Mouseschawitz - My Summer Job of Concentrated Fun

by Angela Lovell

Though set at Disney World, this collection is far from Disneyesque (as if the title wasn't a giveaway.) Mouseschawitz - My Summer Job of Concentrated Fun - is Part 1 of a short collection of essays from an ex theme park employee and the unbelievable feats she witnessed one summer. From deadly wildlife to celebrity encounters, to guests attempting makeshift abortions on rides, these tales cover all kinds of thrills in the happiest place on earth.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Biography, Essays

Nook

First published March 20, 2011

About the author

Angela Lovell is a bestselling author and award-winning playwright, director, screenwriter, podcaster, critic, writing instructor, and storyteller. She's written for MTV, Universal Studios, VICE, The New York Post, Match.com, and many more. She's taken first place at The Moth's NYC StorySlam and performs her earliest diary entries regularly with Mortified. Angela was a finalist at Literary Death Match, The L Magazine's Literary Upstart, and The New York Press's Sex Columnist Contest. You can hear her as Mark Twain's daughter on the album Mark Twain Words and Music (featuring Clint Eastwood, Garrison Keillor, and Jimmy Buffett).

Angela lives in Los Angeles with far too many foster fails.

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick read. It felt gossipy and fun. I enjoyed a small glimpse of the dark side of the mouse without feeling like it was negative or judgemental.

[Sheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

2-1/2 Stars

I enjoyed the beginning of this mini-book of short essays, but I was disappointed by the somewhat gruesome turn it took towards the end. I love to "people watch" whenever I am at Disney and hearing some of the customer stories she observed was hilarious. If the book had more of those experiences, I would have rated it much higher. It was the addition of two stories in particular that soured my enjoyment of this piece. While the story about the cast member injury in Mr. Toad's Wild Ride was a little more information than I wanted to know, I could have overlooked it. However, I found the story about the Splash Mountain incident (when/if you read this, you will know which incident I am referring to) to be very disturbing- particularly the more or less callous way in which it seemed to be taken by the cast members. I know the author's humor is dark, but I think this was a little overboard.

[Bruce Sarte · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disney fans come together! Grab Mouseschawitz and you’ll learn a thing or two about the “Happiest Place on Earth” that you never thought you’d read!

Mouseshawitz is the recounting of one person’s experience during her summer job working for The Mouse. Her style is entertaining and informative in this straight forward and to the point collection of anecdotes. Through her detailed retelling of her summer experiences, you’ll feel like you are going with her in the uniformly cut “butch, colorless cowpoke duds of cut-off jeans (just above the knee - this is a family park), plaid shirt, cowboy hat and boots.”
All in all anyone who loves Disney related stories will enjoy this peek behind the scenes of one girl’s experiences working at possibly the most famous place in the world – Disney!

[Melinda Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mouseschawitz is a book that is too scared to hit up its title content. The book is dramatically short - if this was in paper format I would expect it to be 20 pages long at most. If it had actually tackled the reasons behind the loving nickname of 'Mouseschawitz', there would have been more value in reading this book.

In its current form, its rather more a few short stories of the most headlining, dramatic things that happened at Disney World that won't get the author sued. Because she's very concerned about that, with 20% of the book being taken up with a disclaimer.

I'd give this one a miss because you won't get your money's worth.

[Nique · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had fun reading these essays, because it's always fun to hear the different stories of "Cast Members" (since I was one at a Disney store and I know shenanigans happen). It's true, some of the stories are horrifying...but that's what makes it interesting. This is the stuff people never get to hear...and the title IS "Mouseschawitz", after all. I also thought it was interesting to hear the performer's point of view while going through the stressful audition process and hearing of the different types of people she met during her time working there.

[Elece Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly thought the book was pretty interesting. Mouseschawitz is a short book (only 18 pages) filled with quick anecdotes mostly about the things in the park that you don't hear about but should probably know. I read it while I rode to Disneyworld with my family. It proved that although it is the happiest place on Earth, craziness does go down in Disney. It was a quick read and I recommend it for anyone who's skeptical about the "magic" of disney

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a theme park alumnus as well, I laughed outright reading this book. I had the fortunate position of being a park employee but not have to wear the park uniform, so I could do whatever I wanted as I was in plain clothes, yet all my friends were in the uniform/character outfits that demanded a certain weight/appearance/behavior/etc. Short story of her experience in the most magical place on earth, it's a quick read that is worth the insight to a day in the life.

[Lucia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'll try to write a review as short as possible because I don't want it to have more words than the book itself. It's actually a collection of short stories. I didn't feel comfortable with the writing style, and I felt the stories were so exaggerated.
I didn't understand very well what she wanted to express... she compares the theme park as a concentration camp but she seemed to have a great time that summer, and she also got paid!
Really, I don't get it...

