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Book Reviews of A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana

A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana
A Girl Named Zippy Growing Up Small in Mooreland Indiana
Author: Haven Kimmel
ISBN-13: 9780767915052
ISBN-10: 0767915054
Publication Date: 2002
Pages: 282
Rating:
  • Currently 3.8/5 Stars.
 539
3.8 stars, based on 539 ratings
Publisher: Broadway
Book Type: Paperback
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

156 Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

 bananapancakes avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 95 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 14
A really great tale of growing up in a very small town where everyone knows your business and your home phone number. Zippy is not your average little girl. She is spunky, gutsy, and imaginative. This author has such a funny sense of humor that this book just chugs along and suddenly you're finished with it and it's over. I really enjoyed her outlook on life as a child. If you are looking for a "feel-good" memoir, this one, I promise, delivers. Highly recommended.
DLThompson avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 2 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 12
This was a book I bought for a book club read. It is a sweet narrative about "growing up small in Mooreland, Indiana." Because each chapter is its own little story, it was an easy book to pick up and put back down again without feeling like I was leaving the characters hanging in suspense. Or to look at it from another angle, it wasn't one of those books that I just couldn't put down. In all though, it was a lighthearted enjoyable read, and one that had me laughing at times until I cried.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 25 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 11
Laugh out loud book. As comfortable as a pair of fuzzy socks. This is a wonderful little memoir of growing up in a small town in the late 60's/early 70s. I loved it.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 9 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 7
This book is a must-read, especially for anyone who spent his/her youth in a small, midwestern town. While Zippy's life is not like anyone's I've known, her stories and predicaments just took me back to my own youth in the late '70s, early '80s. This book is truly a gem and worth savoring!
ceylang avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 112 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 7
This is a story told by Zippy, a child surrounded by a loving family, quirky neighbors, and lots of animals. The story telling is hysterically funny, witty, and includes great storytelling. Zippy was a bit of a pest, she was sly, and always seemed to get her way. She was srious, and sweet, and tried to do good. Hysterical! Great book.
Minehava avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 832 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
I found the book sad with an undercurrent of bitterness. Here was a dysfunctional family with a father who drank too much, gambled away his wife's engagement and wedding rings and evidently keeps his family in a state of poverty and a mother who appears chronically depressed and traumatizes a little girl by seriously telling her that she was not theirs but gotten from the gypsies. The child herself was resilient and is obviously able to laugh at the events and trials of her childhood, but I found them sad rather than funny. The book was depressing, with very little true humor.
I have read about baby pigs being thrown to dogs, horses dying from eating barbed wire fence, rabbits being hatcheted, a chicken being eaten by a dog, dogs dying painful deaths in a number of horrendous ways, and a woman who, after death, was nibbled on by her pet cats. I have heard about the dirty, retarded, dysfunctional people of this town. Everyone appears to be either fat or filthy. I can find no redeeming value in this book. I cannot imagine finding anything funny about this book, unless one has such low self-esteem, that they enjoy laughing about people more decadent than themselves. Sorry, but pass on this one!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 91 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
Nostalgic and funny look at a young girl growing up in small town America in the 1960's.
L avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Helpful Score: 3
I loved this book! Haven Kimmel has a wonderful "voice" for storytelling. If you grew up in a small town, particularly in the Midwest, you will probably enjoy this book.
stacy270 avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 30 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
I grew up in the northeast and was born in 1971 but I could totally relate to Zippy! Especially with her thoughts about church and such.I pretty much read the book straight through because I didn't want to put it down and I LOVED the pictures! Brought back alot of great childhood memories! And the ending was perfect!
bookaddict avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Helpful Score: 2
Entertaining but not exceptional.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 11 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
A very engaging, funny book. Haven Kimmel was born in 1965 in Mooreland, Ind. She was nicknamed Zippy for the way she would run aroound the house. A memoir told in a witty way and lovingly.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Helpful Score: 2
One of my favorite books! Haven Kimmel captures that time and place perfectly, in a realistic, yet hilarious way. I grew up in the same era, similar social class and could really relate to a lot of references. I loved that aspect of it, but the authors gift for turns of phrases and comedic writing were what made the book for me. She can also present poignant moments in a way that isn't too corny or maudlin. It's one of those books that I can go to when I'm feeling glum, and it will be an immediate pick me up! I don't know how many times I've re-read it! If you enjoy stories of simpler times (and a good laugh) you must read!
BookwormMary avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Helpful Score: 2
I guess the author is trying to tell about her childhood as if she were still a child, speaking directly to you. I gave up after 40 pages. It seemed disjointed and rambling to me.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 168 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I absolutely loved this book. So much I own two copies. I plan to read it again and again (the second copy is to lend to friends - I wouldn't lend it out if I only had one copy). I laughed out loud as I read it.
I have seen this book described as "funny, insane, clever" and I wholeheartedly agree.
One of my favorite quotes from the book: "Mother always said she was a size 7 woman she kept wrapped in fat to prevent bruising."
OR this one: "...she waited until she and my grandfather Anthel were just home from their honeymoon, and then sat him down and told him this: "Honey, I know you like to take a drink, and that's all right, but be forewarned that I ain't your maid and I ain't your punching bag, and if you ever raise your hand to me you'd best kill me. Because otherwise I'll wait until you're asleep; sew you into the bed; and beat you to death with a frying pan." Until he died, I am told, my grandfather was a gentle man."
There is lots of wry humor and crazy insights only a child could have.
Chicaroo avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 17 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I first checked out this book from our local library. It reminded me so much of my own childhood in Indiana, that I felt I had to share it with my older sister. So I purchased the book and mailed it to my sister so she could also share the experience . If you grew up in a small midwestern town during the 50's or 60's this book will probably reflect a lot of your own experiences. All in all just a great walk down memory lane!
Hissy-Fitz avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 19 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Cute book about growing up in a small town in the 50s/60s. Though not a Leave It To Beaver family, there are no abusive parents, no disturbing memories, no real adversity to overcome in this book - just an entertaining look back to the author's childhood.

