Book Review
My Booky Wook by: Russell Brand
The first memoir I read this February was ‘My Booky Wook’. When I first heard we would be reading memoir in class I knew I had to get my hands on a copy of it. My mum had a friend that was in possession of it so while everybody else was reading ‘Eat, Pray, Love’, ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’ and other mind-numbing books like that; I was reading a comedic master piece.
The very name ‘My Booky Wook’ indicates a sense of humor that foreshadows your enjoyment of this memoir. If you don’t know what Russell Brand is capable of (humor-wise), then the title should tell you what you are in for.
Growing up in Essex, London, Russell Brand wasn’t living the good life. After being walked out on by his Dad (who he admired greatly and only saw rarely) he was left living with his mum and horrible step dad. You could argue that Russell Brand is…different. As you read ‘My Booky Wook’, you feel like you are living with Russel, descending into sex, drugs and alcohol addiction right next to him.
As he grows into adolescence, Russell falls in love with acting and the thrill that came with stepping up on the stage; knowing that this was his destiny. Upon arrival to his local drama school, he devoted almost all of his time to acting and stand-up comedy; whereas the fraction of time that wasn’t spent focused on acting was focused on drugs.
After drugs start consuming his life, Russell’s acts (stand-up comedy) become acts of self-destruction, including such actions and cutting himself on stage and smashing glass jars against his head. It took a couple of months before he (along with his friend) was expelled from Drama School. At this point he was knee deep in heroin and problems, one example being breaking into a hospital (while on heroin) trying to find and steal fetuses.
It took a while for studios to pick up on the humor being the destructive exterior of Russell. MTV chose him to be a host for their show. This resulted in a somewhat mediocre level of fame but something to quench his current need for fame and attention. But of course, he was fired after a short while due to his…habits.
It takes someone outstandingly hilarious to make things as despicable as trying to steal fetuses to something as sad as growing up with a borderline abusive stepdad both hilarious and touching. The book is organized in narrative form, stuffed with tales of his coming to age, to rise to fame, to funny tales that his self-abusive behavior bought upon him.
The whole book is just about a man who is coming to terms with his substance abuse and his dying need for love, but told in a way that makes you laugh and (nearly) cry, learning who he is and trying to figure out why everyone (from people in the street to celebrities) is trying to get away from him.
I am never usually a fan of memoir, or anything nonfiction in fact, but this was thoroughly enjoyable and one of the best books I’ve ever read. Whether it’s a combination of British humor (to which I am very familiar) or just seeing one of my heroes from TV in action; I LOVED IT. And so should you, that is if you can cope with the vulgar details and English (as in England English) words.
While reading this book, I viewed it as more of a comedy than a memoir so my favorite lines are ones with comedic value. My favorite one (which I ending up nearly rolling off my bed with laughter was after reading) was, “No Matthew, you’ll be sleeping on the brown.” Referring to a dreaded blanket that was living in his closet while his friend Matthew was spending the night at his house. Other funny lines included, “just one hour into filming and he’s already refusing to come off the top of the van”, this was referring to Russel (heavily intoxicated) climbing on top of their RV and not coming down. You can fall in love with almost every line- almost every word in this book, but I’ll let you chose your own favorites.
The bottom line is that you just read this book; it is perfect in every single way. I have the sequel and can’t wait to read it. Ten out of ten, BUY THIS NOW.
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