Take a photo of a barcode or cover
“Love happens. Loss happens. Change and growth happen at different paces for different people, and sometimes the paces just don’t line up.”
“Why do we romanticize the dead? Why can’t we be honest about them? Especially moms. They’re the most romanticized of anyone.“
I thought I was in a reading slump, but it turns out I wasn’t really in one. I read this book every day, and even though it wasn’t amazing, reading it felt as natural as breathing. I had forgotten what that felt like it had been so long since I truly lost myself in a book. While this particular story didn’t make me smile or laugh, reading it felt like taking baby steps back into the world of books.
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Death, Eating disorder, Blood
Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol
Moderate: Sexual content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Stalking
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol
Moderate: Cursing, Sexual content
Minor: Infidelity
all the attention grabbing headlines i’ve seen about this book have been false in my opinion. not because they’re not factual, but because this memoir cannot be reduced to a simple clickbaity headline. this is so much more than her childhood acting & so much more than her time on nickelodeon. i’m glad she gave that period of her life appropriate expansion in the book, but didn’t stay there. jennette is so much more than her time on those tween sitcoms. she explores intense feelings, sometimes unexplainable feelings about grief & resentment. her growth & newfound identity should be the focus of ALL media relating to this memoir.
after reading about her acting career, i almost feel guilty about the amount of love i had for icarly. that show was & still is a comfort show, one that makes me laugh & i cried like a baby when it ended. after this, i don’t know how i’ll ever be able to watch it the same way. she hid so much pain & i feel so bad so many people in her life failed her.
jennette was so candid & open about many things that haunted her for a long time: her childhood, acting, her mother, her relationship with food. i felt like i was witness to such growth over the book’s pages.
also, the title is chef’s kiss. i am forever an endorser of severing family ties & setting boundaries for those who are no longer beneficial for your mental health, even if— especially if they’re family. i applaud jennette for that title.
this book is currently sold out everywhere & also crashed the barnes & noble website. it makes my heart immensely happy to see so many people wanting to read this book & send jeannette their support. i hope she knows how much we all love her & deeply care about her.