If you enjoyed The Liar's Club, Cherry, etc you will like Zippy.
AZmom875 avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 624 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Wow! Even my husband read a chapter and laughed out loud. She starts out with a bang and just keeps you entertained til the end. Nothing rough or raunchy, just great fun, quirky memories. I hope her other books are just as good.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 26 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
This is positively one of my favorite books. The author does an incredible job with wit, humor, and captures this perfectly. Order it, read it and love it!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Helpful Score: 1
I love babies and was drawn to the book through the cover. The story is just as sweet as this baby looks! This memoir was a refreshing change from other memoirs I've read which tend to be depressing stories of dsyfunctional families. I kept waiting for Zippy to fall into drugs or be abused by a family member or a plethera of other unsavory things but it never happened. This is simply the story of a sweet, happy , normal childhood within a fully functioning family! Great book :o)
Page5 avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Helpful Score: 1
This book was okay. Some stories were charming and occasionally funny but just as many stories were not interesting at all. Haven Kimmel is not much older than I am and I also grew up in a small town in the midwest so I thought I would relate more to her story. I also did not like that the stories were not in chronological order. It threw off my perspective a few times when she back and forth in time without prefacing it.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 8 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Loved this book, easy and fun to read.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 65 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
An interesting read, by turns funny and sad.
Ladyslott avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 113 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
A Girl Named Zippy is a wonderful and poignant memoir. It's quite obvious that Haven Kimmel came from a family with it's fair share of problems and hardships, but this memoir is not a pity fest but a loving and glowing story of growing up poor in the Midwest.