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title is definitely clever, and this short bit of fluff is reasonably well written, but none of the stories weer comedically horrific enough to really be considered as hellaciously soul sucking as the Holocaust-evoking title would suggest. Still, it's a pleasant enough book to kill half an hour with.

[Jane Doe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best in-your-face satires I've read lately. Fast-paced and funny, a little gruesome, a lot irreverant, and just plain fun. Not for the politically correct or faint of heart. LOVED it!!

[Sarah Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very humorous read!

[Jane Doe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love dark satire and fearless writers! This is a great combination that spoofs my favorite vacation destination! I loved this!

[Artin Safari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maybe not the most politically correct title, but an extraordinarily great sense of humor and completely worth the 20 minute read.

[Donna Nickerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's always interesting to hear some behind the scenes stories from cast members at WDW ... the last story had my jaw dropped!

[MBenzz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't be fooled by the rave reviews here that are most likely from friends of the author (or the author herself). This 'book' is actually 6 short little essays that, while funny and interesting, are NOT worth the $2.99 price (at the time of this review, which is from 2011). This is maybe 30 pages total on the Kindle (if you're reading it on your PC, it's 10).

I wonder if the author either didn't work for Disney very long, got bored and stopped jotting down her adventures, or those 6 short stories were the only interesting things that happened to her while she worked there. I can't imagine that working as an 'Attraction Hostess' for Splash Mountain is really that exciting, but the few stories she did tell were amusing. A shame she didn't include more...as it is, it just seems like she got lazy and suddenly quit writing. Don't waste your money.

[Giddy Girlie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Recommended by Kindle and impressed with the preview, I bought this book and looked forward to some crazy "behind the ears" stories. What the description failed to say is that this IS NOT a book. It's essentially a 3 part essay, maybe 30 pages. Half of it covers her disappointing auditions which might hold interest for those who are unfamiliar with the 'cattle call' and runway model air of interviewing for Disney (mass interviews where you must actively compete with other people in the room; being dismissed because your eyes aren't the exact shade of brown, etc.) but for me - in the end - it was a waste of time. Seeing as how little there was in this 'book' I would have missed most of the material by skipping ahead.

The actual stories of park guests are always excessively negative - which is why we're interested, right? Be honest. No one paid hard earned money to hear about the wonderful guests who didn't complain. That being said, I think the tone of the stories needs a little work. The bilious tone in her last story about a group of passengers is just... rude. She freely admits that she and her colleagues allowed people to enter an unsafe situation purposely for their own amusement. The story only gets darker from there. Although I highly suspect that it's not entirely factual. If things happened as the author claims, she and her colleagues would probably have been in serious legal trouble and the Disney company would have sought action against them.

Regardless of actual fact, as a park visitor I have seen more salacious things happen than what has been sold in this "book" and I personally wouldn't recommend that anyone spend full price on this short collection. The stories are lukewarm at best and the 'most shocking' one is most likely more fiction than fact but either way will leave a bad taste in your mouth.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very quick read. Kind of interesting, definitely a few shocking parts, but I was expecting a little bit more from this. I think if she had written a little less about her auditions and getting the job itself, she could've said more about what it was actually like in the park.

[Paul Seneca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book to be sharply written, fairly offensive and a lot of fun. It's short - just a couple of essays - but worth a read. I would probably read anything else this author puts out. She has a unique style and a great sense of humor.

[Myka · Rating 2 out of 5]

It started a little boring then picks up a bit, had it's funny moments, but at the end it was too short, too sporadic, and at the end it just cuts off in the middle of something.

[Margaret · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mildly interesting.

[Alexis Saltzman · Rating 2 out of 5]

This had the potential to be funny and interesting, but didn't quite make it.

[Rob · Rating 1 out of 5]

Most expensive 30 kindle pages ever, outdated (pre-Internet anecdotes?) and not even close to worth it. This should absolutely be a free download. Ripoff.

[Keri · Rating 1 out of 5]

Crap. Don't believe a word of it.

[Jess the Shelf-Declared Bibliophile · Rating 4 out of 5]

See, THIS was the juicy type of Disney memoir I've been aching for. Hilarious, almost unbelievable stories. My only gripe was that it was so short! I spent 2.99 on only a few minutes of reading. :/

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A humorous look at some of the stuff that happens when you work at Disney.

[Rachel · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too short to fully capture what's it like to be a DCM. I could get more stories from a family member that worked there. Plus, this had more park guest issues more than anything.

[Tisha "Manic Reads" · Rating 3 out of 5]

Far

Too short. Interesting book with a good voice but not nearly enough stories left me wanting more and literally saying "that's it?"

[Tanya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very short & nothing all that interesting.

[Lisa Kern · Rating 1 out of 5]

Neither snarky or funny. Complete waste of time and money