"Comedy can be a common thread, weaving us closer together when things seem to be tearing apart," writes Barbara Darko in her introduction. I had high hopes for this collection of quotations from women in comedy; I was a bit disappointed in the execution. The design sets off the quotations from each person in different colors, but with a few basic styles: the colors are bright and the contrast can be hard on the eyes. Also, there is a sort of mismatch between the quotes that are giving perspectives on why the speakers do comedy or how they view it vs. the jokes and quips that were obviously meant to be delivered on stage. It was interesting, though, and encompasses a wide range of comediennes.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for a digital ARC for the purpose of an unbiased review.

A coffee table book of short quips from wonderful comedians! I liked seeing the range of woman from the 1930s to current day, and the history and summaries of the game-changers were pretty cool. The only (very minor) thing I wasn't a fan of was the basic art interspersed though the chapters.

I really appreciated some of the quotations but most of them let me indifferent.
Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

This topic deserves a better book

I was expecting a lot of wisdom to be presented by a lot of great women comics and comedians. Instead this book was a small collection of snippets, most of them thoughtful but rarely funny. I think there could have been so much more to say that I felt empty after having read the book. Overall, what was there was good but there was so much more that the book could have been.

Broadly Speaking is yet another book trying to capture the wit and wisdom of women comics. Barbara Darko with Rob Schaeffer have assembled a short little book, with no more than two quotes per page. Sadly, the quotes are mostly not what makes the comedians funny, but rather what makes them frustrated, angry or bitter. Mostly, it's women having a harder time than men, women not being recognized for their humor, black women, asian women and anyone else of a different nationality or color, and/or sexual preference. It is not comprehensive, and its not particularly funny, but at least it is often eloquent.

The few laugh lines that manage to come through all seem to be from generations past, which does not help the image of young female comics. It would have been much better if young comics were represented more by killer lines than lines in the sand.

Some standouts to remember:
I always wanted to be somebody, but now I realize now I should have been more specific.
-Lily Tomlin
Of course I talk to myself. I like a good speaker and I appreciate an intelligent audience.
-Dorothy Parker
If I say the right thing, please forgive me.
-Gracie Allen
Be as immature as you want. Right now is the youngest you're ever going to be.
-Mamrie Hart
I've been on a diet for two weeks and all I've lost is two weeks.
-Totie Fields
My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. She's 97 now and we don't know where the hell she is.
-Ellen DeGeneres

More seriously, several of the comics come out to complain about the compartmentalization itself. It shouldn't be about gender, race or sex:
There are so many funny women in the world, and there have been for so many years. So I'll be happy when people can just move on from that, and things can just be comedies and not female or male.
-Kristen Wiig