Shirley, I Jest

A lighthearted look back at the career of Cindy Williams. This completely skips over the darker issues that I've read about the cast and crew of Laverne & Shirley such as the drug use and casual sex that other cast members claim was a common part of their lives. Still, it was interesting reading about her memories and meetings with the big stars from old Hollywood.

This book reads much like a conversation with Williams, possibly over coffee—a very long and storied conversation. And the forward by her friend, Ed Begley, Jr was thoughtful and really lovely. It is clear, by reading Shirley I Jest: A Storied Life, Cindy Williams has had a great life, made possible by her acting.

While never particularly enamored with "Happy Days", to this day I can quote entire passages of dialogue from the hilarious, charming, and wholly re-watchable "Laverne & Shirley" - and to this day as well, wish I still had my own Boo Boo Kitty! Shirley was always my favorite, so when I saw Cindy Williams had a memoir coming out, I was anxious to find out more about her ... and while Shirley, I Jest! is far from a biography (it's really more anecdotal notes and stories that Williams recalls from her life and work, more or less in chronological order), you can still feel a bit of Shirley Feeney on every page as Williams humbly discusses growing up with an alcoholic father, her first obsessions with TV and acting, and how - after achieving success with films like American Graffiti and The Conversation, a downturn in her career (along with a seemingly unreliable Penny Marshall) nearly caused her to turn down the role of Shirley Feeney. While this reader would have liked more of a biography - Williams touches on her grandma's death, her hippie days, and marriage to Bill Hudson with zero detail, for example - when I settled into the idea that this brief (200 pages) memoir was more like sitting with Cindy as she tells you tales from her life, the book was a treat and Williams comes off both grateful and even almost surprised by what she's achieved. Boo Boo Kitty would be proud. ***1/2

Note: I received a free ARC of this book via netgalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Very fun warm hearted memoir! Loved learning more about the woman behind one of my favorite characters growing up. Funny and insightful!

I enjoyed Ms. Williams' sories. This is a quick, entertaining read.

Review will be posted May 8 Shirley, I Jest, is written by Cindy Williams who is better known as "Shirley" from Laverne & Shirley. I found it interesting that as an actress she is bad at lying (there is an excerpt in the book about quitting her job by lying and saying she broke her arm) yet I always thought that acting was mostly lying - but I guess not! She also mentions a story where she is working as a waitress and Jim Morrison comes in - and is in on a joke with her coworkers to mess with her! Some hazing at a new job! Overall there is a lot of fun stories in the book - some superstitious like getting a job on Room 222 on November 22 when she had just turned 22 on August 22... At the halfway point in the book there are some photographs of Cindy and her family. The second half of the book focuses more on her time on Laverne & Shirley, her friendship with Andy Kaufman and some encounters with celebrities.
Overall this was a fun read and fun to find out more about Cindy and her life before and after she was Shirley. I received an e-copy of this book in exchange for this review.

Entertaining story of Cindy Williams.

Shirley, I Jest is basically a who's who of famous people from the last few years. While a large chunk of the book is devoted to Cindy Williams' time on Laverne & Shirley, there are also some stories from American Graffiti and The Conversation, plus information on her brief encounters with Bob Dylan, Jim Morrison and Cary Grant (!!!!!!!). Like some other celebrity books I've read recently, this also doesn't really get into salacious gossip. It's more like examples of famous people I like being decent people. (This makes me really happy; I don't want to live in a world where celebs I like turn out to be horrible.)

This book is also an incredibly fast read---partially because it's about 200 pages, including pictures, but mostly because it reads like Cindy Williams is just talking to the reader, sharing stories and conversations.

This is easily my favorite celebrity memoir. It's incredibly short (unfortunately) but thorough, and I hope there will be another volume at some point.

Highly recommended.

I truly enjoyed this book and was sorry to see it end. I grew up watching Shirley on Laverne & Shirley, so I feel I "know" her. I was surprised by her life struggles and how she has overcome them. I laughed and cried reading this account of her life.