Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Finding Me by Viola Davis

192 reviews

daringdelaney's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Star rating out of 5:
5/5

Would I recommend the book:

Absolutely! With trigger warnings (Graphic Domestic abuse, Racism, Physical abuse,
Sexual assault, Abortion, Addiction... Possibly more)
And a warning about it's use of profanity but it's mostly direct quotes.

My favorite part was:

How intelligent and articulate Viola Davis is.
And:
“My biggest discovery was that you can literally re-create your life. You can redefine it. You don’t have to live in the past. I found that not only did I have fight in me, I had love.”

"Memories are immortal. They're deathless and precise. They have the power of giving you joy and perspective in hard times. Or, they can strangle you. Define you in a way that's based more in other people's tucked-up perceptions than truth."

"The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are"

“I now understand that life, and living it, is more about being present. I’m now aware that the not-so-happy memories lie in wait; but the hope and the joy also lie in wait.”


Do i think the book is well written? Why is or isn't it? Was engaging, delightful, or inspiring? Was it staid, boring, or contrived?

She did an amazing job sharing her life stories and her family's stories. The words she chose to portray intense times were eloquent, flowy, and emotion evoking.
I loved her (movie) work before this book but now I'm starting to love Viola Davis.
The immense respect and admiration I have for her is deep. The things she endured as a child and throughout every phase of her life I can honestly say that I've never experienced. I've never missed a meal for days. I've never had to lay in my own urine and go to school the next day reeking. I've never had to fight with huge rats over my bed & pillow. I have never opened the door to my father's mistress completely naked without a care to hide an affair. I've never witnessed my father beat my mother within an inch of her life and I've never experienced racism on the level that Viola has for being too dark or "not pretty enough" She has been through more than any woman ever should have to. What she went through for being dark skinned, what her mom went through...absolutely terrible! She wrote about her awful struggles without comparing them to others which can easily happen when discussing such things. Viola's biggest life defining moments were when she fell to her knees. She's been baptized and has had many moments when all she had was God to rely on. There is a lot to admire in this woman and I hope she maintains her relationship with Jesus Christ.

This book is beautifully written and wonderfully (self) narrated into an audiobook. I'm so so glad I impulsively grabbed this one. 


Was it what you expected it to be?

Not at all. It exceeded my expectations.

How I discovered the book: 

Searching my library app for a nonfiction autobiography less than 10 hours long (Barbara Streisand's is 45 hours long!)


Format I read it in: Audiobook read by the author 🤩

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Violence, Toxic relationship, Death, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Rape, Pedophilia, Infertility, Hate crime, Grief, Emotional abuse, Racism, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Incest, Drug use, Domestic abuse, and Cancer

thefemale_nickmiller's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

Yeah it’s obvious why Viola won that Grammy and it was so f*cking earned. 

I also have to add how happy Viola sounds when talking about her daughter. I can literally hear her smile. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Cancer, Death of parent, Gore, Domestic abuse, Bullying, Sexual assault, Rape, Infertility, Infidelity, Violence, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, Racism, and Misogyny

readingqueerly's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-paced

4.0

Fuck man, what do I even say about this book? This was not easy to get through, but it did feel necessary to read. The strength this woman has had throughout her life to just keep going against amost literally all odds is incredible. Crazy amounts of talent, hard work, and faith got her through.
This book not only put my own issues into perspective, but it also laid bare some systemic issues (in Hollywood) that I would not have noticed since I've never had to think about it. Looking back now, I see how her work in htgawm is truly game changing in so many ways. Yes there is still a long way to go, but that show truly took the 2010s by storm imo. 
The writing style wasn't always my cup of tea. While it mixed the storytelling with the commentary really well, I do feel it was almost literary style. But that's just a personal preference for me as it tends to read a bit slower and I lose my focus quicker.
I truly do recommend this book to anyone who needs a little perspective in life. (But be mindful of content warnings though)

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Cancer, Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Physical abuse

Minor: Drug abuse, Infidelity, and Medical content

keats1787's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Racial slurs, Domestic abuse, Violence, and Addiction

Moderate: Child abuse, Medical content, Physical abuse, Cancer, Death of parent, Drug use, Incest, and Infertility

inthemoonforcheese's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cancer, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Classism, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Hate crime, Infertility, Addiction, Blood, Medical trauma, Sexual content, Cursing, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Slavery, Terminal illness, Violence, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Grief, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Medical content, Self harm, Drug use, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Racism, Abortion, Child death, Sexism, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, and Pregnancy

booksalacarte's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Terminal illness, Hate crime, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Abandonment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Classism, Cursing, Death of parent, Excrement, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Racism

alybarnett02's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Absolutely amazing audio book. Violas story of growing up in poverty is heartbreaking yet inspiring. Just wow. Then into her acting career as a black woman. Can’t recommend enough 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse and Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, and Racism

Minor: Abortion, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Animal death

mdavis26's review against another edition

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Racism, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Blood, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Abortion, Alcohol, Acephobia/Arophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Sexual assault

cassidy's review against another edition

challenging sad

This book was so hard to read and heartbreaking,  especially in the beginning through her childhood. Stories of such resiliency of course always point to the tremendous strength of the protagonist, but also make me so angry that she (and her family) had to overcome so much in the first place. I didn’t know much about Viola Davis beforehand, but she was incredibly likeable and I was rooting for her the whole time. 

Also the discussions on colorism I found both really sad and insightful. At least for me, I found it as a call to talk about it/consider colorism more in my conversations and thoughts about race, and also made me more broadly think about who’s allowed to be the main character on a screen.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Racism, and Alcoholism

emily_koopmann's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Bullying, Abandonment, Death, Hate crime, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Racism, and Abortion