Reviews tagging 'Grief'

If You Would Have Told Me by John Stamos

11 reviews

juanat77's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

dblue236's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

5.0

John Stamos has always been someone I generally liked, but genuinely knew next to nothing about. After reading this book, I have a whole new level of respect for him, both as an entertainer and as a human being. This was easily one of the most engaging, interesting memoirs I've ever picked up and the balance between funny moments and heartfelt, emotional reflections on his family and friends was perfect. I cannot speak highly enough of this book and would absolutely recommend it for anyone who's ever been even a casual fan of any of his work. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Grief, and Death of parent

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Sexual content, Antisemitism, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

elisalasater's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism

Minor: Death, Drug use, and Grief

lcg527's review against another edition

emotional funny informative lighthearted sad fast-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, and Death of parent

whatdebsreads's review against another edition

emotional informative lighthearted fast-paced

3.5

I used to love "Uncle Jesse" when growing up, but once Full House had stopped, John Stamos kinda of fell off my radar. This book made a good audiobook, as I discovered some things I didn't know about the actor. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism and Grief

the_true_monroe's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

5.0

I always liked John Stamos but had absolutely no idea about his life outside of acting and how much of an activist and ally he is for many communities. The part he spoke about his time in Cabaret hit me the most. 

Also, I am so glad I listened to the audiobook because his voice is beautiful!! His story and personal accounts of so many defining moments in his life that were overcome by the media deserve to be heard directly from him. He is way more than Uncle Jesse from Full House which we all realistically know but many people still see him as the character (or another major character he played like Blackie on General Hospital) by default . 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Death of parent

Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Car accident

Minor: Bullying, Genocide, Hate crime, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Suicide, Antisemitism, Medical content, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

kelly_e's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

2.75

Title: If You Would Have Told Me
Author: John Stamos
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 2.75
Pub Date: October 24, 2023

T H R E E • W O R D S

Candid • Messy • Artificial

📖 S Y N O P S I S

John burst onto the scene in General Hospital, propelling him into the teen idol stratosphere, a place that’s often a point of no return. But Stamos beat the odds and over the past four decades has proved himself to be one of his generation’s most successful and beloved actors. Whether showing off his comedic chops on Full House or his dramatic skills on ER, pushing the boundaries on Broadway or living out his youthful dreams as an honorary Beach Boy, John has surprised everyone, most of all himself.

💭 T H O U G H T S

I'll admit I was eagerly awaiting the release of If You Would Have Told Me. Like many, I grew up watching Full House, and even though I never stayed up-to-date on his career afterwards, I knew he'd maintained a strong friendship with Bob Saget and was hoping it would be included.

Unfortunately, John's memoir could have used some serious ending. There's no real flow to the narrative, jumping all over in time and place. It was so full of contradictions that I didn't really know what to believe and it felt like PR pushing an agenda 80% of the time. Additionally, there is so much name dropping, the narrative became more about others than John.

I do appreciate his openness is discussing his addiction and alcoholism (along with drunk driving), yet I think there could have easily been added depth to this sections. I wanted more of his childhood and his family, as it along with when he talked about Bob, were the aspects that felt truly genuine. In fact, his final note on taking the time with those we love (in reference to Bob) was my favourite part of the book. And a gentle reminder to order the cake, everything else will be there waiting.

This may sound harsh, but If You Would Have Told Me felt a little like another celebrity jumping on the memoir train without really thinking. I didn't really come away having learned much, and honestly felt kind of icky when I finished. In my opinion, this memoir did an incredible disservice to John himself.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• John Stamos devotees
• fans of celebrity memoirs

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"If you get a chance to sit for a spell with someone you love don’t get up to quickly, stay a while, linger, indulge, savor. Order the cake." 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, and Alcohol

Moderate: Cursing, Death, Infertility, Grief, and Death of parent

Minor: Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Suicide

rachreads925's review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative reflective medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism

Moderate: Death, Grief, and Car accident

cassellwrites's review against another edition

emotional informative

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, and Grief

cc_shelflove's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

5.0

What’s better than a celebrity memoir era? ✨ For me, John Stamos is not John Stamos; he’s Uncle Jesse. I was unaware of the many other roles he has played over the years. It was amazing to read his recollections of his time on Broadway. My mind was blown. Cabaret and John’s role as the Emcee appeared to be worlds away from his time on Full House. I was thoroughly impressed. I also had no idea about his struggles with alcohol, and it was great to read he has been sober for eight years. Finally, the snippets of handwritten notes from his parents were a nice touch. I’ll be watching to see what John does next. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Moderate: Infertility