Called Zippy because of her speed in getting around, Haven is a young girl with a wonderfully skewed view of the world. How Kimmel was able to tell this story all through a child's eyes and voice is remarkable. In today's world I have no doubt that she would be labeled ADHD, and probably medicated, but back then she was just a rambunctious child. I am about 10 years older than Kimmel, but so many of her observations reminded me of my own family and growing up relatively poor in the late '50's early '60's. Her story of being told she was adopted (by her older siblings of course) was laugh out loud funny and reminded me of that same cruel story we told my younger brother. Everything in this book rang true and I loved her memories and the fact that there was no finger pointing. She was an obviously loved child and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book so much that I have already bought the sequel, She Got Up Off the Couch. I can't wait to get to it.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 60 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Lot of hype...not much substance.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Helpful Score: 1
This story was witty and cleverly written, I actually read it twice since it was so humorous. It's similar to Crystal Castles, without the gloom. Great book!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 35 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I enjoyed reading this Memoir. It's nice to be able to read something a bit different. It also brought back some nostailga from my own childhood.
Bookfanatic avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Helpful Score: 1
It took to me several tries to get through this book but I finally got through it. It's funny in parts. Poignant in others. And some parts were just not as interesting to me. Some anecdotes in the book are better written than others. The author doesn't write in chronological order. Some things are told out of order. She goes back and forth according to what the chapter is about.

This gives you a snapshot of a time in middle America when you could leave your doors unlocked when you went somewhere, when kids didn't sass back to adults, and when iPhones, computers, internet, cable television, video games, were unheard of. I have to admit that after I finished reading the book, I was glad I live in a city and in this decade.
vanessav avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 13 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Very cute, funny semi-memoir. Loved it from beginning to end.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 65 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
This is a very cute and funny book full of anecdotes about the author's experience of being raised in a small town in Indiana. The chapters are very short and it reads like a book of short stories instead of a novel, which is nice. It's very easy to get into and enjoy!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 12 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
On the mark about how a kid thinks about things.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 30 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Fun read! Growing up in the 60's like Zippy this book brought back many memories.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 81 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Wonderfully funny memoir. I especially liked Zippy's relationship with her father.
Susanaque avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 422 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Haven Kimmel was born in Mooreland, Indiana in 1965. The town has 300 people in it. Nicknamed Zippy for the way she would bolt around the house. She was a small girl with big eyes and even bigger ears. In this funny way, Kimmel tells storys about small town America. Loaded with fine story telling, sharp wit, dead on observations, and moments of sheer joy. Her stright shooting portraint od her childhood gives us a heroine whos is wonderfully sweet ans sly as she navigates the quirky adult world that surrounds Zippy.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 15 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Cute story, enough to keep you reading but nothing spectacular, going to check out the next book to this one.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 94 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
One of the funniest, sweetest literary memoirs I've ever read, and that's my favorite genre.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 158 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I found the beginning of this memoir rather dull, but by 50 pages in I was hooked. I laughed out loud in several places. It is refreshing to read an autobio of a happy (if imperfect) childhood.
mjowest avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 237 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
This is now my favorite book of 2014. Being a child of the 60s and 70s, semi small town this book was a pain ful and fun reminder of what life was like back then-
Great details, humor, an unapologetic family, I want to be Zippy's friend! Looking forward to reading the second book by Haven. Thank you for sharing your life, Haven- you made my week reading it, and my life in general more enjoyable by sharing it!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
This was a very werid book. Not my style
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 15 more book reviews
This is a very well written and interesting memoir. For me, a real page turner. I really admire someone who can make small town life so enjoyable to read about.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 7 more book reviews
If you grew up in a small midwestern town in the late 60's, this is a must read.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 56 more book reviews
HILLARIOUSLY funny in the same vein as Laurie Notaro. Life in a small town as seen through the eyes of a funny little girl. NOTHING is safe.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 39 more book reviews
Interesting... a very quick read, never boring!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Great story, brought back memories from my own childhood that I had forgotten.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 16 more book reviews
Sweet, funny, sad, hard to put down.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 39 more book reviews
Really good book. Much better than I expected
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 28 more book reviews
I really enjoyed this book. Nice light read
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 17 more book reviews
I picked this book up on a whim and it is hilarious. Great fast fun read
Bernie avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
From Library Journal
In this first book, Kimmel has written a love letter to her hometown of Mooreland, IN, a town with an unchanging population of 300 in America's heartland. Nicknamed "Zippy" for her energetic interpretation of a circus monkey, she could not be bothered to speak until she was three years old, and her first words involved bargaining with her father about whether or not a baby bottle was still appropriate. Born in 1965, Zippy lived in a world filled with a loving family, peculiar neighbors, and multitudes of animals, including a chicken she loved and treated like a baby. Her story is filled with good humor, fine storytelling, and acute observations of small town life.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 4 more book reviews
Very amusing and highly touching. A quick and enjoyable read.
5ducksfans avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 92 more book reviews
Sweet, charming, simple, funny, and honest. This book is the culinary equivalent of "comfort food." Kimmel's style of writing is so easily accessible without being dumbed-down. No drama, no whining. Just a wonderful memoir of life.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 13 more book reviews
Good, but slow going at times.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 57 more book reviews
This book is a riot, I'm going to keep my eyes wide open for more books from her!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 224 more book reviews
I thought this was interesting, not as great as some people thought but not bad.
christinaholly avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 27 more book reviews
It took me a few stories to get into this book, but once I did, I couldn't put it down. It kept me cracking up until I finished it. A hilarious memoir of a happy childhood.
mssheenaann avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 107 more book reviews
This book was overall a good read. It took me about 60 pages to actually get into it and it was interesting enough after that. I did find her neighbors and the the other people in her town amusing especially Edythe, and loved how her and Zippy were always going at it. I also loved the part where Zippy cuts the hippie's hair and then trades her hair cutting services for a dog for her Dad. Then the dog and her Dad were inseparable for years... how cute! The name Zippy fits the author perfectly based on her personality through out the book!

