Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

Finding Me by Viola Davis

78 reviews

itscassie's review

dark emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Viola’s storytelling ability coupled with the depths of vulnerability and healing she shares had me in awe throughout each chapter. I felt I saw a distant relative telling me their life lessons and speaking to the young girl, adolescent in me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Sexual violence, Classism, Death of parent, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Addiction, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Bullying, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Cursing, Sexual violence, Abortion, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Medical trauma

pagesandpixels's review

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.0

So poetically written. I listened on audiobook and it was beautiful and engaging. What a life Viola lived and what an honor to listen. Another great book that reminds us why we need to buy/listen to women voices and stories.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Medical trauma, Sexual harassment, Rape, Racism, Death of parent, Torture, Slavery, Blood, Abortion, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Cursing, Drug abuse, Excrement, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Eating disorder, and Racial slurs

hellokaley's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

Viola describes the definition of a hero as someone born into a world where they don't fit in, they are then summoned on a call to an adventure that they are reluctant to take. This is her hero’s journey from poverty, abuse, and trauma to an Oscar-winning actress. 

This story is heavy with content warnings galore. And truthfully, after the first half of the book, I was ready for the second part of the story- the part where she is triumphant. Because that first half is hard and uncomfortable and her circumstances were unimaginable. Her story is truly phenomenal. 

I loved her approach with talking about the Hollywood industry. She not only talks about the work of character development and figuring out how to understand and portray the person on the script, but she spoke about the challenging logistics of working actors. From auditioning, rejections, pay, insurance, traveling, and often not always a place to call home, it’s not all glamorous. She also highlights the challenges that Black actors face in the industry. 

Viola’s performance in the audiobook is powerful. She is honest and raw in her words and her delivery and did a beautiful job. I have learned so much about her through her book and am happy I read it. “The purpose of life is to live it” and Viola Davis is doing just that.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Racism

Moderate: Cursing, Death of parent, Grief, Pedophilia, Bullying, Abortion, Cancer, Alcohol, and Child abuse

lea's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.75

Amazing audiobook. Her childhood was unfortunately so relatable and hit me hard. I don't watch TV or movies much so I didn't know her but I'm definitely a big fan now. This was beautiful written.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Abortion, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Bullying, Violence, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Grief, Classism, Cancer, and Addiction

Minor: Blood, Child death, Cursing, Slavery, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury

gigireadswithkiki's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

5.0

Every single performance I’ve seen Viola Davis in, her acting ability has taken my breath away. I’m usually reticent toward celebrity memoirs but this takes the cake for one of the best memoirs I’ve read. As Davis takes readers through her difficult and tumultuous backstory with searing candidness, we begin to understand the many layers of who she is and how she came to be the person she is today. From the racist climate of the East coast to the colorism glaringly prevalent in both film/stage and the Blck community, Davis’ voice is emotionally intelligent and critically astute. There are definitely very dark moments layered through out this story, so I would definitely recommend checking content warnings on those, but each of these moments is handled with immense care and grace. I really loved this read, it’s definitely made me want to watch “How to get away with murder”.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty

Moderate: Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Classism, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Racism, Death of parent, Grief, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Body shaming, Infertility, Excrement, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Abortion, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Bullying, Chronic illness, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Cancer

daringdelaney's review

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

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

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