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Rating: 
Summary: the joke's on God
Review: God said HA and then he gave her cancer. Julia got a great oncologist and said HA HA. Yeah, sounds hilarious to me.
Rating:
Summary: And Julia Said, "Ha ha ha...."
Review: I filled out the rating thingie above because it was a required field. It should be considered "unrated" by me because I seldom feel comfortable assigning numbers to people's memoirs.---------------------------- In a country possessed by the demon of efficiency, it's easy to forget that in the aftermath of tragedy, it's normal to alternate between mourning and cheer. Instead, we tend to derail both by stuffing the need to mourn; the tears denied then turn into anxiety, heavy-heartedness, or even depression, one reason Prozac is so popular in a country that will not let mourning work itself out naturally. ("Break down"; "losing it": what mechanistic metaphors for what in other cultures is so natural an opportunity to grow through initiation!) Some books do a good job of helping us greet our mourning--Romanyshyn's THE SOUL IN GRIEF, C. S. Lewis's A GRIEF OBSERVED, etc. But they aren't so great at reacquainting us with the crazy, funny, absurd side of the tragic--and that's where this conversationally written book comes in. In it you will meet various characters. The first is the author, whom you might already know through her Saturday Night Live persona and her various performances. You will meet her parents, who bestow upon her the fabulous unasked-for blessing of moving in for a while. You will meet Rita, who needs a wig, and Gus, who eats out a lot. And you will meet Mike, diagnosed with lymphatic cancer around the time that the author is diagnosed with a rarer kind. Incidentally, you will also meet the Pope, the author's favorite person in all the world. Well, not the Pope himself, but one of his books, to which the author had a strong reaction when she picked it up at the bookstore. (Funny thing: I picked up one of his books once and had the same reaction. There must be something about his aura of benevolence that brings that out in people.) At a time when more and more public figures bash parents and ex-lovers in the name of "speaking my truth" ("venting my spleen" would be more accurate), the author has a nice way of writing personably about loved ones and their foibles without demonizing anyone. To those stern folks who don't think that even death can be laughed at, I can only commend the words of Robin Williams: "Joke 'em if they can't take a f---."
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Summary: GOD SAID JULIA IS A TREASURE
Review: I have always been a big fan of Julia Sweeney. When I found out that she had written a book I was pumped to get my hands on it. Finally when I picked up the book and started reading it, I was simply amazed. I could not put the book down. This book is full of emotions. I laughed, cried, sympathized and laughed some more. In this book she shares the hardships of the divorce from her true love,childhood memories,her family,and the main focus was when the news came that her younger brother,Mike,had cancer. She wrote about her family all comming together in a time of greif. I loved the title of her book. When I first heard it was wondering how it fit the book. To my surprize it fit it to a "Tee". Just as she thought her life was panning out "God Said,"Ha".
Rating: 
Summary: Its too bad I didn't
Review: Julia Sweeney had some tough times yes, and I can feel for her. Her message may be good-hearted but...sadly, her delivery is not.
This movie was a true bore for me to watch, and quite annoying as well. A good story it could have been, but she does not know how to present it. Her topics jump from one to the other, and there are many parts of her story that leave me thinking, "What is the purpose of all this?" such as her mother's issue with the Jesus statue. Sure, it was a little humorous but it totally jumped from the train of thinking. By the end of the movie when she tries to summarize the whole thing I just could not feel satisfied her point had come across.
I also have to say this just wasn't that funny to me. This combined with Julia Sweeney's poor ability to tie the different stories together just makes this whole thing plain boring. The laughing from the audience made me wonder if I was missing something until the camera pans back and shows an empty theater...
The whole presentation feels like I'm sitting with my grandmother who likes to talk and tell lengthy stories about topics that could be summarized in five minutes. Like I said, I understand the emotions Julia Sweeney went through...but she could have told us about it better.
Rating: 
Summary: Funny, sad, heart-warming story of loss and survival.
Review: Julia Sweeney manages to do what seems impossible: to find hope and humour in a devastating situation, as she supports her brother's ultimately unsuccessful battle with cancer, then faces her own experience with cancer. This book is witty and frank, and it brought both tears and laughter as I read it. For anyone facing cancer, or struggling to cope with the disease in someone they love, this book will provide a cheering diversion. It's a great "waiting-room" read, too, and should be a staple in every cancer clinic and hospital library.