http://sheenathebookgeek.blogspot.com/
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 11 more book reviews
The book was kind of all over the place. It was hard to tell about what period of life she was describing and then she would skip to a memory from another time. Overall it was an entertaining read though.
rxtech avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 5 more book reviews
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The author has a wonderful way of writing that made me laugh out loud so many times. Even out in public places when I would be reading, I couldn't help but laugh out loud. I just didn't want to put it down because I couldn't wait to see what the little gal was going to do next. Being a parent, I could totally relate to some of the things Zippy did growing up. Her parents were probably white headed at a very early age!! I loved it and would definately read it again.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 72 more book reviews
I loved this book! It was warm and funny. Love her writing style and her perspective on life.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 3 more book reviews
This book was both hilarious and tragic! Written extremely well, I often laughed until I was in tears. I will not be posting this book for swapping anytime soon as I have several friends in line to borrow it!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 5 more book reviews
In a word --- DELIGHTFUL!!!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 13 more book reviews
Cute story of a girl growing up in a small town. Funny and touching. A fast read.
slrinvt avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 8 more book reviews
Zippy reminds me of Ramona Quimby. Her voice is so matter-of-fact and blunt. This book is a collection of short stories, not unlike a David Sedaris novel. The book also flashes back and forth between Zippy as a child and as an adult. These are important things to remember to really enjoy this book. There are many observations that can be made about Zippy's family growing up that she didn't make as a child. It takes some reading between the lines. I would definitely recommend it as a fast, light-hearted read.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 79 more book reviews
This was the first true life story that I've read and it was really good! Kimmel is extremely funny and knows that we don't want another boring biography.
wherearemyglasses avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 3 more book reviews
Easily one of my favorite books. It is written with such honesty and it will take you back to a simplier generation. If you grew up in the 60's and 70's it will warm your heart and make you laugh out loud. Even if you didn't grow up then it will make you remember childhood and smile. The writing just flows off the page and it is a enjoyable easy read. I recommend it highly.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 84 more book reviews
I absolutely loved this book. I grew up in the same time frame as "Zippy" and she brought back so many memories. Even though I was a child of the suburbs of Los Angeles and she grew up in a small town we shared so many experiences. It was like reading through my own scrapbook. I would recommend this to everybody, it is a fast enjoyable read that will transport you to an simpler time.
Readnmachine avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 1477 more book reviews
Engaging memoir about growing up in a small Indiana town in the late 1960s. Kimmel does a wonderful job of keeping the book's voice that of her younger self, yet manages to allude to things she wasn't aware of as a child. The small-town characters are wonderfully drawn.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 8 more book reviews
Loved reading this book - it is laugh out loud funny while not glossing over the reality of a far from perfect childhood. It's just so nice to read a book that makes you smile about those times in childhood that you thought you would rather forget.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 24 more book reviews
it was a great book, just not what i was expecting.
surfwidow avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 36 more book reviews
I'm 3 years younger than Zippy so I can relate to many of the childhood experiences she had, except I lived in the suburbs, she in the country. My mom never knew where I was either and it wasn't a big deal. Those were innocent times growing up in the 70s! Kimmel recalls it all in a funny, refreshing writing style.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 26 more book reviews
Wondrfully delightful coming of age tale from the eyes of a little girl her father calls Zippy. I found my self laughing out loud at times and quietly sad at others. Would recommend to all, Kimmel has a way with words, not to be missed!
sari-lynn avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 207 more book reviews
A memoir of a quirky small-town girlhood told in two dozen or so vignettes. Poignant and laugh-out-loud funny in places.
c-squared avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 181 more book reviews
This book alternates between absolutely hilarious and decidedly uncomfortable. It's a good, fun, quick read that I breezed through in two days. The characters are quirky and larger than life, the situations often ridiculous, but all supposedly true, or at least true in the writer's memory.

