Amazon Rating: 4.6/5 | Goodreads Rating: 4.08/5 | My rating: 4/5
The literal second I saw that Lauren Graham (AKA Lorelai Gilmore AKA light of my life) wrote a memoir, Talking As Fast As I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls, and Everything in Between, I had to have it. I bought it for my mom for Christmas and as she unwrapped it, I immediately informed her I’d be borrowing it as soon as she was done.
Let me give you some background: I have seen every single episode of the original Gilmore Girls at LEAST seven times. I cheered Rory on as she panicked through high school to get into Harvard (and then went to Yale). I grumbled at the TV every time Luke and Lorelai missed an opportunity to get together. I cursed Emily right along with Lorelai when she messed up their relationship in the fifth season, even though the rest of the time, Emily gives me life. This show got me through middle school. While I was being teased at school, I had Rory and Lorelai at home, who were always there with a quick quip and some coffee. My mom and I sing “Where You Lead (I Will Follow)” by Carole King on road trips regularly. I was a freshman in high school when the last season aired, and I actually remember telling my first boyfriend that he was very lucky that I still texted him and held conversations between the hours of 8 and 9 on Thursday nights. It was a problem.
Because of all this, I flipped out when the series did the reboot on Netflix and when I saw Lauren had written this book. But there was one part that will never fail to make me feel as inadequate in my own publishing journey as possible. Lauren talks about how with her first novel, she began writing as a release. When she just mentioned to her acting agent what she was up to, she was immediately set up with a literary agent and was basically signed and published in a heartbeat. (That’s an exaggeration. Writing a book, no matter who you are, is never done in a heartbeat.) Can I have your life, Lauren? I want it to just happen that easily! You make it sound like it was just a blip on your radar when we both know it was probably anything but. Publishing is hard. Writing a book is hard. Thanks for making me feel like the struggle is mine and mine only.
All that said, this book gave me feelings. Lauren describes her experience being a shut-in for a few days to hunker down and rewatch the entire original series with her own memories peppering in as she watches herself and Alexis Bledel as two of the most iconic characters of my lifetime. She gives a play-by-play of her most memorable days as they filmed the reboot for Netflix, and it was amazing to get that inside knowledge. Someday, I’ll read the novel Lauren published a few years ago. My TBR pile is alarming.
Disclaimer: Lauren Graham, you are amazing and I’m insanely proud of you for accomplishing all of your dreams, from making it on BroadWAY to landing the character of your dreams to writing (and publishing!) two books. Keep being you.
Grievances of Grammar 