Reviews with content warning for Bullying - Open Book

I read the acknowledgements, thats how much I didn’t want this book to end. I did not grow up with Jessica, I never watched Newlyweds. I am so crazy happy I read this book though. It was absolutely amazing to see a young girl who had been through more than you would expect come though to be in such a good place. Her journey is not over but the one shown in the book leaves inspiration and hope for anyone.

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harperhoney's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

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sumi3wow's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.0

I started reading this book as a recommended reading from a podcast about one of Jessica Simpson's peers, Britney Spears, as an insight into the world of being an early 2000's pop star. (Ironically, this booked talked a fair number of times about how much Jessica was compared to and mistaken for Britney. Oops!) From being the "family business" to scrutinies of her body and sexuality, the stories of Jessica's career are unfortunately a shared tale of many young women in the music industry. (I'd like to think it's gotten better recently, but who knows.)

This is one of the first - if not the first - memoirs I've ever read. I switched between the ebook and audiobook formats throughout the book. And I was really impressed! I have to admit that I didn't know very much at all about Jessica's career or life growing up (apart from the fact that she is the sister to Ashlee Simpson who has a flawless album Autobiography), but any doubts about being able to follow the story without being a fan quickly faded.

The writing was informal but very professional - I understand there was a ghostwriter, Kevin Carr O'Leary, who worked on this with Jessica but I don't doubt many of these words were her own, based on old journal entries. I liked the easter eggs and references/connections made throughout the book, it made me feel like I was in on some inside joke. It was raw and real in many places, and in the audiobook you can hear her voice cracking emotionally at times. (The vocal fry was initially a turn-off with the audiobook, but I warmed up to it.)

It is clear from the tales of relapse and "failure" that this memoir is not intended to be an inspirational story of how Jessica tackled her demons in one day to become a #girlboss and never look back, but rather an insight into how growth and recovery are not a linear process. I really applaud the honesty and vulnerability it must have taken to put all this out there.

Spoiler

The one thing I really did not care for was her stories of singing to the American armed forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. I understand the impact that war and violence has on the troops, but the gaping silence about the traumas faced by the communities affected by U.S. invasion is in stark comparison to the stories she tells about helping Kenyan children undergoing cleft lip surgery and the border town orphanage. The memoir certainly engaged critically with topics like body shaming and alcoholism, reflecting on how she sees things differently in retrospect, so I would have liked to see a bit less of a one-dimensional take on America bombing and terrorising communities around the world. But I get it, it's her memoir and if these stories have shaped her life, who am I to tell her otherwise!

Now, I think I'm going to find out where I can watch Newlyweds.

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bookiecharm's review against another edition

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Although Simpson’s voice is captivating, a few things really bothered me. This is a story about coming to terms with traumas and it made me sick to my stomach thinking about the next instance of bad parenting or bullying or abuse in Simpson’s life.

I lived in central Texas for years and I knew of lots of Jessicas like Simpson. So there were a lot of familiar threads to her story that I connected to immediately. Jessicas like her are from uber Baptist families and play up the dumb blonde charade. I know how hypocritical their Christian values are and I don’t need to read a memoir like this to reinforce it. This took me back to Waco and I vowed never to go back there again.

Although, I’m curious about the celebrity deep dish forthcoming, I just can’t see myself picking this up again.

Warnings below are up to page 89.

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