Scan barcode
A review by ianders
Where Am I Now? True Stories of Girlhood and Accidental Fame by Mara Wilson
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
4.0
I knew Mara Wilson from a couple movies I saw as a kid, but then I sort of forgot about her for a long stretch of time until she started appearing in some youtube videos. I wasn't even aware she had written a book until very recently. When I learned that, I thought it would be interesting to read about what happened to her after her career as a child actress basically ended. Plus, I knew through the vine that Mara Wilson also dealt with mental health issues, and I'm always interested in learning how other people cope with that.
Mara Wilson's book turned out to be a good insight into what dealing with OCD is like. Obviously, Mara doesn't speak in the name of every person who has OCD and your mileage may vary, but still when you don't know much about the disorder I figure raeding the testimony of someone who does is a good start. Mara doesn't only talk about OCD of course; she talks about her family life, her time in Hollywood, her experience with grief and the loss of her mother, growing up as a sort-of celebrity, etc. However, OCD informed, and in some ways was shaped by, her life experiences. And although I don't have OCD, I related to her on the basis of dealing with mental health issues and neurodivergence myself.
Biographies doesn't make you Know or Understand a person fully, but some of them help to humanize people who, a lot of the time, aren't thought of as people on the same level as the everyday man, woman and others. I feel Mara Wilson is one of those people who has been relagated to "that girl who was in Matilda" and that short-take sometimes make people feel entitled or make them act rudely. So reading her bio gave me perspective, and I'm glad for that even though she is someone I barely know of.
Mara Wilson's book turned out to be a good insight into what dealing with OCD is like. Obviously, Mara doesn't speak in the name of every person who has OCD and your mileage may vary, but still when you don't know much about the disorder I figure raeding the testimony of someone who does is a good start. Mara doesn't only talk about OCD of course; she talks about her family life, her time in Hollywood, her experience with grief and the loss of her mother, growing up as a sort-of celebrity, etc. However, OCD informed, and in some ways was shaped by, her life experiences. And although I don't have OCD, I related to her on the basis of dealing with mental health issues and neurodivergence myself.
Biographies doesn't make you Know or Understand a person fully, but some of them help to humanize people who, a lot of the time, aren't thought of as people on the same level as the everyday man, woman and others. I feel Mara Wilson is one of those people who has been relagated to "that girl who was in Matilda" and that short-take sometimes make people feel entitled or make them act rudely. So reading her bio gave me perspective, and I'm glad for that even though she is someone I barely know of.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Mental illness