Christin R. (raksha38) reviewed on 10/26/2011 + 203 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 3

Born to a stage mother so horrid even Dina Lohan would say Wow, maybe you should back off a little?, Gypsy Rose Lee managed to not only survive her mother (no small feat considering her mom murdered at least three people over the course of her life), but she went from a small support role in her younger sisters vaudeville act to become the most famous burlesque dancer ever. This womans life was insane. INSANE. Her mother was flat evil, right to the very end, and the fact that Gypsy and her younger sister June managed to become even moderately functional adults is nothing short of a miracle. Still, you dont come through that kind of childhood without plenty of Issues, and this biography doesnt shy away from those. It manages not to sensationalize the bad aspects of Gypsys personality or behavior and it doesnt demonize her for them either. Its all told with quite a bit of sympathy, even. She certainly had a fascinating, if rather sad, life.

What I liked best about the book was that it situated Gypsys life in its historical context. There were entire chapters devoted to the workings of the vaudeville circuits, the rise of the Minsky Brothers and their hand in creating burlesque, and the political and cultural currents that led to the fall of vaudeville and the rise of different trends in public performance and burlesque. The author does a good job of clearly demonstrating how these things created the choices available to Gypsy (and/or her mother, as the case may be) and explained how and why Gypsy (or her mother) managed to play the system to her advantage.

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