Shy

The Alarmingly Outspoken Memoirs of Mary Rodgers

By: Mary Rodgers, Jesse Green

Narrated by: Christine Baranski, Jesse Green

Length: 15 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

The memoirs of Mary Rodgers―writer, composer, Broadway royalty, and “a woman who tried everything.”

“What am I, bologna?” Mary Rodgers (1931-2014) often said. She was referring to being stuck in the middle of a talent sandwich: the daughter of one composer and the mother of another. And not just any composers. Her father was Richard Rodgers, perhaps the greatest American melodist; her son, Adam Guettel, a worthy successor. What that leaves out is Mary herself, also a composer, whose musical Once Upon a Mattress remains one of the rare revivable Broadway hits written by a woman.

Shy is the story of how it all happened: how Mary grew from an angry child, constrained by privilege and a parent’s overwhelming gift, to become not just a theater figure in her own right but also a renowned author of books for young readers (including the classic Freaky Friday) and, in a final grand turn, a doyenne of philanthropy and the chairman of the Juilliard School.

But in telling these stories―with copious annotations, contradictions, and interruptions from Jesse Green, the chief theater critic of The New York Times―Shy also tells another, about a woman liberating herself from disapproving parents and pervasive sexism to find art and romance on her own terms. Whether writing for Judy Holliday or Rin Tin Tin, dating Hal Prince or falling for Stephen Sondheim over a game of chess at thirteen, Rodgers grabbed every chance possible―and then some.

Both an eyewitness report from the golden age of American musical theater and a tale of a woman striving for a meaningful life, Shy is, above all, a chance to sit at the feet of the kind of woman they don’t make anymore―and never did. They make themselves.

©2023 Mary Rodgers,Jesse Green (P)2023 Spiegel & Grau by Spotify Audiobooks

Wonderful sauciness

This book is a unique combination of autobiography & interview. Mary was the daughter of Richard Rogers of Rogers & Hammerstein fame who was an accomplished musical author herself. You get facts about her father’s productions along with juicy sharp gossip about the era delivered by barbed tartness by Christine Baranski. I can not recommend this book enough for theatre lovers.

Insightful…a delightful cut to the chase.

Clever, interesting and honest to a fault, what a legacy Mary Rogers has left for those who value a life in the arts.

Baranski is a marvelous narrator.

Christine Baranski is perfection. Mary’s story is hilarious, heartbreaking, and admirable. One of the wittiest biographies I’ve “read.”

Worth the wait!

From the second the book came out I’ve been checking and checking and checking and checking for the audio version. I finally gave up. And then, all of a sudden, here it is. Worth the wait and the time. What a fantastic broad was Mary Rodgers Guettel. Drink it in.

Great Listen-To!

Christine Baranski does a great job of making Mary Rodgers come to life. Jesse Green did a wonderful job of interjecting explanations as needed, and at the end, I could have cried, as I felt I lost someone I had known. Very well done!

A Fun, Behind-the-Scenes Treat for Broadway Fans

If you can sing along with original cast albums from the Golden Age of Broadway, then this book is for you. Christine Baranski makes Mary Rodgers' wit, wisdom, and wisecracks come alive, and she perfects a snarky tone that is more delectable than depressing.

Christine Baranski is Amazing as Mary Rodgers

I found this excellent audiobook easier to follow than the original book. Jesse Green’s footnotes fit in easier in the audio format (especially since in the actual book they weren’t always on the same page as the passage being footnoted). Also, Baranski’s pitch perfect performance allows one to go with the flow of rather than trying to decipher the timeline of every digression—which tripped me up with the hardback.

Brilliant!

An absolutely beautiful, wonderful, and exciting journey! What an incredible life Mary lived. Highly recommend it.

full of fun and energy

Great story, awesome narration. You don't need to be a theatre expert to enjoy this.

Not Since Auntie Mame and Oscar Wilde

Bursting with the dry urbane wit of Fraiser, Auntie Mame, the comedic works of Joe Keenan and Oscar Wilde arrives one Mrs. Mary Rodgers Guettel as exquisitely interpreted by Christine Baranski and Jesse Green. This book is a nonstop delight of wordplay and delicious anecdotes. Honest to a fault but humble too, this biography/memoir is a triumph. And truly a necessary one to complete the picture of Broadway’s Golden Age. Buy this.