One thing really bugged me: the misleading subtitle. I interpreted "growing up small" to mean that Zippy/Haven was a little person, but actually she is normal sized and makes several references to being in the back row of pictures because she was among the tallest of her peers.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 275 more book reviews
This book was laugh out loud funny and paints a wonderful portrait of a childhood in a simpler time. It was very enjoyable.
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It's a cliche to say that a good memoir reads like a well-crafted work of fiction, but Kimmel's smooth, impeccably humorous prose evokes her childhood as vividly as any novel. Born in 1965, she grew up in Mooreland, Ind., a place that by some "mysterious and powerful mathematical principle" perpetually retains a population of 300, a place where there's no point learning the street names because it's just as easy to say, "We live at the four-way stop sign." Hers is less a formal autobiography than a collection of vignettes comprising the things a small child would remember: sick birds, a new bike, reading comics at the drugstore, the mean old lady down the street. The truths of childhood are rendered in lush yet simple prose; here's Zippy describing a friend who hates wearing girls' clothes: "Julie in a dress was like the rest of us in quicksand." Over and over, we encounter pearls of third-grade wisdom revealed in a child's assured voice: "There are a finite number of times one can safely climb the same tree in a single day"; or, regarding Jesus, "Everyone around me was flat-out in love with him, and who wouldn't be? He was good with animals, he loved his mother, and he wasn't afraid of blind people."
Forecast: Dreamy and comforting, spiced with flashes of wit, this book seems a natural for readers of the Oprah school of women's fiction (e.g., Elizabeth Berg, Janet Fitch). The startling baby photograph on the cover should catch browsers' eyes.
VeronicaNagy avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 48 more book reviews
This is a very entertaining book, you will laugh a lot. I really enjoyed it.

Veronica Nagy
Deb avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 38 more book reviews
Just kind of "there", not funny or poignant or really grabbing at all, it was not a bad book but not one of my favorites.
MsScarlett avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 19 more book reviews
This was surprisingly good!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Cute story. Like a real-life version of Ramona Quimby.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 3 more book reviews
This book has received rave reviews--and I must add my own. Very enjoyable.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 119 more book reviews
Enjoyed this book alot. Filled with stories of "Zippy" growing up in a small town. I laughed alot over these stories.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 67 more book reviews
Book was a good read, I must have laughed a half a dozen times thru the book, the writer has a way with words!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 69 more book reviews
I love memoirs of every day people. (Celebrity ones tend to fill me with a mix of envy and boredom.) Zippy is lots of fun and a great peek into what should be a white bread world.

Kimmel does a great job capturing her childhood in the early 70s in Mooreland, Indiana, population: 300. I was expecting a look back at how simple things were in the good ole days. What I got was a crazy town filled with crazy, scary, fun, and loving people and a little girl who seems to be destined to make sure no one around her is bored.

Kimmel's childhood is anything but ordinary. I found myself howling with laughter for many memories. I'd try to read passages out loud to my husband, but I'd be cracking up too hard to make any sense. (There's also a few teary moments, and some beautiful examples of how much love a family has.)

