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mommaneedswine_n_books's review against another edition
5.0
What a powerful story. There aren’t enough words to even express how much I loved this book. Hearing Viola Davis tell her story had me crying. I’m left wanting to watch every single film and show she has ever done. If you haven’t read this book, pick it up and get going. There is nothing I can say that can prepare you for all she came from.. all she battled.
ryliemcbreen's review against another edition
5.0
I have no words for this book. It is one of the most profound, courageous and beautifully written stories I have read. I found myself wanting to highlight every line; remember all of the revolutionary words, feelings, advice portrayed. I could not put it down (clearly, as I read it in 2 days). The effortlessness, openness, rawness of this book is indescribable and anything I write will not do it justice. She is brutal, straightforward, honest and so, so vulnerable in her writing.
The words extend beyond Violas story and provide a sense of relatability to your own trauma, your own story, with guiding words of encouragement and healing, while also, through her immersive writing style, allows you to understand the extent of her own pain and healing that is unthinkable to most. Before reading, while I was familiar with her stage presence and acting, I was unfamiliar with her personal life and the journey she has went through. My respect and admiration for her, her strength, her perseverance is astronomical. Through poverty, racism, abuse, hatred she persevered with courage, determination, and passion.
The way in which Viola wrote perfectly communicates her pain, growth and reflection. She skillfully intersects complicated family dynamics and love, gut-wrenching topics of abuse, poverty, addiction, anxiety, race, colorism, sexuality and her journey from her childhood to her professional life and adult private life. She extends compassion and forgiveness (to others and herself) and truly takes on a difficult and remarkable healing process. You walk away from the story with a weight of sadness but a massive sense of pride. It is an honor to us all that Viola found the comfort later in life needed to share this story.
The words extend beyond Violas story and provide a sense of relatability to your own trauma, your own story, with guiding words of encouragement and healing, while also, through her immersive writing style, allows you to understand the extent of her own pain and healing that is unthinkable to most. Before reading, while I was familiar with her stage presence and acting, I was unfamiliar with her personal life and the journey she has went through. My respect and admiration for her, her strength, her perseverance is astronomical. Through poverty, racism, abuse, hatred she persevered with courage, determination, and passion.
The way in which Viola wrote perfectly communicates her pain, growth and reflection. She skillfully intersects complicated family dynamics and love, gut-wrenching topics of abuse, poverty, addiction, anxiety, race, colorism, sexuality and her journey from her childhood to her professional life and adult private life. She extends compassion and forgiveness (to others and herself) and truly takes on a difficult and remarkable healing process. You walk away from the story with a weight of sadness but a massive sense of pride. It is an honor to us all that Viola found the comfort later in life needed to share this story.
bobbieshiann's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
5.0
“There is an emotional abandonment that comes with poverty and being Black. The weight of generational trauma and having to fight for your basic needs doesn’t leave room for anything else. You just believe you’re the leftovers”.
It is not uncommon to hear stories of hardship, poverty, struggle, abuse, etc., but Viola’s story is one of true triumph, and after reading her story, I have this undeniable love for her that is not due to sympathy but embracing her beauty and all her scars. From an early age, she is born into a chaotic world with a system set up for her to fail. Too Black, bullied, witness to daily abuse among her parents, and growing up in a predominately white neighborhood while in poverty. Her living conditions are beyond hard, with often no running water, rats, and tattered clothes that have to be hand-washed and worn to school even if they are cold and have urine residue on them. Those continuous early struggles, she slowly starts to climb up and pursue her dream of acting, but she is also running from herself while still trying to care for her family and learn to love herself. She goes through so many stages of life that are saddening, and it seems to take so long to become joyous, but once they are, she finds love, a daughter, forgiveness for her family, and can water herself continuously while earning so many accolades, but nothing takes the cake of her confronting her past self and living in her now.
“I’m holding her now. My eight-year-old self. Holding her tight. She is squealing and reminding me, “Don’t worry! I’m here to beat anybody’s ass who messes with our joy! Viola, I got this.”
It is not uncommon to hear stories of hardship, poverty, struggle, abuse, etc., but Viola’s story is one of true triumph, and after reading her story, I have this undeniable love for her that is not due to sympathy but embracing her beauty and all her scars. From an early age, she is born into a chaotic world with a system set up for her to fail. Too Black, bullied, witness to daily abuse among her parents, and growing up in a predominately white neighborhood while in poverty. Her living conditions are beyond hard, with often no running water, rats, and tattered clothes that have to be hand-washed and worn to school even if they are cold and have urine residue on them. Those continuous early struggles, she slowly starts to climb up and pursue her dream of acting, but she is also running from herself while still trying to care for her family and learn to love herself. She goes through so many stages of life that are saddening, and it seems to take so long to become joyous, but once they are, she finds love, a daughter, forgiveness for her family, and can water herself continuously while earning so many accolades, but nothing takes the cake of her confronting her past self and living in her now.
“I’m holding her now. My eight-year-old self. Holding her tight. She is squealing and reminding me, “Don’t worry! I’m here to beat anybody’s ass who messes with our joy! Viola, I got this.”
yassmonn's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
4.0
Wow. This book is simply astonishing. As a fan of Viola Davis' work, I knew about her Juilliard background, but I had no idea how tough her upbringing truly was. For the first three hours of the audiobook, as she revisited her childhood, my jaw was on the floor 75% of the time. Her resilience in the face of immense hardship, both in her personal life and career, is nothing short of remarkable. Viola's strength, determination, and willpower to rise above adversity is inspiring. This memoir is a testament to her incredible journey through life. Just wow.
sarinatb's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0