Born with Teeth by Kate Mulgrew

Oh man, oh man! I loved this book! I was somewhat familiar with Kate Mulgrew, the actress, but until I read her memoir Born with Teeth, I didn't realize what all she had been in including movies, TV shows, and more. I think the only thing I've seen her in consistently is Orange Is the New Black. She plays Red, the cook. And very well, as you know if you've seen it.

This book was so well written, funny, sad, and plain old powerful. She really bared her soul and shared things that only a true daredevil would do. 

Read it. I tell you, read it.

And yes, she was born with teeth!

Born with Teeth: A Memoir

There Was a Little Girl: The Real Story of My Mother and Me by Brooke Shields

I listened to Brooke Shields's memoir There Was a Little Girl:  The Real Story of My Mother and Me since I reserved the audio book on CD at the library when I meant to get the book. It was actually a really good book to listen to and I found myself taking little breaks to listen here and there over several days.

Brooke Shields's mother was an alcoholic, which informed this entire book. The woman would have driven me bonkers, but it looks like she came out alright despite Teri Shields. After her mother died, Brooke wrote this memoir laying it all (I guess, it was a lot so I hope that was all or most of it) out there for the world to see.

I mean this woman let her 12-year-old daughter make the movie Pretty Baby, which admittedly was fairly racy for being made in 1978 or any time. Brooke appears nude in it and in some pretty compromising and adult-themed situations. She said she wouldn't let her own daughters make that movie at that age. I guess not!

I did enjoy listening to this audio book read by Shields proving none of us have a  perfect life or perfect parents. We just do the best we can.

There Was a Little Girl: The Real Story of My Mother and Me

Andrea Martin's Lady Parts

I finished reading the memoir Andrea Martin's Lady Parts and it was a hoot! 

I had heard of Andrea Martin but didn't realize she is the actor who played some of the roles she did. Like Aunt Voula in My Big Fat Greek Wedding (What do you mean you don't eat no meat? That's okay. I fix you lamb.) Yeah, her!

Lady Parts

This book was really a book of essays about different parts of her life, such as her time on SCTV, why she flies to Atlanta to get her hair cut, and her astrologer. All of it was interesting and some even sort of serious but much was fun and funny and a great glimpse into the life of a celebrity who is so funny.

Book Read:  Andrea Martin's Lady Parts
Author:  Andrea Martin

I Must Say, My Life as a Humble Comedy Legend by Martin Short

Well, I am a die hard Martin Short fan and my kids know this. My son gave me I Must Say, My Life as a Humble Comedy Legend by Martin Short (with some other dude, which makes me wonder how that went down. Did Marty actually write any of this book? I don't really care because I can hear him loud and clear. What I bet happened is he carried a tape recorder around with him and just talked and the other dude wrote it out. That's what I think, but I have not a clue!). Okay, I just looked on Amazon, and there is no other dude. I must have dreamed that part. Duh.

Any hoo, the book my son gave me is signed, don't ya know! I think that's most excellent!

But back to the book! 

It's a memoir of the finest order. Lots of dirty little details about Short's life that you just love to read about. Tons of names are dropped. Quite a bit of jokes and gags. Plenty of cussing. Embarrassing factoids emerge. I loved it!

I Must Say: My Life As a Humble Comedy Legend

I laughed (reading about my favorite Martin Short character Mr. Ed Grimley), I cried (reading about his losses of his brother, his parents, and his wife), and I loved this book so much that I think I'll read it again. And maybe even again. It's that good.

The one thing from reading some of the rave reviews on Amazon was that one person said the audio book was hilarious. I bet it is! 

Book Read:  I Must Say, My Life as a Humble Comedy Legend

Author:  Martin Short

Elsewhere by Richard Russo

I loved, loved, loved this book! I started reading Elsewhere by Richard Russo last week, while, well, in the bathroom. I just read a few pages but was hooked. I wanted to read another book first though (and I did--The Painter by Peter Heller), but I couldn't wait to get back to Elsewhere.

This is a memoir written by the novelist Richard Russo, not so much about himself, but about his life with his mother. And what a mother she was. This guy has to be one of the most patient people on the planet. He catered to this woman her entire life, going way above and beyond the call of duty for any son (or daughter).

I don't like to give away too much in my blog posts but do recommend you read this one. It was fascinating to see how this mother-son relationship kept up the pace for what must have been going on 60 or more years till her death. 

This book makes me want to grab a stack of Russo's novels and read them all.