Kimmel does an amazing job capturing the innocence of a little girl, but writes her story with a wry, very adult slant. It makes for a great read.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 102 more book reviews
I loved this book!
Twintoni avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 133 more book reviews
An amusing story about growing up in a small town. Enjoyed reading this book very much.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 4 more book reviews
Kimmel's stories really brought me back to my childhood growing up in the 70s. Her memories are so vivid, hilarious, and heart-warming (especially the final story). I just loved it!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 20 more book reviews
Thoroughly enjoyable, heartwarming, lighthearted, fun to read.
maurac23 avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
excellent funny read especially for those who like memoirs!
ilovedale3 avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 524 more book reviews
Wonderfully sweet and funny book about the author's childhood during the 1970's. Many of Zippy's stories sound so much like my childhood! Very enjoyable to read.
hallelujaheart avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 96 more book reviews
What an enjoyable, fun and fresh style of writing!
tchstroo avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 74 more book reviews
An unusual book. I enjoyed it very much.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 28 more book reviews
A great story of a rural childhood.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Very enjoyable - I could visualize so much of it.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 412 more book reviews
This is a delightful memoir! It's hard to believe that this is the same author who wrote "The Solace of Leaving Early" which I also loved. While this memoir is a humorous, breezy piece, her novel had a whole different feel to it; much density and sorrow in its content. Both are great reads and highly recommended!
wymxmom avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 45 more book reviews
Wonderful! I found myself laughing out loud.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 9 more book reviews
I loved this book! Very entertaining!
IndianaSusan avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 6 more book reviews
A great book. Very witty and funny. I liked it a lot too because I grew up in Indiana!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 112 more book reviews
Laugh Out Loud! Great Voice! Couldn't Put it Down!
marcym avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 159 more book reviews
Wow! Mysteries are my typical genre, so I was surprised that I not only read this memoir, but loved it! So many things reminded me of my childhood that I was entranced from the first chapter. Bikes, dogs, friends, and the innocence of childhood that you just don't see these days will keep you turning the pages.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 3 more book reviews
Amusing book. Quick read!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 6 more book reviews
A humorous and poignant memoir from an author with a wonderful writing style.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 11 more book reviews
This is a wonderful book.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 26 more book reviews
Cute book, that was fun to read especially if you grew up in the 50"s or 60's.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 20 more book reviews
Wonderful recollections told in a both witty and poignant manner.... the last chapter, "The Letter," was a perfect way to end the memoir.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 17 more book reviews
Charming, wry, really brings back the memories of a 70s childhood!
deeda avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 4 more book reviews
I waited to read this book, but shouldn't have. It was touching and funny at the same time.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 115 more book reviews
A very interesting, well-written book.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 17 more book reviews
A funny story of growing up in a small town
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 97 more book reviews
such a heart felt story!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 25 more book reviews
