Reviewed by Rama Gaind.
By Judith Lucy, Simon & Schuster, $32.99.
Some valuable lessons are contained on how – not – to fall apart in Turns Out, I’m Fine. Award-winning comedian Judith Lucy produces a sincere and forthright memoir.
Getting wisdom on reflection helps, along with a few eye-openers and a minor submerged experience – all of which allow Judith to slowly discover that her life is still full of possibilities.
She is “tickety-boo” now, but not at one stage which resulted in her soul-searching and – this biography. With a number of jokes and stories she’s told before forming the basis of this book, Lucy makes peace with different things in her life.
Turns Out, I’m Fine is about dealing with heartache, angst, death, confusion, letting go and coming out the other side … intact.
“I’d had a number of revelations about how I’d been living my life and they weren’t good. But I’m good now and that’s what this book is about: how I got here … while retaining most of my marbles.”
It was a dramatic incident – a watershed moment at the time – when she had one of the very worst bust-ups. In the space of 24 hours, her relationship came apart and so did she. A broken heart became the catalyst for a complete existential meltdown. She was nearly 50, suddenly alone and unsure about every aspect of her life.
The years leading up to that point involved the death of her brother, Niall; the onset of menopause; a career slump; a financial disaster; and, trying to find her birth father.
Not one for those who are easily offended, Lucy’s writing mirrors her performance: confronting at times, but straightforward – with copious use of expletives, but always sardonic and amusing.
