



Dirtbag Queen
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4.1 • 9 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
In this "utterly unhinged, hilarious" memoir, a son pays tribute to his larger than life 'zaftig good time gal' mother and his unusual childhood (Jenny Lawson, New York Times bestselling author).
“Because she was my mother, the death of zaftig good-time gal Renay Corren is newsworthy to me, and I treat it with the same respect and reverence she had for, well, nothing. A more disrespectful, trash talking woman was not to be found.”
So began Andy Corren's unforgettable obituary for his mother, Renay Mandel Corren, a tribute that went on to touch the hearts of millions around the globe. In his brief telling of the life and legend that was Renay, a “loud, filthy‑minded (and filthy‑mouthed) Jewish lady redneck who birthed six kids,” Andy captured only a slice of his loving and fabulously unconventional mother.
In this uproariously funny, deeply moving family portrait, readers meet the rest of his absurd clan: his brothers, affectionately nicknamed Asshole, Twin, and Rabbi; his one-eyed pirate queen of a sister, Cathy Sue; and then there’s Bonus, who Andy isn’t aware of until later in life since this mysterious oldest brother grew up at the Green Valley School for Emotionally Disturbed and Delinquent Children.
A story of love and forgiveness, as well as a celebration of a woman who was “great at dyeing her red roots, weekly manicures, filthy jokes, pier fishing, rolling joints and buying dirty magazines," Dirtbag Queen is an entertaining and poignant portrayal of the complex and heartfelt humanity that unites us all—especially family.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Playwright and actor Corren expands on his viral obituary of his mother, Renay Corren (1937–2021), in his wild and occasionally hilarious debut. Renay raised Corren and his four siblings on her own in Fayetteville, N.C., in an environment straight out of a John Waters movie: Corren and his brothers had nicknames like "Jewboy" and "Asshole," and Renay often gambled or sold marijuana to keep everyone fed. When she came up short, Corren and his brothers stole food from wherever they could. Folded into Corren's affectionate, off-color portrait of Renay—"a brilliant, beautiful, fat, horny, fertile, disrespectful, disobedient, book-obsessed gambling redhead who didn't give two caramelized figs for society's expectations"—is a tender account of his own coming-of-age, including his early discovery that he was gay while watching Donny Osmond on Donny & Marie. Given that Fayetteville was "a small, Southern town with very few gay safe spaces," Corren made several attempts to move away, only to be drawn back into Renay's orbit. Corren's ribald sense of humor won't be for everyone, but readers who go along for the ride will be moved to learn how his family endured significant hardships by sticking together. It's a unique and memorable romp.