Book Read:  Elsewhere
Author:  Richard Russo

Waiting: The True Confessions of a Waitress by Debra Ginsberg

I really enjoyed Waiting:  The True Confessions of a Waitress by Debra Ginsberg. As a writer and editor, she made her living / supplemented her income waiting tables for 20 years. That's a long time in that industry!

Ginsberg touches on all the big waitressing questions:  

• Do wait staff spit in food?
• Does anyone wait tables as a career?
• Are you really getting decaf coffee when you ask for it? 

Read the book to find out!

Book Read:  Waiting:  The True Confessions of a Waitress
Author:  Debra Ginsberg

Blowing My Cover: My Life As a CIA Spy and Other Misadventures by Lindsay Moran

I finished reading Blowing My Cover:  My Life As a CIA Spy and Other Misadventures by Lindsay Moran late last night and I was sad for it to end.

This is a true story of Moran who became a case officer (spy speak for "spy") with the CIA in latter part of the 1990s. She'd always wanted to be a spy but came to realize it was nothing like we read about in novels or see in movies and TV.

The bulk of the book takes up her training to be a spy with maybe a third covering the often dull and weird world of actually spying, which means finding and recruiting foreign agents (those who will turn on their own country and spy for the U.S.).

Moran was in Macedonia when planes attacked the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon in 2001. This was the beginning of the end for her career, of her own choosing.

If you like spy thrillers even a little, this book is an eye-opener that I just loved reading!

Book Read:  Blowing My Cover:  My Life As a CIA Spy and Other Misadventures

Author:  Lindsay Moran

Carrie and Me: A Mother-Daughter Love Story by Carol Burnett

I read Carol Burnett's latest book in two sittings. It is a fast read and a love letter between mother and daughter. 

Carol Burnett's daughter, Carrie Hamilton, died in 2002 at age 38 from cancer. This book is a actually written by both Carol (the narrative and emails to her daughter Carrie) and Carrie (emails to her mom Carol and a partially written story Sunrise in Memphis). 

Before Carrie's death, the pair wrote a play Hollywood Arms based on Carol's memoir One More Time.

I'm a huge fan of Carol Burnett (she's genuinely funny) and have read her other two memoirs. Do you like to read celebrity memoirs?

Book Read:  Carrie and Me:  A Mother-Daughter Love Story
Author:  Carol Burnett

All That Is Bitter and Sweet: A Memoir by Ashley Judd

Talk about a painful book to read. This one was in more places than not. 

All That Is Bitter and Sweet really was mostly bitter:  Ashley Judd's upbringing, neglect by both parents, the path she's chosen to take in her work as an advocate with PSI (Population Services International), and more. Of course all of that makes her life now sweet, too. She can appreciate her life as an actress and advocate compared to her childhood when she had little control over her circumstances. 

I found myself drawn to Judd's story about her own life more than to the numerous chapters about her work with PSI. That part is interesting and important but was really hard to read. I know the world is a hard place and she brought the truths to the fore filtered through her experiences. Sad sad sad. 

I'm glad I read this book, but I'm also glad I won't be taking this one to bed with me tonight. It was hard to get some of the images out of my head when trying to fall asleep.

Have you read Ashley Judd's memoir?

Book Read:  All That Is Bitter and Sweet:  A Memoir
Author: Ashley Judd

Let's Pretend This Never Happened (A Mostly True Memoir) by Jenny Lawson, The Bloggess

Okay, I went from Room, which was totally wonderful but in a serious way, to Let's Pretend This Never Happened (A Mostly True Memoir), which was totally wonderful but in a weird and funny way.

I'm not sure which rock I'd been hiding under, but I had never heard of The Bloggess (aka Jenny Lawson) till my friend Julie (Thanks, Julie!) sent me this book. Evidently Ms. Lawson has been hilariously blogging for quite a few years. She is--to put it succinctly--a hoot.

This book starts strong with tales of her weird and wonderful childhood and gets a tad serious in the middle when she writes about her myriad ailments then ends with a satisfyingly silly take on her book tour.

Have you read this memoir? Will you? Do you read The Bloggess? I think I'll have to start.

Book Read:  Let's Pretend This Never Happened (A Mostly True Memoir)
Author: Jenny Lawson, The Bloggess

True North by Jill Ker Conway

Some people just seem to get a lot more done in their lives than others. Jill Ker Conway is one of the most prolific women in writing and deed that I can think of. 

I finished reading True North that was a continuation of her book about her childhood, The Road From Coorain. True North picked up after she got on the plane to attend graduate school at Harvard in the early 1960s. 