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Summary: A Funny, Touching, Poignant Book
Review: Julia Sweeney's God Said Ha! is a marvel of a book. The book is about Sweeney's life, and her struggles. One minte it's funny, the next is heartbreaking and touching. The real beauty of the book, and Sweeney's wonderful writing, is that the book can be heartbreaking AND funny at the same time. The book deals with her brother Michael's bout of cancer. He moved in and she took care of him, while maintaining her sucessful career. Then, in a horrib;e twist of fate, Julia learns that she has cervical cancer. The same kind of cancer that claimed the life of Sweeney's SNL peer Gilda Radner. Luckily, Julia survived. The book also touches on her parents, who are told about in a truly hysterical way. How many parents are like this?. The book is a swift read. It's very easy to get into and read in almost one sitting. I actually got to meet Ms. Sweeney on a few ocassions. My family babysat her niece and nephew. She came to my house as well. We were also lucky enough to be invited to the premiere of her 'Pat' movie, as well as a reading from the book by Sweeney herself. She is a sweet, lovely person. This book is sweet as well. A good read. Trust me.
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Summary: Sweet Monologue
Review: Julia Sweeney's one-woman show about the time in her life when both she and her brother were dealing with cancer has been filmed and is now on DVD. GOD SAID, HA! does not hide the fact that Julia Sweeney is performing a one-woman show. She stands on a stage and delivers the monologue as the audience watches and laughs. Julia Sweeney is best known as the asexual character "Pat" from Saturday Night Live. In monologue-mode here, Sweeney is much softer and sweeter than I imagined her to be after watching SNL. She's basically a nice Catholic girl and the stories she tells about her family are engaging and charming. Her manner of delivery is very matter-of-fact and a bit "stagey". But don't be turned off by that. The story she's telling has a payoff, and her message is honest and true. GOD SAID, HA! will not rock your world. But it is a slice of Julia Sweeney's life - both comedic and sad.
Rating:
Summary: Sweet Monologue
Review: Julia Sweeney's one-woman show about the time in her life when both she and her brother were dealing with cancer has been filmed and is now on DVD. GOD SAID, HA! does not hide the fact that Julia Sweeney is performing a one-woman show. She stands on a stage and delivers the monologue as the audience watches and laughs. Julia Sweeney is best known as the asexual character "Pat" from Saturday Night Live. In monologue-mode here, Sweeney is much softer and sweeter than I imagined her to be after watching SNL. She's basically a nice Catholic girl and the stories she tells about her family are engaging and charming. Her manner of delivery is very matter-of-fact and a bit "stagey". But don't be turned off by that. The story she's telling has a payoff, and her message is honest and true. GOD SAID, HA! will not rock your world. But it is a slice of Julia Sweeney's life - both comedic and sad.
Rating: 
Summary: Monology down Pat!
Review: Most people are more aware of Julia Sweeney as an alumnus of "Saturday Night Live" rather than as an NPR contributor ("This American Life"). Sweeney has emerged as a smartly funny and engaging monologist during her NPR stint; quite a contrast to the goofy comic TV characters she is best known for. I guess what I'm trying to say is, if you're puzzled by the term "monologist", or you're expecting this to be a sequel to "It's Pat!", well--then you've probably never heard of Spaulding Gray! "God Said Ha!" is, in fact, quite reminiscent of Spaulding Gray's "Gray's Anatomy"; both monologues are based on the trials and tribulations involved with serious illness, either your own or that of someone very close to you. Sweeney manages to keep the humor and the sentiment nicely balanced, so you'll find yourself "laughing through the tears", as they say. No car crashes or hot sex, but plenty of the comedy and drama of of our everyday lives!
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Summary: Loved the stage show, had to get the book
Review: Since I've had cancer, lots of people give me books on the topic. It's not often I actually read one all the way through, and the only one I really LOVED was "Bald in the Land of Big Hair" by Joni Rodgers, because it's really hilarious and not about cancer so much as it's about the rollercoaster of life. This book is a close second to "Bald" -- funny and able to be really cool about life and death issues. I couldn't stand that Pat skit on SNL, but Julia is a wonderful writer!
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