Book Review : Kimmy Dee - Pussy Planet and Other Endearing Tales (2016)
Pussy Planet and Other Endearing Tales, humor blogger, former Cracked contributor and strung out internet person Kimmy Dee's first publication, came out self-published last July. I usually don't read self-published material, but I've known Kimmy for a couple years now and believe me, the reason why she can't find a publisher isn't related to her talent. The publishing industry (and society in general) just isn't ready for the foul-mouthed whirlwind that can be found inside Kimmy's mind. Pussy Planet is not exactly what is presents itself to be, though. It is a memoir masquerading as an essay collection and it is NOT JUST made out of jokes. It is...quite something, to say the least.
Fuck, let me try to be more precise here.
The idea behind writing a memoir-in-essays is clever: this way, Kimmy Dee doesn't have to follow a linear timeline to tell her story. She can cherry-pick the memories she deem most pertinent for the process without taking us through the mandatory idealized childhood, the over-dramatic high school years, the boring Oedipian battles, etc. As you might've guessed, a self-published memoir from a non-famous person isn't something I'm usually very fond of, but Pussy Planet is different because Kimmy Dee has the humility of knowing not every detail of her life is interesting or inspiring. Not everybody is interesting, but everybody lived through at least a couple interesting thing and the essays in Pussy Planet do provide insight on what shaped Kimmy Dee into that uproarious neurotic internet person. And no, you don't need to previously have known Kimmy to appreciate it. She's being an uproarious neurotic internet person right there on the page as you're reading.
So yeah, here the thing about Pussy Planet : it's hilarious...but it's not. It is funny the same way your hilarious friend is funny when telling you the worst moments of her life a couple drinks into the evening. And the book is at its best when there's a tragic edge to it. I mean, stories about Kimmy's relationship to her daughter are cute as a button, but they are not super duper pertinent to me, a childless, middle-aged guy. If it was I would be reading mommy blogs like a motherfucker and thought Kimmy Dee is the voice of the first generation of non self-important mommies. My favorite essay in Pussy Planet is Losing Jack, where Kimmy recalls her father's savage battle with cancer. She doesn't really talk about him anywhere else in the collection. At least, not like this. Losing Jack provides us insight on where Kimmy Dee's incredible sense of humor and soldier-like attitude in front of adversity which directly led to the writing of Pussy Planet.
I feel terrible having to judge a book so intimate. I mean, Pussy Planet really is like stepping inside Kimmy Dee's house, meeting her family and taking a tour of her childhood bedroom and such. Who am I to tell you if the wallpaper sucks or if the house reeks of mothballs? I mean, judging Pussy Planet by its aesthetic merits would be missing the goddamn point. It's a bare, vibrant and vulnerable journey into the events that made her who she is today. The more vibrant and vulnerable, usually the better. Stories like Losing Jack, Finding Path and Lame Brain demonstrate how Kimmy Dee overcame adversity through her very special brand of self-depreciating humor and I believe it key to understanding what makes her special as a person. This is the thesis of Pussy Planet: you're not the center of the universe. Life will always end up pulling you apart, so might as well take this existence thing with a grain of salt.
So, why should you read Pussy Planet? It's a good question. I technically try to never enforce the life lessons of someone unto someone else. Kimmy Dee has seen some shit, though and she doesn't exactly lecture you about how to get through adversity. She generously offers her experiences for you to judge and perhaps build on if you need it. Pussy Planet is funny, there are some definitive LOL moments to it, but at its core it's a book about loss and dealing with mental illness in a world that doesn't care about you, so there's a jagged edge to it. And you know how much I like books with a jagged edge. I read them with oven mittens and shit. If you're feeling overwhelmed by the tidal waves of adversity and social media preachers who want to help you through it so they can feel better about themselves, Pussy Planet might just be what you need. It was meant to be therapeutic to Kimmy Dee, but it doesn't mean it can't be therapeutic to you too.