She taught history, wrote a few books, wrote her dissertation, received her PhD, and became first Vice President at the University of Toronto then became the first woman President of Smith College.

Then she began writing books full time.   


Book Read:  True North
Author:  Jill Ker Conway

The Road from Coorain by Jill Ker Conway

I have been feeling crummy the past week. Just a nasty cold that won't go away. I think I'm getting better, but last night I decided to save the last 20 pages of The Road from Coorain and read them this morning. I love to do that with really good books--read them when I'm more alert, not ready to nod off.

The Road from Coorain is a memoir about a woman growing up in Australia. It's been around since 1989, so maybe you've read it. I'm glad I finally did. Loved it!
 
Jill Ker was born in Hillston, New South Wales, in 1934. New South Wales is the province where Sydney, Australia is located. Hillston, a blip on the map, is where her family lived; it is the Australian outback. They operated a sheep farm and had little contact with the outside world. Jill and her two brothers helped with farm duties, riding horses with their father to repair fences and herd sheep. 

When Jill was 11, her father was killed and her life changed. In many ways. Her brothers were already living away from home at boarding school. She moved with her mother to a suburb of Sydney after the farm became too much to handle without her husband for Jill's mother.

This book is a fascinating read of a super smart woman who thrived in spite of many barriers that surely stopped other women. The Road from Coorain stops when Jill leaves to attend graduate school at Harvard. She went on to graduate from Harvard with her Ph.D. and was President of Smith College for 10 years. 
 
I can't wait to read True North, the memoir that continues her story.

Book Read: The Road from Coorain

Author:  Jill Ker Conway

The Watchmaker's Daughter: A Memoir by Sonia Taitz

I finished reading The Watchmaker's Daughter:  A Memoir by Sonia Taitz last night. What a wonderful book. 

Taitz is the daughter of two Holocaust survivors, Simon and Gita, Jews from Lithuania, who met in New York at a Survivors Ball after the war. They married and had two children, Emanuel (Manny) and Sonia. 

Simon stayed alive at Dachua by repairing watches for the Nazis, "who loved punctuality." Gita was about to debut as a concert pianist before the war started.

Read my Squidoo article to find out more about  this fascinating tale and the book that is worth reading.

Book Read: The Watchmaker's Daughter:  A Memoir

Author: Sonia Taitz

Call the Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times by Jennifer Worth

I chose Call the Midwife off the shelf of memoirs at the Scottsdale library because the cover caught my eye. It looked more like a novel, and in places it reads like one.

Jennifer Worth was in her twenties in the 1950s and worked as a midwife in London's East End. The area had been hit hard during the war with bombings that left many of the tenements demolished and marked for demolition. That didn't keep many of the poor dock workers and other residents from living in this bombed out buildings.

The author tells stories of women who gave birth in extreme situations but who made the most of their lives for the most part.  

Worth lived in a nunnery that the midwives were associated with. The book introduces some colorful characters--both nuns and East End residents. The nuns worked along with the lay midwives, training them and making house calls. At that time, women gave birth at home for the most part and only went to the hospital if there were complications with the birth or the mother's health.

Midwives were trained to deliver babies and care for pregnant women before and after birth. Doctors took care of illness and injuries. 

This book has been made into a PBS series. I can't wait to watch it! Luckily it's available on Amazon (see the DVD, right there!) --->

Book Read: Call the Midwife:  A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times

Author:  Jennifer Worth

Two-Part Invention: The Story of a Marriage by Madeleine L'Engle

I wrote an article Top 10 Memoirs recently and someone mentioned this book, Two-Part Invention:  The Story of a Marriage by Madeleine L'Engle as one of their favorites. So, I thought I'd read it and see. Well, since I've never read any of L'Engle's books, I wasn't invested in her as a person, and I imagine that made a difference in how I viewed this memoir. (L'Engle wrote A Wrinkle in Time and many other books for adults and children.)


I liked this book, especially when she described her life with her husband in the 1940s when they were courting and their early marriage but she glossed over years, if not decades in a sentence or two. Instead, she delved deep in her husband's (Hugh Franklin) illness and death, which was touching and well done.

Have you read any of L'Engle's books? Have you read Two-Part Invention? What did you think?

Book Read: Two-Part Invention:  The Story of a Marriage

Author:  Madeleine L'Engle

Below Stairs by Margaret Powell

I'd read about Below Stairs somewhere and when I saw it at the library, I checked it out. The cover reads "Below Stairs, The Classic Kitchen Maid's Memoir That Inspired Upstairs, Downstairs and Downton Abbey."

