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ashley_books_cats_judo's review
4.0
I first really heard about Garcelle when she joined the cast of the RHOBH so it was eye opening to hear how much she’d done before joining the cast. I do wish some of the book was more chronological vs telling a story per chapter. It did bounce around a bit from her older son being fully grown and his struggles up to present day and then back to her two other boys being born. However, it was a really great listen & would highly encourage anyone who is a fan of Garcelle or the Housewives franchises to pick it up.
recreationalhobbyist's review
3.0
Memoirs and autobiographies are not typically my go-to genre for reading. My non-fiction reads usually consist of true crime. However, I will make exceptions for Real Housewives and because Garcelle Beauvais has become a force to be reckoned with on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, I jumped at the chance to read her memoir. We only see glimpses of her life on the show and I wanted to know more about her.
The memoir begins with Garcelle’s upbringing in Haiti. She is part of a family broken by her father that left her at a young age and was raised by her older siblings as her mother had to work to support the family. She makes her journey to the United States as a young girl to Massachusetts and after a few years the family ends up in Florida.
Miami is where she is discovered by Eileen Ford and promptly moves to NYC. She writes bluntly about her struggles as an up-and-coming black model/actress in the industry. Reading about her experiences as not just a young woman in the modeling world, but a young black woman is eye-opening.
Despite her struggles, Garcelle makes a quite successful career for herself with roles in Coming to America and The Jamie Foxx Show. Although I remember her first from Models, Inc. I was a big Beverly Hills 90210 and Melrose Place fan and I remember watching Models Inc when it aired, and I was bummed when it was canceled. She writes a lot about her acting career and the friendships & relationships she has made throughout her career, especially with Jamie Foxx.
Garcelle goes very in-depth about her two marriages and her children. On Real Housewives, she has spoken candidly about her marriages and her children, however, she provides a lot more insight about the relationships and self-reflects on the choices she has made. Garcelle has been open on the Real Housewives about one of her son’s addiction struggles and I found it admirable that she does not use his story to tell her own. She writes only from her point of view without providing too much detail and simply states that it is not her story to tell.
For Real Housewives fans, if you’re expecting a bunch of tea from behind the scenes with the other cast members, prepare to be disappointed. There are only a few pages about Garcelle’s experience on Real Housewives and her castmates. Most of which fans already know about. The real juicy stuff is sprinkled throughout in stories about her career before the Housewives.
Love Me As I Am is a memoir of a determined and resilient woman’s journey of self-acceptance and breaking through barriers. It was an enjoyable read to learn more about Garcelle and her life. While it isn't going to be a Pulitzer Prize-winning book, it certainly did not deserve to be thrown in the trash.
*I received an Advanced Readers Copy of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions included herein are my own.*
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The memoir begins with Garcelle’s upbringing in Haiti. She is part of a family broken by her father that left her at a young age and was raised by her older siblings as her mother had to work to support the family. She makes her journey to the United States as a young girl to Massachusetts and after a few years the family ends up in Florida.
Miami is where she is discovered by Eileen Ford and promptly moves to NYC. She writes bluntly about her struggles as an up-and-coming black model/actress in the industry. Reading about her experiences as not just a young woman in the modeling world, but a young black woman is eye-opening.
Despite her struggles, Garcelle makes a quite successful career for herself with roles in Coming to America and The Jamie Foxx Show. Although I remember her first from Models, Inc. I was a big Beverly Hills 90210 and Melrose Place fan and I remember watching Models Inc when it aired, and I was bummed when it was canceled. She writes a lot about her acting career and the friendships & relationships she has made throughout her career, especially with Jamie Foxx.
Garcelle goes very in-depth about her two marriages and her children. On Real Housewives, she has spoken candidly about her marriages and her children, however, she provides a lot more insight about the relationships and self-reflects on the choices she has made. Garcelle has been open on the Real Housewives about one of her son’s addiction struggles and I found it admirable that she does not use his story to tell her own. She writes only from her point of view without providing too much detail and simply states that it is not her story to tell.
For Real Housewives fans, if you’re expecting a bunch of tea from behind the scenes with the other cast members, prepare to be disappointed. There are only a few pages about Garcelle’s experience on Real Housewives and her castmates.
