I stumbled upon this book at the right time. Not every entry I related to but the majority either knocked some sense into my thought process, dishe3.5
I stumbled upon this book at the right time. Not every entry I related to but the majority either knocked some sense into my thought process, dished out some harsh truth I needed hear, or healed my slowly recuperating heart.
If you have been in a tough place and needing some uplifting as well as someone to speak directly to you and tell you to pull yourself together in a non-offending way—definitely take a chance on this short and sweet little book....more
4 Stars I saw the title and was like 'gimme'. Escaping the 9-5 and avoiding the societal role of wife and mother that all her friends seem to be joining4 Stars I saw the title and was like 'gimme'. Escaping the 9-5 and avoiding the societal role of wife and mother that all her friends seem to be joining, Kristin travels alone to avoid her problems and take life by the balls.
This was incredibly funny and relatable, me being a girl in her early 20's, not wanting children and about to do a big international move in this upcoming year myself, I'm using this book as inspiration. Why is it still stigmatized for a woman to do as she pleases and live a life for herself? So often are we judged for engaging in behaviors that any regular man would be praised for....more
10 Bagillion Stars ARC provided by Simon and Schuster & NG! :)
Let's start with a trigger warning list: Abuse (Child, Physical, and Emotional), Manipulat10 Bagillion Stars ARC provided by Simon and Schuster & NG! :)
As dark and eye-opening as this book is, it is laced with comedic relief and knowledgeable awareness throughout. I grew up watching Jennette on iCarly—phased out around her Sam & Cat days, but I have followed her story personally since she left acting and was briefly aware of her childhood abuse. Reading this memoir has given me a newfound respect for this woman. Jennette deserves the world.
I'm Glad My Mom Died follows the in-depth and graphic life of Jennette from before the entertainment industry and after—all the way to the talks about writing this book. It delves into her family dynamic, her very toxic and abusive relationship with her mother, and every interaction behind the scenes of her struggle. Trying to please her mother and her work, using substances to stay numb, unhealthy routines, and almost never doing anything out of personal want for herself.
Everything is written in the present tense. It feels as though we are right there with Jennette at whatever age she was at that moment. This is incredibly well written and filled to the brim with nuance. As a reader, we really could see how much Jennette grew over the years. She was not well informed about adulthood, a late bloomer but only due to the suffocation and manipulation of her mother. I just kept thinking back to how when I was younger than she was, watching her on my tv screen knowing about things she never knew or experienced until much later in life.
Most of us know her as "Sam Puckett", the butter sock flinging witty wonder obsessed with food. Jennette was, however, obsessed with food in the opposite way. One of her biggest struggles was with food. Learning to count calories and undereat at a very young age which then turned to bulimia later in her young adult years. We take the journey with her in realizing how detrimental this was to her health and every mistake and heartache this caused.
This book is not about her days on Nickelodeon. And if that is something you are looking for, you won't find it here, this book is not that. iCarly, Sam & Cat, her co-stars, and others are mentioned when it is relevant to her struggles and dilemmas.
I am incredibly happy and proud of this woman. She is captivating, funny, and oh so deserving of a happy and painless life. This book is going to be one of my most recommended books....more
3 stars The first half of this was good. Comedic with the humor we find on our socials today. Relatable in the way growing up a cusper of the millennia3 stars The first half of this was good. Comedic with the humor we find on our socials today. Relatable in the way growing up a cusper of the millennial x gen z would understand and find commonalities. The pop culture didn't bother me for once, as most of the time these types of mentions usually diminish a story. The second half dove a little deeper and had darker topics. Sadly, around this area was when it also started to drag and feel a little one-dimensional. I found things I loved and laughed about as well as things that just didn't hit for me. Overall an interesting read.
5 stars "Shakespeare said the eyes are the windows to the soul, but we readers know one's bookshelves reveal just as much."
This was one of the most rel5 stars "Shakespeare said the eyes are the windows to the soul, but we readers know one's bookshelves reveal just as much."
This was one of the most relatable books I have ever read. It's a book about reading books and what it's like/feels to be a bookish-obsessed reader. Bogel talks about and describes so many thoughts, feelings, actions, etc. that I myself as a reader have experienced and it was incredibly exciting. Each person's reading experience and habits are different but it truly is exceptional to know that something you do is a, "What? You too!" kinda moment. Because be as it may, each reader is different— but we have many similarities and commonalities.
"You're in the middle of a great book, but you need to go to work. Or to dinner. Or to bed. You're in the middle of a great book, you forget to eat dinner. You keep reading "just one more chapter" until 2:00 a.m., and you cannot keep your eyes open the next day."...more
Humorous & fun—like having a convo with your best friends! This collection of intimate essays follow4 stars ARC provided by St. Martin's Press & NG
Humorous & fun—like having a convo with your best friends! This collection of intimate essays follows Alyssa's life as she navigates through her career, love, heartbreak, and shortcomings. Shelasky's life has been compared to the fictional life of Carrie Bradshaw—wild and vivacious. Living in New York City to LA to Roma and DC... Alyssa's life is not short of adventures or stories. Throughout all of the accomplishments she made along the way, she was able to complete the one she wanted the most.
