Humans love to tell stories. It’s how we communicate. And we love to talk about ourselves. Sometimes, talented writers can take their life experiences and turn them into cohesive narratives for other people to enjoy as well. I love a good memoir, and I really enjoy celebrity memoirs.
One thing I’ve learned about celebrity memoirs for myself, though, is that I like them more when I don’t have strong feelings about the celebrity themselves before reading. If I have strong feelings, like I really like someone or think they are brilliant, their memoirs can leave me feeling disappointed—yes, I know celebrities are real people, but that doesn’t mean that they would always be people that I would like to hang out with. I have read memoirs by celebrities I love and then felt like I knew too much, like I had to take a break from their movies or shows for awhile because it was too much. I like a little separation between me and most entertainers (which is why I have yet to listen to Britney Spears’ memoir.)
That being said, the era of the celebrity memoir has been quite entertaining, and there are several celebrity memoirs that I have really enjoyed. In no particular order, they are:
My Love Story by Tina Turner was fantastic. I chose to listen to the audiobook after I saw the Tina Turner musical (which was also fantastic) and realized I knew little about her life but knew so many of her songs. She had such an interesting life and story, and I highly recommend the audio.
We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story by Simu Liu. Liu is the actor who plays Shang-Chi, and is in the Barbie movie more recently as one of the Kens. He is adorable, and my sister recommended his memoir. He is very vulnerable about his childhood, especially his relationship with his parents, and it was emotional sometimes. I listened to the audio read by him, and enjoyed it a lot.
Open Book by Jessica Simpson was also a recommendation from my sister, and is the perfect low-stakes memoir to read. She tells of her life as a young kid, and as a celebrity, and does include some shocking moments (including SA as a child). She names names, for sure—doesn’t hold back at all about the people who she loved, whom she was hurt by. It was interesting, to say the least.
The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music by Dave Grohl was fun to listen to. I know he is in the doghouse right now with a lot of people, but this most recent scandal didn’t change the fact that I enjoyed the stories he had to tell. It is clear he wrote it himself, and he shares fun anecdotes about his life and music career. He comes across as a kind of nerdy guy who loves music and musicians, and I can appreciate that in a celebrity. The audio was fun to listen to.
Beyond the Wand: The Magic and Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard by Tom Felton might be the only celebrity memoir I’ve given 5 stars to. I loved it so much. I am a Harry Potter fan, both of the books and the movies, and Felton’s stories behind-the-scenes were so much fun to hear about. He also shares some quite personal insights into other aspects of his life, including some issues with alcohol that he has had, and I appreciated his honesty. Highly recommend to fans of the series!
Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci was a no-brainer, because I love books about food. Tucci is an amazing actor, and is in everything it seems, for good reason. He shares stories about his Italian childhood, stories from his time traveling for work and the food he ate, and plenty of recipes. He has another memoir coming out soon, and I’m excited to read that one as well.
Live Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Cordero by Amanda Kloots is a very raw and real account of the death of Nick Cordero from Covid. I did not know who either of them were before the pandemic, but because Kloots was very publicly sharing the fight for her husband’s life, she was in the news constantly. It was emotional to listen to one person’s account of the fight against Covid, especially in the early days, and it is still so tragic that Cordero passed away from all the complications surrounding his illness. Kloots does a great job of sharing their love story.
As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes was a Mahan Girls Book Club choice from a few years ago, because we grew up watching and loving the movie. It was just so fun to learn all the behind-the-scenes stories from Westley himself, and I heard that the audio was really entertaining because Elwes includes short perspectives throughout the book from his fellow actors, and they all read their own little parts for the audio.
I have read other celebrity memoirs, but these were my favorites. I love to recommend them to other fans, as well, because they were pretty unproblematic looks at people’s life behind-the-scenes.
What celebrity memoirs have you enjoyed?
Thanks for being here, I’ll see you on Sunday.