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She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother: A Memoir [Hardcover]

Bryan Batt
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)


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Book Description

May 4, 2010
Gayle Batt is the kind of lady who throws elegant cocktail parties while wearing layers of silk chiffon, dripping pearls, and eight months’ pregnant. She is the kind of woman who says “anyhoo” and calls everyone “Dahlin’” or a special pet name. With hair, makeup, and nails always done to perfection, she triumphs rather than crumbles when infidelity, alcoholism, cancer, or any form of adversity attempts to shatter her family. Endearing and enduring, Gayle is a big-hearted, strong-willed true Southern belle—and she taught her son everything he knows about being a man.

In She Ain’t Heavy, She’s My Mother, Bryan Batt, the actor who plays Sal Romano on the Emmy, Golden Globe, and Peabody Award–winning Mad Men, chronicles his life—and his mother’s supportive presence in it.

From growing up gay below the Mason-Dixon Line to landing principal roles on Broadway (his first was on roller skates playing a singing and dancing boxcar in Starlight Express!) and later on the picture-perfect sets of TV’s Mad Men, to opening the ever-popular Hazelnut boutique in his hometown of New Orleans with his partner, Bryan weaves a touching and hilarious story of the South, showbiz, and an unshakable bond between mother and son.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

“I always knew that Bryan Batt was a wonderful actor, but now it turns out that he’s a terrific writer as well. It’s just not fair. In She Ain’t Heavy, She’s My Mother, Bryan’s tales of his family, his New Orleans childhood, and his career are hilarious, beautifully observed, and touching. I’ve met Bryan’s mother, and he does her proud—they both deserve a float at Mardi Gras.”
–Paul Rudnick
 
“Bryan Batt has written an achingly funny and deeply moving portrait of his beautiful New Orleanian mother. This book is a cause for celebration, a Mardi Gras–sized celebration!”
–Patricia Clarkson
 
“Bryan Batt’s childhood is like a mash-up of a Tennessee Williams play and a Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland movie. This memoir is a gumbo of fun, feeling, and fortitude in the face of all that life has to throw at you. A fairy tale come true!”
–Alan Cumming
 
“Funny, honest, moving. A wonderful memoir from a fantastic, southern gentleman. Loved it! Don't miss this one.”
—Mario Cantone

About the Author

BRYAN BATT appears on the Emmy Award–winning drama Mad Men and has performed in many Broadway and off-Broadway productions, including Jeffrey, Starlight Express, Cats, and Beauty and the Beast.

Hazelnut, the home-accessory shop he owns with his partner in New Orleans, has been featured in the New York Times, House Beautiful, InStyle, and other publications.
 
www.BryanBatt.com
www.HazelnutNewOrleans.com

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Crown Archetype (May 4, 2010)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0307588858
  • ISBN-13: 978-0307588852
  • Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1.2 x 9.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #935,005 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A truly wonderful book! June 23, 2010
Format:Hardcover
This brilliantly titled, "She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother: A Memoir," was absolutely delightful! This is a book that really has it all, and I found myself actually laughing OUT LOUD through most of it. I read the book at a local coffee shop, and fellow customers seriously began to wonder what I was so engaged in. The stories that Bryan shares with the reader are witty, sweet, and heartwarming. His mother, Gayle Batt, is such a charming woman who has gone through so much in her life, all the while staying strong for her family and friends. She is a true inspiration to all women everywhere. I especially enjoyed how Bryan describes the culture of New Orleans. This book was fantastic from beginning to end, and I have been recommending it to all of my family and friends.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
My wife and I recently discovered the Mad Men series which the author of the book reviewed here, Bryan Batt, has played in regularly. A friend of ours who really likes Mad Men told us that Mr. Batt was a native of New Orleans, his family had owned the Pontchartrain Beach Amusement Park there and that he had written a book about his mother that was really funny, so we got a copy of the book.

To put this in perspective, our friend is from New Orleans and my wife and I are from Louisiana and have lived in New Orleans. Given that we know that New Orleans is peculiar in usually amusing ways, we looked forward to reading the book reviewed here. I have just finished it and my wife will read it soon.

I did like the book, though it was a bit over the top at times - Mr. Batt likes to use a lot of adjectives and it seemed a little stream of consciousness at times, among a few other things. But, it still is a fun book.

I was a little surprised that he spent so little time on Pontchartrain Beach; I used to go there as a kid, and it was a great place - unfortunately closed since the 1980's. Also, there was next to nothing on Mardi Gras - and this book is New Orleans based in large part. Someone told me there will be a sequel, so maybe he will take these topics up there.

