kelly_e's review against another edition
3.25
Author: Britney Spears
Genre: Memoir
Rating: 3.25
Pub Date: October 24, 2023
T H R E E • W O R D S
Brave • Chaotic • Halfhearted
📖 S Y N O P S I S
In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice—her truth—was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey—and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history.
💭 T H O U G H T S
I was a pre-teen when Britney's first album dropped in 1999 and I remember getting the album the following Christmas and listening to it on repeat. However, my interest was short lived and it ended up being the only one of her albums I owned. Despite not following her career closely, I still knew I wanted to read this memoir.
While I can empathize with Britney's story, The Woman in Me lacked depth. She has gone through her fair share of trauma and struggle, revealing some heavy truths within. Yet because she kept thing very surface level, these reveals felt like shock value additions more than a part of the healing process. I can imagine it took tremendous courage putting her story out into the world and I hope it was therapeutic for her. However as a reader, the writing was so chaotic, reading more like a diary than a well-crafted memoir.
With all of that said, what this book did offer me was insight into the behind-the-scenes world of music, as well as the enduring power of music in healing. I also greatly appreciated her devotion to her children, something the mainstream media has certainly left out.
At the end of the day, I am glad to have picked this up and listened to it. However, it was the deep emotional memoir I was so hoping for. I hope the writing process was a healing part of her journey to taking back control of her life. But when I got to the end, I got the sense she still has a long ways to go.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• die-hard Britney fans
• celebrity memoir enthusiasts
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Music stopped the noise, made me feel confident, and took me to a pure place of expressing myself exactly as I wanted to be seen and heard. Singing took me into the presence of the divine."
"If no one is used to you being assertive, they get very freaked out when you start speaking your mind."
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Misogyny, Sexism, Abandonment, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Confinement, Pregnancy, Body shaming, Addiction, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Eating disorder, Abortion, Miscarriage, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Drug use, Bullying, Alcoholism, Medical trauma, and Alcohol
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Cursing, Pandemic/Epidemic, Death, and Infidelity
shannonvonpesach's review against another edition
4.5
The book was a good read, but sometimes it felt like telling facts.
Graphic: Body shaming, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Forced institutionalization, Bullying, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Miscarriage, Infidelity, Grief, and Stalking
Minor: Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Suicidal thoughts
miayukino's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Abortion, Abandonment, Forced institutionalization, and Mental illness
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Eating disorder, Pregnancy, and Miscarriage
ellaticonstellation's review against another edition
5.0
Her story broke me. I'm a woman and a mother, too, so I can only imagine how hard it must have been to take her children away from her.
The gaslighting was harsh and it made my blood boil. What horrible things people can do because of money is beyond me. The point where her dad said that he was Britney Spears at that point gave me chills.
Her life was difficult to say the least. Her faith in humanity is tested a lot of times and it might not have been easy when the people who are supposed to love her are the ones who caused her pain.
Nonetheless, I'm glad that she got her power and freedom back. She's living her life now. I hope she's truly happy more than ever.
P. S. I love her song "Lucky" when I was in elementary school and that piece of music is fun and sad at the same time.
Graphic: Cursing, Forced institutionalization, Toxic relationship, Confinement, Abandonment, Addiction, Body shaming, Violence, Alcoholism, Fatphobia, Slavery, Grief, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Torture, and Gaslighting
imstephtacular's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Alcoholism, Forced institutionalization, Alcohol, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Abandonment, Pregnancy, Cursing, Grief, Infidelity, Body shaming, Bullying, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Medical content, and Mental illness
Minor: Sexual harassment, Miscarriage, Pandemic/Epidemic, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Infertility, Fatphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Car accident
jaz_gets_literary's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Bullying, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Abortion, Alcoholism, Body shaming, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Child death, Miscarriage, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide
emmareeser's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Domestic abuse, and Abandonment
Moderate: Body shaming
greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition
Moderate: Abandonment, Abortion, Body shaming, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Pregnancy
eelizard's review against another edition
4.75
Graphic: Abandonment, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Abortion
Moderate: Addiction
jneverland's review against another edition
Graphic: Abortion, Addiction, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Confinement, Gore, Grief, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual harassment, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Slavery, Abandonment, Body shaming, Medical content, Sexism, Sexual content, Eating disorder, Alcoholism, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship