Scan barcode
szilvicsanyi's review against another edition
5.0
Excellent! Gives a lot of insight into the life of an actress. She has a great sense of humor and a surprisingly entertaining writing style. She's very open with her family photographs, which is admirable.
booksdogsandjess's review against another edition
4.0
If you like pictures in biographies then this book is for you the pictures alone tell of her journey. She comes off quite elegant and classy. Very enjoyable read.
sammystarbuck's review against another edition
4.0
I started this book a couple of years ago, but misplaced it when I was about half-way through. After re-arranging things recently I stumbled across it again, so took the opportunity to finally finish it.
What can I say..? Helen Mirren is simply a delight. The book is less of a proper auto biography, and more of a photo album with commentary. But this is what makes it charming, I think.
It was a fun enough read, and I enjoyed reading about the life of this incredible actress - some real surprises there! - I will probably pick up a proper (auto)biography in the future, but this was a lovely read in its own right.
What can I say..? Helen Mirren is simply a delight. The book is less of a proper auto biography, and more of a photo album with commentary. But this is what makes it charming, I think.
It was a fun enough read, and I enjoyed reading about the life of this incredible actress - some real surprises there! - I will probably pick up a proper (auto)biography in the future, but this was a lovely read in its own right.
line_so_fine's review against another edition
4.0
I'm one of those people that likes to look at other people's photo albums and scrapbooks and have them tell me all about what this photo makes them remember and why that ticket stub was significant to them. This book is a memoir written just like that type of conversation. It's half rambling essays and half captioned photos and ephemera. You could just skip the essays and still have fun reading the captions to all the rest. Plus, she kind of rocks too, which is a bonus.
wrenmeister's review
4.0
Though there is not much text, this is a finely balanced autobiography which combines a fascinating array of photographs alongside her prose. It is a very engaging book that documents what many would now see as a golden age of acting but in a visceral way that shows the hard work involved in such an industry. At no point does she comes across as egotistical or arrogant, but there is a real honesty and admiration for her fellow industry workers. I loved it from start to finish.
bibliokris's review
4.0
This was a very enjoyable autobiography. I'm not a huge fan of this genre--sometimes they can be very gossipy and mean-spirited, but Mirren's book was not like that. It's well-written, insightful about the life of an actor, and full of neat pictures that give a strong sense of how she lived her life, from 1945-2008, when the book was published.
booksdogsandjess's review
4.0
If you like pictures in biographies then this book is for you the pictures alone tell of her journey. She comes off quite elegant and classy. Very enjoyable read.
juliechristinejohnson's review
4.0
I have long admired actress Helen Mirren, so this was a treat to discover. This isn't an autobiography nor does Mirren explore her past in great depth. It's a lovely portrait of memories in text and photos of her development and experiences as an actress. There is more energy devoted to her years on the stage, rather than her more recent work in film. Mirren's voice comes through as down-to-earth and earthy, a creative soul devoted to friends from adolescence and her early years in the theatre, respectful of her many colleagues, both those with bold-face names and those more obscure. She seems like an incredibly healthy, rounded, possessed and intelligent woman who remains humble and gracious in work and with loved ones. Brava, bella!
More...