Geena Davis

I expected to enjoy this, as a fan of Geena, but what I wasn't expecting was to find someone so relatable! Through her writing, Geena seems funny, charming, and incredibly genuine. The way she talks about growing up being taught never to be a bother, never to speak up, never to be loud, really hit home. I appreciated reading not just about her experiences on various movies, or about her several marriages, but also about her journey of self-acceptance and how she is still working on standing show more up for herself. It's not a linear journey, for sure, and it helped remind me that I can keep working on stifling some of my own "polite" tendencies. I definitely recommend this, even if you don't normally read celeb bios. show less

A breezy, amiable memoir from actor Geena Davis. You get a real sense of her voice here, and—perhaps oddly in a celebrity memoir?—the most engaging part of the book is when she is writing about her parents. Her love for them, New Englander quirks and all, clearly shines through. However, this is neither a salacious example of the genre (the biggest dirt you get about Davis' career is that Bills Murray and Hurt were assholes on set; this is my shocked face) nor particularly raw or deep. show more This reads like the book-length version of the kind of interview an actor does in the run-up to the release of a movie: carefully calculated with PR approval to be just the right kind of vulnerable, just enough quirky, just enough girl-next-door. Having read Dying of Politeness, I feel like I like Davis but don't know her at all—which may be just how she likes it. show less

I've loved Geena Davis for many, many years! I had been intending to read this when I first saw it in the library, but I didn't grab it right away. Then, one of my children (20-something) and I began watching the Netflix series G.L.O.W. Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling. (It's a few years old, and it was cancelled largely due to COVID... we're bummed.) Geena was on the final season, and she was the very badass that she says (in the book) she aspires to be. That was enough to send me running for show more the nearest copy of her book!

Geena does not disappoint! She's very funny, incredibly smart, and she writes very well. I kind of get the impression there's not much she CAN'T do--but I also believe, after reading her book, that she'd say that's the same for me and any female out there! Geena touches on many of the movies she's made, her relationships along the way, successes and failures. She's very gracious about the people who have been positive influences in her life; she also doesn't hesitate to point out some ick behaviors by people who should know better. (Read the book!) I can see myself coming back to read this one again! show less

I only read memoirs if they are narrated by the author and this one is perfect in that format. I loved learning more about Davis’ unique upbringing in the Cape Cod area, & her quirky personality, which shifted from extreme politeness to finally have any ability to stand up for herself later in her career. She’s been in so many classic movies & has done so much for gender representation in the industry. I still hate how Hollywood treats women.