How I Got Cultured: A Nevada Memoir

by Phyllis Barber

Phyllis Barber grew up in Las Vegas, in the midst of a devout Mormon family. As a small child, she began to feel uneasy with her faith's all-pervasive certainty and righteousness. As she grew, the tensions between her religious beliefs and her desire for a larger, more cultured life also grew. She studied piano and dance, performed with a high school precision dance team, worked as an accompanist in a ballet studio and as a model. How I Got Cultured  is a moving, candid, and sometimes hilarious account of an American adolescence, negotiated between the strictures of a demanding faith and the allures of one of the most flamboyant cities in the world.

Genres: Memoir, Mormonism, Nonfiction, Lds

216 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1992

Reviews

[Season Giles]

I can't decide how to rate this. It didn't really evoke much of any emotion. You know how when you sit down next to an old person and they ramble on about their life? That's what this felt like to me.

[Renee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Phyllis Barber, in her 80's now wrote this novel about her childhood life growing up in a Mormon family growing up in rural Boulder City, Nevada and then moving to "another planet called Las Vegas". Most readers loved this book, but I did not.
Phyllis is a good writer, was a gifted pianist, seemed to have lovely parents, an older sister who teased and taunted her, but that said, I found nothing particularly interesting about her life story.

[Samuel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Phyllis Barber recollects her childhood as Phyllis Nelson growing up in Boulder City, Nevada before moving to Las Vegas during her adolescent days. Characteristic of a memoir, she recounts the nostalgia of family Christmases, Church talent shows, and other memorable events when life had a relatively simple framework and outlook. As a Mormon girl, she offers a candid reflection on what that religious culture meant to her experiencing community, maturity, and sexuality. Her straightforward writing style isn't too rigid to preclude momentary poetic yearnings as when she talks to the moon who talks back while she dreams and succeeds in winning a spot as a Rhythmette--a dancer on the prestigious Las Vegas High School dance team. Standing on the edge of Babylon with a comfort of membership in a Stake of Zion, Barber offers an interesting look at the complex reality of yearning to be a part of the larger world while striving to reconcile an upbringing that warns against the slippery slope of such yearning. This memoir has a regular rhythm and style characteristic of the a successful storyteller; Barber's gifts at crafting fiction are on full display as she attempts to record her memories (nonfiction).

[Bridget · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is written by my 2nd cousin (my mom's cousin on her father's side). It is an interesting accounting of being raised in an LDS home and community. Also, how she did not continue on with the LDS faith in her life.

She has keen insights on the roles that my Nana and Grandpa played in the family dynamic. It was an interesting read.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This lovely little memoir is about a Mormon girl coming of age in Las Vegas. Torn between her devout Mormon roots and her own desire for culture and performance, this book is an intimate portrait of a girl straddling two worlds. The prose is captivating, full of wonderful imagery and rich detail. The narrative is gentle and poignant. Highly recommended.

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the beginning and middle of this coming-of-age memoir, but it lost its steam toward the end and I had a difficult time knowing what the author's intent or point was...still, it was a good read.

[Kristen Weller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book I read in college about an LDS girl who grew up in Las Vegas Nevada in the 50s or 60s. It is a fun read! There is a great section about the ward talent night...

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Especially interesting because I know the author.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A riveting coming-of-age memoir. Relatable on many levels.

[Natalia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Phyllis's poetic style of writing in this coming of age memoir about growing up in Nevada.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good growing-up tale of a girl in Nevada in the 60s or thereabouts.