Book Review: Leslie F*cking Jones is f*cking good
Leslie Jones is a national treasure!
There are a lot of celebrity memoirs out there, and specifically a lot of audiobooks read by famous performers, and the best of them tend to be by comedians. Of those, one of the best I've ever listened to would have to be Leslie F*cking Jones, by Leslie F*cking Jones.
It's not just another short comedy book, nor a vapid shallow celebrity ghostwritten book only out there for the attention and sales. This is a lengthy, thoughtful book by a writer with tremendous experiences that are worth sharing. She goes through her life in stunning detail with wisdom, and of course a lot of humor. (And, also, a lot of cursing.)
The older comedian has had a long history since before she became famous on SNL. Although that may be the spine of the book, what brings readers in--and her take on that world is extremely interesting--she has a lot more to say about her earlier life and many years of doing standup in California and New York.
After a forward by Chris Rock, and prologue about yes SNL, she goes back back to her childhood as an army brat and school years. There was trauma early on, her family struggles moving to Los Angeles, and then she continues into her college years with a focus on basketball. Eventually, she got into comedy and realizes that's what she wanted all along. Then, Jamie Foxx recommends that she take a break in her early 20s so that she can live life, and she talks about her various jobs. There are a few other namedrops from the comedy the earlier chapters, but overall in the first half of the book her stories are very relatable as an average woman with a dream who was just trying to get by.
There's a lot of analysis of standup, and in the broader sense analyzing the creative process itself, as she develops her craft and learns how to focus these talents into a career. Comedy nerds will get a lot of out of her takes. She moves to New York, learns more, makes a living on the stage, 9/11 happens, more family tragedy and deaths as well as dealing with racism and sexism, and she tells it with so much honesty and emotion.
In the read-aloud audio edition, it feels like hanging out with her. Apparently, she deviates from the book and hence its 16 hours long. It works great. It's like having a coffee with Leslie, more like listening to a live unscripted podcast albeit organized around a proper book. She lets it all out, and cries more than once when talking about love and loss. She criticizes herself, she stands up for herself, and she also screams in her signature style and you'll laugh out loud many times.
Towards the end, we get to hear all the behind-the-scenes juice about the Saturday Night Live audition process and Lorne Michaels and the cast members she worked with. For example, she really did have a crush on Colin Jost! She particularly loves music, and gushes over meeting the musical guests as much as the movie stars.
Some of the most interesting and harshest parts are about her harassment during the Ghostbusters debacle. Beyond merely the legal drama she had to go through, even getting the FBI involved, she has poignant things to say about the nature of bigoted online troll culture which was so vicious to her. However, throughout that all, she was no victim and came out the other side stronger. That might be the essence of Leslie F*cking Jones.
Finally, there was her falling out at SNL followed by other showbusiness projects. She ends on some notes with thoughts on politics and social issues, like when she guest-hosted the Daily Show. It feels like a real arc through an epic saga. A real journey. She grows so much, only making it big relatively late in life, and is a real inspiration. What a great experience in both human empathy and in just plain comedy. Very recommended.