Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

Em busca de mim by Viola Davis

193 reviews

caribbeangirlreading's review against another edition

challenging emotional medium-paced

5.0

What a powerful memoir! But warning, it's also full of traumatic events that happened to Viola Davis as a child and they are not easy to read.

I listened to the audio. There's a reason why this memoir won an Audie Award and a Grammy for narration. When she's reading the parts of her parents, she leans into the acting chops that won her a Tony, and Emmy and an Oscar. Her voice is strong. SHE is strong. When Viola discusses her interactions with other Broadway and Hollywood greats, it doesn't sound like she's name dropping. Viola is too authentic to be fake, and even though she might not have loved/believed in herself as a younger woman, her talent has always been so great that it's made clear that she's not just famous, she's a brilliant actor.

To me, what made this memoir strong is the fact that Viola has been to therapy, and it shows. She doesn't just trauma dump. She discusses her childhood and young adulthood with the eye, and heart, of someone who's walked through hell, and survived. But she does it with love for that little girl that suffered so much to get to where she is now. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Bullying, Child abuse, Classism, Death of parent, Grief, Abortion, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Animal death, Blood, Domestic abuse, Infertility, and Pedophilia

kathrynshields's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-paced

4.5

A remarkable story of a little girl’s journey from poverty to Hollywood. Told in brutal and vivid detail, Viola Davis’s story is both heartbreaking and heartwarming. The audiobook read by the author added an extra layer of emotion. She won the Grammy for a reason. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, and Physical abuse

leefox's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Rape, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Violence, Death of parent, Blood, Vomit, Pregnancy, Infertility, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Dementia, Terminal illness, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, Grief, Abortion, Racism, Cancer, Addiction, Animal death, Sexual harassment, and Sexual assault

emilyb84's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Racism, and Alcoholism

sprimus18's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Violence, Bullying, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Addiction and Racial slurs

Minor: Sexual assault

apaliska's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, and Alcoholism

juliaarcisz's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Violence, Physical abuse, Bullying, Addiction, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Sexual assault, Abortion, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Infertility, Racial slurs, Rape, and Sexual violence

nataliebootlah's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad

5.0

“I knew my life would be a fight, and I realized this: I had it in me.” 

 

Oooooof, this was hard to read. Viola candidly shares the story of her life—through every trauma she’s faced—as well as the reality of how hard it is to actually, finally “make it” as an actor. 

 

Viola’s story is one of resilience. Racism, shame, abuse, food insecurity, poverty, assault, domestic violence, infidelity, grief and trauma were all a part of the long, arduous journey to find herself. Today she is healed (though there’s always work to do), strong, and full of joy. One must read this book themselves to trulybeare witness to the struggles she faced and how she overcame them. 

 

Finding Me humbled me. It reminded me that you never know what someone has gone through or is going through. While gut-wrenching to hear about the horrors she experienced, her grace shined through the good, the bad, and the ugly. Plus, the audiobook is narrated by Viola herself which was a treat. This is one hell of a memoir.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Violence, Bullying, and Racism

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Alcoholism, and Misogyny

Minor: Child death and Abortion

gabi_715's review against another edition

funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Alcoholism, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Violence, Medical content, Addiction, Grief, Sexual content, and Blood

Minor: Fire/Fire injury

katieg4's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse

Moderate: Racial slurs, Addiction, and Alcoholism

Minor: Abortion