radiojen's review against another edition
4.0
Another great collection of stories from Haven Kimmel. I really love her style of writing and story-telling. I really feel like it's Zippy, the precocious 11-year-old child telling the stories more than Haven, the 39?-year-old woman recollecting her life. I think that's what makes it so enjoyable for me. I can almost hear my own daughter saying some of the same things.
I think I liked Zippy a little bit better, but this one is also definitely worth reading. You should probably read Zippy first, but not absolutely necessary to enjoy this book.
I think I liked Zippy a little bit better, but this one is also definitely worth reading. You should probably read Zippy first, but not absolutely necessary to enjoy this book.
judyward's review against another edition
5.0
Haven Kimmel has done it again. I loved A Girl Named Zippy and this book, I think, is even better. Written in the same voice as the previous book, Zippy continues her adventures growing up in tiny Moreland, Indiana where everyone knows your name and, unfortunately, your business. Much of this book, however, is a tribute to her mother who, in the last book, was spending the majority of her time sitting on the end of the couch reading, watching television, and talking on the telephone to members of her prayer group in her local Friends church. Receiving, she believes, a sign from God (given through the timing of a commercial on television), she takes the CLEP test, enters college, graduates with a perfect 4.0 average, earns a Master's degree, and becomes a English teacher in Moreland's high school. And what odds Zippy's mother has to overcome. She weighs close to 300 pounds, is missing a significant number of teeth, doesn't have either a car or a driver's license, doesn't have the money to go to college, and her husband is resentful that she has "gotten up off the couch". And yet she does it. While celebrating the power of her mother's will to change her life, this book has a darker side than A Girl Named Zippy. As her mother finds her voice and becomes the primary breadwinner for the Jarvis family, there are ramifications that ripple throughout the entire family.
bbckprpl's review against another edition
4.0
This memoir was hard to read, but only because it was accurate. (If that makes sense? You're talking to the girl who will turn the channel when people on TV shows start doing things that are self-sabotaging because it makes her uncomfortable, so take that with a grain of sugar, I guess.) It was also hysterical and heavy and human.
What happens in a family when one person decides to make drastic changes in their life? You can't predict how one choice leads to a thousand little consequences, but in this book, you can almost see the rippling out of each of Haven's mother's actions, almost feel the ex/implosions as they're happening. It left me wanting to hide myself - and young Haven - even while I cheered her mother on.
I haven't read the first book in this series, a Girl Named Zippy, but I'm definitely going to now.
What happens in a family when one person decides to make drastic changes in their life? You can't predict how one choice leads to a thousand little consequences, but in this book, you can almost see the rippling out of each of Haven's mother's actions, almost feel the ex/implosions as they're happening. It left me wanting to hide myself - and young Haven - even while I cheered her mother on.
I haven't read the first book in this series, a Girl Named Zippy, but I'm definitely going to now.
throwback682's review against another edition
funny
fast-paced
4.0
I laughed a lot and cringed a lot. Possibly more r-slurs here than in her first book, and the same talk of “Inj*ns”. Plus anti Blackness. This book was more emotional and harrowing than the first. Delonda gets up off the couch, but not without consequence. Yes the book was hilarious. Zippy’s narration actually reminds me somewhat of Lemony Snicket. Saying the most unintentionally hilarious things with such deadpan delivery. Meanwhile, my heart breaks for the women in this book. If you want to laugh and cry and can suffer through good old fashioned Indiana bigotry, this is the book for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Medical content, Racism, Classism, Toxic relationship, Animal death, and Ableism
Moderate: Vomit and Alcohol
Minor: Pregnancy, Abandonment, Infidelity, and Cultural appropriation
we_are_all_mad_here26's review against another edition
2.0
Well... maybe it's because I didn't read the first one (A Girl Named Zippy). Or maybe that wouldn't have mattered, I don't know, but either way I just wasn't too into this one. It was fine. Cute anecdotes about childhood, but nothing particularly outstanding or noteworthy... just, fine.
elisabeth1st's review against another edition
4.0
Frequently, sequels are not as good as the original. Not this time. Zippy is still funny and insightful. A very endearing, occasionally bittersweet, and always irreverent coming of age memoir. Kimmel left the door open for another book and I will read it if she writes it.
nancidrum's review against another edition
4.0
After reading "A Girl Named Zippy" a few years ago it was a real pleasure to dive back into the continuation of Haven's life with this book. She has a talent to be able to tell stories about her life without the typical "woe is me" attitude. Her books read like she is still currently a young girl instead of looking back with adult eyes. I believe that's what makes her memoirs so different from most others. I too grew up in a dysfunctional home (although not on her level) and it is so true that however you grow up is your normal. Haven knew on some level that other families were going to feed her when her parents forgot, but hey, that's just normal, right? Humor, imagination, resiliency, community connections, and a positive attitude play a major role in how a child growing up in a dysfunctional family turns out. Haven had it all in spades!
A funny, entertaining and inspirational read!
A funny, entertaining and inspirational read!
pamalamadingdong's review against another edition
4.0
A little bit more serious than Zippy--made me take another look at her childhood. A fantastic read nonetheless.