Reviews tagging 'Infertility'

Finding Me by Viola Davis

96 reviews

time4tori2read's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

Viola Davis poignantly recounts her story in such a way that makes the reader feel as if they were right alongside her throughout her moments. Listening to Viola Davis read her own story made it incredibly powerful and the reader could hear the pain, elation, and other emotions clearly in her voice. This is not one to miss. I highly recommend it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse

Moderate: Infertility, Death of parent, and Grief

Minor: Abortion and Medical content

yomireads's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

Viola Davis is a master at the craft of storytelling, evidenced not just in her brilliant talent honed to a razor's edge through dedication in her career as an actress, but in the way this memoir enraptured me from start to finish. This story is one steeped in life's trauma, but more importantly, reflects the break-back work of taking the adversity and shit thrown your way, and persevering. A brutally honest read of how even for all the agonizingly hard work Viola put into her talent as an actress, the reality is that luck was a deciding factor in her career.

I was moved by her resilience in the face of abuse to forgive, her faith when she felt abandoned, her candid approach to therapy, and so so much more. I'm better for having read this book, and I scarcely feel this way about books.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Sexual assault, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Cursing

Moderate: Animal death, Sexism, Classism, Misogyny, Infertility, Abortion, Addiction, and Alcoholism

Minor: Incest

emswantree's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

4.5

I don’t know how she did it but Viola Davis was able to share the hardest parts of her life in a straightforward way that is not about self pity but more about this is how things are for low income people of color. She was honest about her life and her career- her shortcomings and her healing. I am not a fan of the celebrity memoir but this one was so much more than that for me. I loved it and now need to go watch more of her movies. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Racism, Sexual violence, Adult/minor relationship, Infertility, Child abuse, and Alcoholism

mecmccann's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense fast-paced

5.0

This book was everything I needed and more. When she said “The purpose of life is to live it” agghhhhhh I needed that 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abortion, Addiction, Rape, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Misogyny, Body shaming, Cancer, Drug abuse, Infertility, Sexism, Child abuse, Classism, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, and Mental illness

mariasilva's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Violence, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Grief, Racism, Sexual violence, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Drug abuse, Rape, Excrement, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Terminal illness, Child death, Death, Incest, Infertility, and Medical trauma

maemiller_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse

Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Bullying, Animal death, Blood, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Cancer

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Abortion, Drug abuse, Excrement, and Infertility

seullywillikers's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

I've always admired Ms. Davis as an actor, and this memoir is the catalyst for falling in love with her as a person. Raw, honest, brutal, and beautiful, listening to Ms. Davis tell her story without flinching, pulling punches, or apology, has been an incredible experience. Her compassion and empathy are without compare, and her focus on seeing the humanity in all people is a testament to her strength and inner goddess.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Cancer, Grief, Infertility, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Alcoholism, Excrement, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Racism, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Terminal illness

nrogers_1030's review against another edition

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

5.0

One of the most powerful biographies I’ve ever listened to.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Violence, Blood, Bullying, Cursing, Rape, Domestic abuse, Racism, Toxic relationship, Racial slurs, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Abortion, Pedophilia, Incest, Infertility, and Pregnancy

Minor: Terminal illness, Cancer, and Medical content

leonormsousa's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring medium-paced

4.0

QUOTE 

"It is a widely held belief that dark-skinned women just don't do it for a lot of Black men. It's a mentality rooted in both racism and misogyny, that you have no value as a woman if you do not turn them on, if you are not desirable to them. It's ingrained thinking, dictated by oppression." 

THINGS I ENJOYED

• Viola Davis' narration in the audiobook: she is a powerhouse!
• What a life story!
• Great insights into the world of acting (theatre, cinema and tv), including the difficulties in “making it” and the prejudice within it
• The way Viola’s dedication to her art is palpable is incredible and inspiring
• It’s a very raw book and it definitely appeals to your emotions

THINGS I DIDN'T ENJOY

• There are sections where the book jumps back and forward in time, without references, and it gets a bit confusing/hard to follow

RECOMMENDED TO

• If you’re into memoirs, you’ll probably like this one!
• Viola Davis fans and appreciators of the art of acting will probably like this one particularly (the second half especially)
• This is a strong one and I found myself selecting almost every item from the TW list, so be aware of that going in!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Grief, Animal death, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Violence, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Abortion, Cancer, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, Death of parent, Rape, Infertility, and Vomit

minibean24's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

Viola’s story is incredible, and her memoir is beautifully written and painfully raw. I felt like I could feel her hurt. Her narration in the audiobook is fantastic- it made all the important people in her life absolutely come to life. **Please pay attention to the content warnings, as some she discusses in detail and are quite hard to hear about, even if they are not a trigger!**

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Child abuse, Cancer, Abortion, Violence, Child death, Death of parent, Racism, Racial slurs, Domestic abuse, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Addiction, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and Incest

Minor: Kidnapping, Infertility, Drug use, Sexism, and Drug abuse