcook07's review against another edition

5.0

This book is not like the friend that tries to cheer you up with silly platitudes like "remember that God loves you" or "everything works together for good". You do not need that friend. No. This book is the friend who will commiserate with you - who will help you google anything from slashing tires to how to hide a body. This friend will make you feel instantly better! A great read, a great laugh. Just what you need!

ksbookjunky's review against another edition

4.0

Rhoda has an interesting story to tell and she tells it with honesty and humor. There were plenty of questions left for me in the end concerning the nature of her relationship with Nick but overall I think she did a great job informing the reader of his character (or lack of it). It provides a good twist of the old adage where 'you CAN go home again'.

snackbeast's review against another edition

4.0

This was so SO good. Not the most eloquent review I've ever written, but there it is. I laughed throughout the entire book and felt a genuine connection to the author and her story. This is a must-read, but grab a dictionary! If you're not a word-nerd there are multiple passages with heavy vocabulary that will trip up expert level grammarians.

The story with her and her mother in Kohl's. That's all I'm saying...

sbromley92's review against another edition

2.0

Parts of this were very amusing, other parts I found myself wanting to skim. Overall, it was ok with some inspired moments (most in the last third of the book).

helenephoebe's review against another edition

2.0

Review - Reading the blurb for this book our book club thought it looked really funny, and I think we expected more than what it was. Disappointment seemed to be the resounding feeling about this memoir. There were also several areas where some of the comments made seemed offensive, and I did have to Google quite a few of the references to make things make sense. I forced myself to finish it, but to be honest I skim-read quite a lot of the second half rather than spending time taking it in, because I didn't really want to focus on it. Some funny moments, but these were actually few and far between. Some interesting insights into the Mennonite culture as well, but I wouldn't rush off to read the follow-up.

General Subject/s? - Memoir / Autobiography

Recommend? – No

Rating - 14/20

For a full review see my blog https://bookbloggerish.wordpress.com/2020/04/23/book-review-mennonite-in-a-little-black-dress-a-memoir-of-going-home-by-rhoda-janzen/

cerrasand's review against another edition

3.0

I have decided that I am not a fan of memoirs. They just try to be so snappy and eye-opening. It drives me nuts.