This book was written in 1968 by an honest-to-goodness maid who worked during the time when Downton Abbey is now set--1920--and beyond. She was just 13 when she started working since she'd learned all she could in school without going on to upper level classes that her family didn't have money for. 

This book details her jobs in the many houses where she worked, first as a kitchen maid (the lowest ranking servant) then as a cook. Her goal was to get married and not have to work. Men were the breadwinners back then and women stayed home to keep house and take care of the children.

I liked a passage where she sums up how hard it was to meet eligible men to pursue as husbands. She had visited a small village where a friend was from, where everyone knew each other and had no trouble meeting men.

"I live in a town, and I couldn't even tell you the names of the people that live two or three doors up the road. Nobody speaks to anybody and it's considered the greatest compliment if you're known as a person who keeps herself to herself. But this kind of attitude doesn't help herself to get herself a himself, does it?"
 
The details of the very hard life and hard work that these servants lived come to life in this straightforward memoir. I have a new appreciation for poor Daisy now! 

Book Read: Below Stairs

Author:  Margaret Powell
ISBN:  978-1-250-00544-1

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

Okay, I finally read Wild by Cheryl Strayed, and it was as great as everything I'd heard about it.

If you haven't yet read this memoir, just do it. Today, tomorrow, any time is good. But this book reads like a good friend telling you about her deepest secrets and thoughts. It's funny. It's sad. It's painful. (All those missing toenails. Ugh.) 
 
Even if you're totally not athletic and have never hiked in your life, you can relate to this story of one woman's tale of hiking the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) for 100 days alone from Mohave, California to the Washington border.

One line near the end of the book is telling of her conversational style:

"The tumbler made its way slowly back to me; I took a sip and handed it back to Rick, and so on, like we were smoking a gigantic liquid joint."

Read more about this wrenching tale.

Book Read: Wild:  From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail

Author: Cheryl Strayed
ISBN:  978-0-307-59273-6

My Extraordinary Ordinary Life by Sissy Spacek with Maryanne Vollers

I love reading memoirs.  When I saw this one by Sissy Spacek, I snapped it right up and read it in two days.

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Did you know:

~ Spacek is really pronounced "spot check"? Sissy's Spacek's father changed the pronunciation when everyone pronounced it "spay sik" and he grew tired of correcting them.

~ Sissy Spacek had two older brothers but one died of leukemia.

~ Rip Torn is Sissy's older cousin.

~ She wanted to be a singer/songwriter and began acting instead when her music career stuttered.

~ Sissy Spacek has two grown daughters and lives on a farm in Virginia.

~ She recently recorded the audio book of To Kill A Mockingbird.

Now you know! And there's a million other little tid bits like those in this great book!

Book Read:  My Extraordinary Ordinary Life

Author: Sissy Spacek with Maryanne Vollers

ISBN:  978-1-4013-2436-0

Immortal Bird: A Family Memoir by Doron Weber

I finished this book a few days ago and even though it was not the best memoir I've ever read, it certainly was heartfelt and an important story.


Doron Weber is a father of three children. This book mainly deals with his oldest son Damon who was born with a heart defect. He lives to 13 with few troubles after several open heart operations, but then he develops problems that eventually require a heart transplant. This sad, sad story is told several years after Damon dies from an infection that his doctors misdiagnose as rejection of his new heart. This book should be required reading for medical doctors in training as well as seasoned ones to learn about health care from the family's perspective.

Like a too-spicy meal, this book will stay with me longer than I'd like.  Damon's short life was full but ended way too soon.

Book Read: Immortal Bird

Author:  Doron Weber

ISBN:   978-1451618068

When We Were the Kennedys by Monica Wood

This memoir turned out to have next to nothing to do with the Kennedys but was wonderful! The name comes from the fact that in the same year Kennedy was assassinated (1963), the author's father died of a heart attack. 

When the president was killed, this family watched along with the rest of the country, the television coverage of Jackie Kennedy and the aftermath of JFK's death. The Wood family could relate.

Set in Mexico, Maine, this true story tells a little more than a year in the life of a pre-teen girl who lost her father. The themes of Catholicism, growing up in a small town and leading a sheltered life, the town's paper mill, and of course, death.
Read my choice of the top 10 memoirs on Squidoo.

Book Read: When We Were the Kennedys

Author:  Monica Wood

ISBN:   978-0-547-63014-4