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97th out of 122 books
—
97 voters
Elf Girl
by
Reverend Jen
Meet Rev Jen. Patron saint of the uncool. Cheerleader for nonconformists, geeks, and oddballs the world over. From her tiny rent-controlled apartment on Manhattan’s hip Lower East Side, she holds court over a wacky cast of friends and lovers with an unchecked candor that makes her impossible not to love. Zany and wry, Rev Jen will charm readers with these fun and irreveren...more
Paperback, 288 pages
Published
October 25th 2011
by Gallery Books
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Five Stars for making me laugh out loud on nearly every page. Rev Jen is my new anti-hero, and the best travel guide I ever had--even though she's rarely left the LES (Lower East Side) in over twenty years. Just when you think that she's trying to be outrageous on purpose, she becomes completely vulnerable and tells every detail of her regrets and fears, which just makes her all the more "Reverent" in my book. You might have known someone like her in high school and completely ignored her. After...more
Here's Rev Jen's first book under a major publisher, and here we get to relive with her her entire trajectory from the odd girl in suburban Maryland through art school in New York through her founding of many things: a religion, an open mike that still operates to this day, a group of people who call themselves Art Stars, and many other wondrous creations. I first discovered Reverend Jen in the mid-90s at Faceboy's Sunday night open mike at Surf Reality, a scene that I knew I could call home as...more
My whole life I've made a practice of hitting interpersonal relationship benchmarks out of order. Many a time intimate activity has preceded introduction formalities. In keeping with this behavior, I was photographed au naturel with Rev. Jen Miller before I had ever laid eyes on her work. Now that I have, I can say without a doubt there is a world of brains, wit, and brawny vision behind her rockin' bod. Since then she has become one of my favorite writers and artists.
The stories in Elf Girl are...more
The stories in Elf Girl are...more
I love Rev Jen. I drink the cool aid. She is a truly mesmerizing/enchanting being. She ran the 3 hour long Anti –slam on the lower east side with seemingly effortless eese. Always staying til the last performers, resolutely positive and kind. And always had sharp off-the-cuff remarks/observations to make “I have got to go drain My Lizard”…she also has great legs! And a wonderful disarming delivery some of which is captured in this book. What bothered me about the Anti Slam, which I regularly at...more
I had never heard of Rev Jean but the blurb of Elf Girl promised humour and wry observation and I was hoping for something lighthearted from this memoir as I needed a break from some recent somber reads.
I did smile in a few places, but shook my head in a lot more and a little psych 101 may be the saboteur in this case, because mostly I felt a sort of pity for Rev Jen. This is an autobiography of a persona that has devoured it's host, and while she seems to believe it is all wildly exciting and s...more
I did smile in a few places, but shook my head in a lot more and a little psych 101 may be the saboteur in this case, because mostly I felt a sort of pity for Rev Jen. This is an autobiography of a persona that has devoured it's host, and while she seems to believe it is all wildly exciting and s...more
There aren't all that many Free Spirits around these days, but Rev Jen is surely one - and a shining example at that. She has managed to turn the sort of youthful larks and performance art-style hi-jinks most people give up with their first job/mortgage/baby into a full-fledged Lifestyle. Not all of said hi-jinks are unique and fascinating, but they bring her into conflict with a culture that's descending into dull conformity and base materialism in such a way that one can't help but root for he...more
If you always wanted to read a book about a 40-year-old "artist" who wears elf ears and reflects on her life as a hipster in New York City before they were known as hipsters then look no further.
Stories were interesting but a bit rushed and could've used a bit more development.
As a jaded New Yorker, I probably would find Rev Jen obnoxious and annoying if I chose to judge her by appearances without talking to her.
For instance, I find nothing "artistic" about dressing up as Doo Doo the reject Tel...more
Stories were interesting but a bit rushed and could've used a bit more development.
As a jaded New Yorker, I probably would find Rev Jen obnoxious and annoying if I chose to judge her by appearances without talking to her.
For instance, I find nothing "artistic" about dressing up as Doo Doo the reject Tel...more
Some parts of this were entertaining. Mostly though I think I just enjoyed hearing about New York. I would like to see the troll museum. My friend thinks this was funny and recommended it, I dont really agree. No plans to read any of her other books.
Not laugh out loud funny very often, but completely entertaining. I think this book will change my life in that I'm going to make it a goal to have more fun. I loved Doo-Doo, the fifth teletubby very much.
Jan 08, 2012
Jason Pettus
marked it as to-read
This woman gave me one of my first-ever New York performance opportunities, at the weekly variety show she used to do in the Lower East Side in the late 1990s.
Rev. Jen is one of my idols. So maybe I'm biased, but this is one of the best memoirs I've read in a long time.
This book got better as I continued reading it. It wasn't anything like what I expected it to be- I thought it would just be a collection of funny stories (which it was), but the character was very artsy and wild.
i was surprised to see she wrote another book! i thought maybe i'd bought 'live nude elf' twice or something; but no. she's not yet 40 and this is her second memoir type book. she has a lot of funny anecdotes as one might imagine. i read this book in like 24 hrs. i like her; wish i'd remembered to try to see the anti-slam one of the last few times in nyc....
Oct 19, 2011
Jen Deaderick
marked it as to-read
I haven't read this yet, but I already know it will be fabulous, because Rev. Jen is fabulous.
This was really interesting. I love reading about fringe life.
I would follow Reverend Jen's boundless enthusiasms anywhere.
A really entertaining read...funny, entertaining and inspiring!
being this quirky all the time must be fucking exhausting.
Very funny. It may inspire you to make art!
Thank the sweet lord for Rev Jen (and Rev Jen Junior). This was totally fletch.
One of the funniest books I've ever read.
Wow. I was really surprised at how much I liked this book. It was very human, and fun. And funny.
May 23, 2013
Andrea Kszystyniak
marked it as to-read
May 12, 2013
Jodie Humphrey
added it
Apr 14, 2013
Rachel Houghton
marked it as to-read
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Reverend Jen got her B.F.A. in painting from the School of Visual Arts in NYC in 1990 and has since experienced no financial success whatsoever. She is a performer, painter, playwright, columnist, ASS Magazine founder, Troll Museum curator and Patron Saint of the Uncool. For 12 years she hosted the Anti-Slam, a weekly open mike on Manhattans Lower East Side. She has performed all over the world at...more
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