I wish I could remember my childhood with such charming detail...book makes you wish you were Zippy's next door neighbor.
fogcityite avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 16 more book reviews
Starting out as a roll-on-the-ground funny book, Kimmel seems to lose steam about 2/3 of the way through. Too bad; the beginning is well worth the read, but I gave up caring about any of the people long before the end.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 323 more book reviews
Very funny, entertaining.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 54 more book reviews
A very good book. A good book for all ages. Great non-fiction
laura2009 avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 4 more book reviews
Haven Kimmel has a great sense of humor and a great eye for the right detail. This is a book about family life in a small town in the mid-60s/early 1970s. Some of the stories are funny and some are more serious, but it all seems true to the time period. If you're looking for the next "Running with Scissors", you may find this too gentle, but I loved it.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 176 more book reviews
When Haven Kimmel was born in 1965, Mooreland, Indiana, was a sleepy little hamlet of three hundred people. Nicknamed "Zippy" for the way she would bolt around the house, this small girl was possessed of big eyes and even bigger ears. In this witty and lovingly told memoir, Kimmel takes readers back to a time when small-town America was caught in the amber of the innocent postwar periodpeople helped their neighbors, went to church on Sunday, and kept barnyard animals in their backyards.
Laced with fine storytelling, sharp wit, dead-on observations, and moments of sheer joy, Haven Kimmel's straight-shooting portrait of her childhood gives us a heroine who is wonderfully sweet and sly as she navigates the quirky adult world that surrounds Zippy.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 3 more book reviews
I really liked it. My bookclub and I enjoyed it.This book is about a girl growing up in the 50 with a funny family.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 3 more book reviews
Amusing and fun read.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 337 more book reviews
A heartwarming look into the life of a small girl in Indiana in the sixties and early seventies. Does that make you think dolls, starched dresses, bike riding and cornfields? Well, Zippy had a bike but a middle-class well-adjusted little girl she was not. A town troublemaker, left largely to her own devices by a depressed mother, her upbringing is unusual, but her retelling of her story is funny, wry, occasionally warm, and completely memorable.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 28 more book reviews
This was a very enjoyable memoir. Nothing earthshattering occurs, but the book details the both the idiosyncratic and universal elements of the author's family experience. I grew up in a different place but at the same time as Zippy and could definitely share a lot of the memories she recounts.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 23 more book reviews
"Zippy" is absolutely hilarious, charming, and touching. I laughed out loud many times. I finished reading it in about 24 hours, as the book is really more of a series of short childhood vignettes than it is a straight-out biography. And oh...check out the photo on page 192. I hate to admit it, but when I was a teenager, I had the same poster hanging on the wall in my bedroom. I remember part of what it said, which began "Hi, I'm a pet poster..." and with the popularity of pet rocks then, why not a pet poster? ;)
JanetDammit avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 24 more book reviews
I couldn't get into it, but it got rave reviews in the popular press.
porschaine avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 4 more book reviews
Luminous, hilarious, tragic, amazing! Some of the best writing produced recently.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 6 more book reviews
Brings back funny memories of growing up.
jjares avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 3426 more book reviews
This is a nostalgia-laden memoir of a young girl named Zippy. She was born in 1965, in the tiny hamlet of 300 folks in Mooreland, Indiana. Zippy observes that the census stays the same because as many people die as are born in Mooreland, which seems rather considerate of the townsfolk.

