Just the Funny Parts

 Book 39 of my 2026 Reading Challenge

read from March 21 - 26

Just the Funny Parts: ... And a Few Hard Truths 

About Sneaking into the Hollywood Boys' Club

by Nell Scovell

published 2018

3 stars

Even though I didn't know Nell Scovell by name it turns out I've seen and enjoyed a lot of her work.  The book was entertaining with good jokes and amusing anecdotes.

So why 3 stars instead of 4?  I don't want to overtax myself by going back through the book for specific quotes but some of the more serious points rubbed me the wrong way.  She was judging others harshly for actions that, from this outsider's opinion, she also did (off the top of my head, an example would be rolling her eyes at a young woman entertaining male writers with a story about her boobs when earlier she said she would try to start with a filthy joke to let others know she was 'one of them').  Diversity is an issue and should be talked about but she seemed to want to hold others accountable while making justifications for herself at times that she had as much power as the people she was talking about to possibly make changes. Or the system of 'word of mouth' in general...it's not good when it's white men recommending/choosing white men but doesn't the system also fail when it's white women recommending/choosing white women, like it's the gatekeeping and not the specific demographic that's the issue?

The "funny parts" read quickly and I enjoyed them.  The stronger messages were on point but I'm taking the messenger with a grain of salt. 

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Ways This Book Met my 2026 Reading Goals:

- 39th book read in 2026 (my goal is 100)

- A book I received for Christmas 2025 (my goal is to read all my Christmas 2025 books by the end of 2026)

- A book I own that is leaving my house for a new reader to find (my goal is to declutter and make progress on whittling down my shelves/boxes of books in my house)

- Title starting with 'J' (I'm doing an A-Z title challenge)