Spoiler
She talks at length about her “non-negotiables” when agreeing to another season; having sit-downs to hash out her issues with castmates Kyle Richards and Lisa Rinna regarding comments and accusations made during season 10.Love Me As I Am is a memoir of a determined and resilient woman’s journey of self-acceptance and breaking through barriers. It was an enjoyable read to learn more about Garcelle and her life. While it isn't going to be a Pulitzer Prize-winning book, it certainly did not deserve to be thrown in the trash.
*I received an Advanced Readers Copy of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions included herein are my own.*
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todallyanika's review
4.0
I'm a huge fan of Garcelle Beauvais on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and this memoir reads like I'm listening to Garcelle's witty and poignant confessionals on the show. (For me, I imagine it's her iconic periwinkle purple monochromatic look from Season 11). So I came for RHOBH, but I stayed for the inspiring story of a Black immigrant woman finding her way in the world. I enjoyed the way that the novel was written, focusing on each topic that has played an important role in her life rather than chronologically. It would have made it easier to read in sittings if you were busy, but fortunately I had the time to rip through it in one sitting. I learned a lot about Garcelle's life, enjoyed the interesting celebrity name drops (Michael Jordan! Bill Cosby! Halle Berry! Whoopi Goldberg!) and her story of raising Black and mixed race sons in a world of white Hollywood privilege. A must read for Real Housewives fans, fans of Garcelle from her earlier work like The Jamie Foxx show and anyone interested in an immigrant from Haiti's experience with race, faith, love, motherhood and Hollywood.
I received this ARC from Netgalley and Harper Collins (Amistad) in exchange for an honest review.
I received this ARC from Netgalley and Harper Collins (Amistad) in exchange for an honest review.
stedjaa's review
4.0
I have so much respect for Garcelle Beauvais and knew when this book was coming out, I had to read it! I love how this book is aunthentically Garcelle and enjoyed reading about how she navigates life, love and happiness.
I did wish there was more tea, but I’m glad she kept it authentic and real. My favourite parts of the book included her talking about RHOBH, about her upbringings as a young, Haitian, black girl in America and how her career began. There were also surprisingly a lot of memorable quotes or sections that I could relate to which was nice.
Also fitting how I finished the book on RHOBH premiere day
I did wish there was more tea, but I’m glad she kept it authentic and real. My favourite parts of the book included her talking about RHOBH, about her upbringings as a young, Haitian, black girl in America and how her career began. There were also surprisingly a lot of memorable quotes or sections that I could relate to which was nice.
Also fitting how I finished the book on RHOBH premiere day
marytaylor's review
5.0
If I’m honest this was probably a 4 star, but I am a Garcelle stan and rounding up. In typical Garcelle fashion she was honest, poignant and transparent when sharing her life story. I took a lot away from her input on what it has been like as a Black model and actress from the 1980’s through being the first Black housewife of BH. Her chapters about motherhood and her husbands affair were so honest. You can tell her love for her kids and learning about her childrens books she co-authored to help young kids who came from divorced families or are biracial really showed this.
Would have liked more RHOBH tea ☕️ and I actually GASPED when she told the story of how when she landed her first big magazine cover her semi estranged father went and bought the wrong month magazine and didn’t even realize/recognize that the woman on the cover wasn’t her and showed it off to all his friends. The hurt that would cause- ugh. Anyways, love Garcelle even more after learning about her life. I would love a follow up because I think she has a loooot more juicy stories than she shared here. ☕️
Would have liked more RHOBH tea ☕️ and I actually GASPED when she told the story of how when she landed her first big magazine cover her semi estranged father went and bought the wrong month magazine and didn’t even realize/recognize that the woman on the cover wasn’t her and showed it off to all his friends. The hurt that would cause- ugh. Anyways, love Garcelle even more after learning about her life. I would love a follow up because I think she has a loooot more juicy stories than she shared here. ☕️
samanthasprott's review
4.0
Garcelle has become a great addition to the RHOBH so I was excited to listen to her book! She doesn’t talk much about the show but a lot about her marriages, kids and her career which of course were all interesting! She’s an open book who curses which made her feel even more relatable! Great on audio!
glendareads39's review against another edition
4.0
I love Garcelle when she was on the Jamie Foxx show. Garcelle's memoir is bold, intimate and honest. She focuses on her Haitian heritage, family, career, marriage, divorce, motherhood and life. She shares on her life experiences that led to she who is today.