A review by katielcurry
In the Water They Can't See You Cry by Amanda Beard

3.0

The book was good, and I applaud Amanda for her honesty about her difficult journey. I will say though that I didn't enjoy reading about her drug abuse, binging and cutting or her volatile temper. The most enjoyable portion of the book was the last few chapters when she chose to go to therapy and began dealing with the hardships of her childhood and of being in the spotlight at a young age. I wish there had been more of a balance between the amount of detail about her poor choices and the amount of detail about her recovery and her life since therapy. In most memoirs, I find myself rooting for the main character; whereas in this book, I found that I was in no way connected to or sympathetic with Amanda or her struggles. I also found myself wondering what her ex-boyfriends had to say about their portrayal in the book. Some other reviewers mention that the author seems whiny and that she hasn't progressed much past her 14 year old self. There are definitely many moments in the book where I felt the same way. There was just something lacking in the book as a whole-and I feel like it was heart.