This was a very easy and fast read. I found each essay very relatable and moving in soo many ways. Everything touched me, ultimately having many heartbreaking moments as well as heart patching....more
3.5 stars Thank you Atria Books for this ARC! ♥︎ "Hate" is a strong word and as a society, we tend to use it widely for a differing severity of conv3.5 stars Thank you Atria Books for this ARC! ♥︎ "Hate" is a strong word and as a society, we tend to use it widely for a differing severity of conversing. When in actuality, the definition of "hate" is the intense hostility and aversion usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury or extreme dislike or disgust. (Merriam Webster)
As far as the internet goes, not every disagreeing or even threatening comment is derived from hate. Yes, there is a broad range and many can be, but an expanse usually derives from frustration, confusion, misunderstanding, or simply a bad day. Marron takes a chance by diving deep into his HATE FOLDER,—a digitized folder filled with screenshots of comments left from his "haters" or rather disagreers, to find those of which he can engage in a conversational piece delving into many deemed political topics.
This book is refreshing in a way. It's a beautiful work that makes you think about things in ways you never thought you could think about things. A fact that we are all human behind the screens of the ever-so-popular social media. Empathy is a big factor among the many, and just having a conversation rather than deflecting within debates, can do more justice than speaking out to those already agreeing on your part....more
5 EMOTIONAL STARS! “I wanted to be wanted, and I wanted to want more than to be wanted.” I didn't expect to cry, I didn't expect to get emotional, I did5 EMOTIONAL STARS! “I wanted to be wanted, and I wanted to want more than to be wanted.” I didn't expect to cry, I didn't expect to get emotional, I didn't expect to relate soo much and actually feel seen, heard, and understood regarding my own deep, personal struggles in areas I have experienced as well as others I haven't. Tracy Clark-Flory delves into her life and her experiences growing up around the harsh and conflicting messages around sex. How this shaped her, her life, friendships, relationships, opinions, and career. Her fascination routing from anonymous echats to real life experiences, to wanting to be desired, to be "what men want" and how to achieve that all whilst liking it simultaneously. Touching on feminism and attempting to not give a flipping fuck about social construct and the ideal of being a "good girl" rather than a "bad girl". Turning the page to the harshness of evolving in this world & what it throws at you when people disagree with your choices and their entitlement. Her struggles and ultimate come togetherness of starting a family.
“That game of seeing just what men would say to me online had transformed into seeing just what they would do to me in real life.”
This book revealed that it isn't "just you", it's us, all of us. Whether or not you have been in the same scenario, Clark-Flory's feelings are one and the same, perfectly worded to spell out everything I have never been able to express.
“In a fraction of an hour, I had gone from disinterested to silently begging for a crumb of attention.”
The curiosities of the sex world from online, to clubs, to conventions, and porn sets. The intertwining of sex and sexuality in the changing times and use of it in regards to dealing with trauma and inescapable feelings. How trying to figure out herself in the sex world ultimately opened up soo much to be revealed regarding the industry—what is real and what isn't.
“If everything is a copy of a copy, if all of social life is a performance, if sexual scripts are adapted from cultural norms, then does authenticity even exist, or matter?”
As a sex writer the shame and harassment she would receive over her job and her willingness, strength, and vulnerability to be able to write so openly about things so intimate or rather discreet. How this is common just across the board for women.
“Sometimes over the years, I would think: Man, wish I could do that again. But, looking back, I’ll never shake the feeling that I was barely even there to experience it for the first time, like it was a ghost of a girl who did it all for me.”
I was recommended this as an "everyone in their twenties" should read and I would have to agree. But this is a must-read for all women. I can't express exactly how I want my thoughts to come across on how much this has hit me emotionally and made me see things. All I can say is, read this....more
"You can be seen by various people in different ways, and no one person, not even your parents, can reaif i could rate this 10 stars, it would be 10/5
"You can be seen by various people in different ways, and no one person, not even your parents, can really see the whole of who you are. So it's about finding all the different people you can love, and seeing the positivity each of them brings to your life."
This book was a heavy read for me. It brought to the surface many emotions and I entirely felt the depth of them. Eye opening and sometimes mind boggling—I went in reading this wanting to come out on the other side with the tools to be the best possible loving version of myself in every way and I believe that I have. But I've also gained the knowledge that love is very much multilayered—faceted. It is broad and ever flowing and that this life in finite; we have to possess the courage to be all in, risk it, but also willing to feel it's pain....more