YaYa’s Big Black Purse

Erma Bombeck once said, “When humor goes, there goes civilization.” Tassie Kalas’s comedic memoir, YaYa’s(Grandmother’s) Big Black Purse, provides hilarious, spontaneous glimpses into her extended Greek family’s attempts to navigate modern life in a big Texas city. Kalas writes, “I never questioned who I was or where I came from. Greekness oozed out of my pores like extra-virgin olive oil.” This came largely as a result of her family’s traditional customs and her father’s insistence that, although in America, his daughters must carry on traditional roles, date, and marry Greek men. The priceless vignettes presented in each chapter contain cultural references to songs, fashions, food, cars, word plays, and figures of speech that take the reader back to earlier, recognizable moments in time. Each section is accompanied by simple pencil sketches guaranteed to endear readers to the situation being described.

In one, after divorcing her non-Greek first husband, and conceding that perhaps her father had been right all along about the wonders of finding a Greek mate, the author finds out about Greekfriends.com. After some email exchanges back and forth, she agrees to meet someone for a date. Upon entering the Olive Garden restaurant, she fantasizes about the possibilities. “I searched the crowd for a Greek version of Sam Elliot…(when) my gaze settled on an unassuming man of medium height with dark hair standing alone by a potted plant…The only things visibly strong about him were his black, bushy eyebrows, two caterpillars mating on his face. Clearly my hairy godmother misunderstood my request.”

In one of my favorite scenes, a shedding, energetic, and very hairy dog wreaks havoc on a family gathering. Guests compliment the parmesan cheese and coconut frosting that, unbeknownst to them, is actually canine fur cast-offs that have settled from the air upon the food! This scenario is as outrageous as it is funny.

In another, the author describes the scene when, signed up by a friend for a Bikram hot yoga class, she enters and reports: “Through the steam I could see women the size of asparagus spears wilting from the heat.”

In this easy to read, straight forward, first person account, Kalas bares her soul to usher her readers through private moments of marriage, divorce, child rearing, and onward in the march to middle age. She does so with a force of courage, strength, humor, and an undeniable love for family and her Greek heritage. YaYa’s Big Black Purse might stand as a metaphor for keeping all that we need to navigate this world close—and as Kalas points out, this includes one’s heritage, family, and friends. The writing, while revealing an amazing gift for the comedic, feels nostalgic and warm in tone at the same time—a loving mother’s fondness for life and all that comes with it gently rolls out with the laughter, page after page.

I highly recommend this book to readers, especially women readers, who enjoy taking a look at life with a laugh in their hearts and a smile on their faces, and also for those who believe that laughter is the best medicine.