I must quickly add that there were some off-putting incidents in the book, particularly about animals. Stapling a rabbit's ears to a barn (you don't want to know what happened next), was not my idea of humor. Yes, this was a different day and time, but I didn't see much humorous about the situation.

I was also unnerved by the tale of Zippy's parents that she was obtained from gypsies, through some artful trading. They never seemed to clarify to Zippy that they were joking, which I presume they were.

Maybe I'm reading too much into the story and I should have just rolled along with the humor but the upshot of this story was to remind me that things were simpler and less PC (politically-correct) then.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
A charming memoir of America in a different time from a woman who was an individual from the moment she was born. Some of the stories she writes will delight you; some will horrify you. But each is told in images that are inspired and with a sweet sense of smartass that will captivate you.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 69 more book reviews
Funny and refreshing!
janhart avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 2 more book reviews
Loved this book - very nostalgic and the author has a wonderful sense of humor. The photographs add to the charm of the book. This book made me want to sit down and write my own childhood story.
Prunella avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 26 more book reviews
WONDERFUL!!!!!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 35 more book reviews
Great book. Funny and real!
SouthWestZippy avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 265 more book reviews
Wonderful book. Great humor with a touch of heartache. Quick easy read.
Conniecabe avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 4 more book reviews
Wonderful book- easy read!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
Enjoyed this book very much. Thought it was a cute, quick read.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 6 more book reviews
Adorable and hilarious!
debs avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 650 more book reviews
delightful book! Loved it!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 59 more book reviews
A great quick read about a real life girl growing up in the 70's.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 14 more book reviews
Adorable book, easy read and very funny.
lloyd avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 33 more book reviews
VERY GOOD BOOK! LOTS OF FUN!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
I have purchased or swapped several copies of this book and her sequel, "She Got Up Off the Couch" to give to friends. Charming, big-hearted, funny, endearing memoir. From one author to another: if Haven Kimmel writes it, I will read it. Maria Garriott www.athousandresurrections.com
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 80 more book reviews
Loved this book! I laughed out loud throughout! It's a hoot!
Lindy
challada avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 27 more book reviews
Excellent book! Great writing! A quick read!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 19 more book reviews
One of the funniest books I've ever read!
joggerjoey avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 8 more book reviews
Very cute easy read. This book also left me wondering what else was happening, the underlaying story.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 4 more book reviews
A sweet story of a girl's childhood in Indiana. Funny experiences (that'll make you laugh aloud), and some sad ones. This books bought my mind back to a simpler time, delightfully simple. A good quick read. Ignore the lame book cover...that had originally turned me off on reading this book. But, it turned out to be a good read.
kristieao avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 33 more book reviews
A Great Light Hearted Novel! A nice change from the more dramatic stories!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 94 more book reviews
I loved this book, but I was born in a small town the same year, so I could relate. Written more in a child's perspective, which I found wonderful.
grammyteach avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 192 more book reviews
memories of small town life
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 22 more book reviews
This was a humourous look at a normal life. I enjoyed it.
wordwytch avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on
I love this book and the sequel. Pick it up if you want a grin.
tamara avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 78 more book reviews
One of the funniest memoirs I've read.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 112 more book reviews
Quick easy read,nostalgic small town America,brings back alot of great memories for me,along with a few good laugh out loud moments!!!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 255 more book reviews
Each chapter can stand on its own as a short story, but they're all interwoven. Read an excerpt at RandomHouse.com.

From Publishers Weekly
It's a cliche to say that a good memoir reads like a well-crafted work of fiction, but Kimmel's smooth, impeccably humorous prose evokes her childhood as vividly as any novel. Born in 1965, she grew up in Mooreland, Ind., a place that by some "mysterious and powerful mathematical principle" perpetually retains a population of 300, a place where there's no point learning the street names because it's just as easy to say, "We live at the four-way stop sign." Hers is less a formal autobiography than a collection of vignettes comprising the things a small child would remember: sick birds, a new bike, reading comics at the drugstore, the mean old lady down the street. The truths of childhood are rendered in lush yet simple prose; here's Zippy describing a friend who hates wearing girls' clothes: "Julie in a dress was like the rest of us in quicksand." Over and over, we encounter pearls of third-grade wisdom revealed in a child's assured voice: "There are a finite number of times one can safely climb the same tree in a single day"; or, regarding Jesus, "Everyone around me was flat-out in love with him, and who wouldn't be? He was good with animals, he loved his mother, and he wasn't afraid of blind people."
Forecast: Dreamy and comforting, spiced with flashes of wit, this book seems a natural for readers of the Oprah school of women's fiction (e.g., Elizabeth Berg, Janet Fitch). The startling baby photograph on the cover should catch browsers' eyes.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 4 more book reviews
Read with my book club, it was a good book about southern life.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 367 more book reviews
When Haven Kimmel was born in 1965, Mooreland, Indiana, was a sleepy little hamlet of three hundred people. Nicknamed "Zippy" for the way she would bolt around the house, this small girl was possessed of big eyes and even bigger ears. In this witty and lovingly told memoir, Kimmel takes readers back to a time when small-town America was caught in the amber of the innocent postwar periodpeople helped their neighbors, went to church on Sunday, and kept barnyard animals in their backyards.

Laced with fine storytelling, sharp wit, dead-on observations, and moments of sheer joy, Haven Kimmel's straight-shooting portrait of her childhood gives us a heroine who is wonderfully sweet and sly as she navigates the quirky adult world that surrounds Zippy.
Mom2EmNAbby avatar reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 49 more book reviews
enjoyable book & quick read, I finished it within a day.
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 94 more book reviews
Excellent writing.
Enjoyed very much
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 6 more book reviews
This is one of the most magical memoirs I've read in a number of years.
I've always believed that reading about someone else's life expands my own.
This grows your heart, soul, and mind.
This is the book I gave to all my favorite readers, one Christmas.
Enjoy!
reviewed A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana on + 6 more book reviews
#1 new york times bestseller

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