My two favorite parts in the book were the chapter "Beep" which is solely a very long phone message from his mother - really funny and so New Orleans - and the chapter "Let Us Pray" which describes praying for relief of constipation when his mother was ill. Don't be out off by the latter if you are religious, since they meant it to be respectful, but when you read it, I am fairly certain that you will laugh, a lot - I cried I laughed so much.

The book is really about Mr.
... Read more ›
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Read May 30, 2010
Format:Hardcover
This book takes you back. If you did not grow up in New Orleans, I did. It will make you want to come here. Bryan Batt hit the city perfectly. It is truly that way and it gave me smiles and laughs through out. If you have ever wanted to experience the south and the people that make it unique read this! The Author's mother is a true Steel Magnolia with Southern Charm and a tenacious spirit. It makes you want to meet her.

Could not put it down. Great Read!!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Very well written book November 20, 2011
By Tyler
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Being a native New Orleanian, this book brings back many happy memories of growing up in southern Louisiana. The author tells fantastically funny and touching stories in a brilliant way. This is a great read. You will laugh, cry and are excited to turn the page to see what will happen next. Fantastic.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A Positive Spin about a Mother August 21, 2010
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
There are too many "Bad Mommy" books out there. C'mon now, everybody's mother can't have been the Witch of Endor! This was(is?) a woman with the same human failings, shortcomings, and weaknesses as the rest of us. So what makes her different? For one, she is a loving person with a sense of humor and a definite sense of style. No matter the family problems, she never turned her back on her husband whose drinking problems were enough to handle before even looking at other difficulties. In the miasmic atmosphrere of NOLA, like the rest of the Deep South immersed and submerged in racial divisiveness, Madame Batt never lowered herself to that level and did not allow her children to go there either. She faced her health issues that alone would have defeated others with unflinching faith in God and her doctors. I guess you can say "She kept the Faith!" and her son chose to share the goodness of his mother with those of us willing and anxious to accept his gift of love. The illustrations alone are worth the price of the book!
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Lovely, Heartwarming Memoir May 9, 2011
Format:Paperback
I had the privilege of working with Bryan Batt and know him to be the kind, funny, genuine man you will read about in this delightful book, which is side-splittingly funny, tender and insightfully written.
When writing about signs that he was gay at an early age, Bryan mentions a gene that some of us have that gets triggered when first hearing a few notes from a Rogers and Hammerstein or Lerner and Loewe musical, which when once triggered, causes a love of all things Broadway. Watch this man perform, and you will be forever grateful that he possesses that gene.
From his performance as Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, in third grade, to his starring role in Mad Men, you will see how the support and love from and for his family and friends anchored Bryan and helped him to become the magnificent man he is.
I am grateful to his partner Tom for giving Bryan a typewriter and telling him to write his stories!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars I had a lot of fun reading this book
It took me back to life in the 1970's in New Orleans, specifically living in Lake Vista. It was thoroughly entertaining. Very visual!
Comedic, yet sad. Read more
Published 7 days ago by Lajla Abrams
3.0 out of 5 stars A Loving Tribute to a Genteel Southern Lady
Broadway journeyman and MAD MEN star Bryan Batt has crafted a loving tribute to his southern, genteel, big-hearted mother Gayle in a memoir about growing up in New Orleans in the... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Stacy Helton
4.0 out of 5 stars Nostalgia
Enjoyed reading this account of Bryan Batt's childhood with his mother. I am a New Orleans native and remember a lot of the places he referenced in the book, especially his... Read more
Published 2 months ago by EMILY B.
5.0 out of 5 stars A warm hearted tribute from a son to his mother
I loved the relationship between Gayle and Bryan. With New Orleans as the backdrop, this memoir was truly a delight.
Published 4 months ago by Karen Watkins
2.0 out of 5 stars OVER THE TOP
I too was born and raised in New Orleans, LA. And am in a 2 year age range with Bryan Batt. My environment was Black/Catholic. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Roxie L. Gamble
4.0 out of 5 stars She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother
This is the Auntie Mame of mothers...he is lucky to have such a fun mother.
Published on August 25, 2010 by Donn Murray
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read
Bryan writes a lovely tribute to his wonderful Mother. On the surface she at times seems dated and an out of touch southern bell. Mrs Batt is anything but. Read more
Published on August 4, 2010 by Marsha In Co
4.0 out of 5 stars A Love Letter to Mom and New Orleans.
I'm a fan of the author through Mad Men an so the purchase of this book was a no-brainer. Other reviews complain about nothing happening and it occurs to me how subjective these... Read more
Published on July 11, 2010 by Michelle R
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