I love this woman with my entire being.
So yes, I will absolutely be biased in my opinion of her memoir.
Her memoir starts the way most do, with her childhood. The trauma she suffered from people who were supposed to love and care for her breaks my heart. She tells this story with such immense vulnerability. It details her rise to stardom along with all the heartbreak that came along with it. The photos she took to make a little cash, learning to live her life as an absolute sexpot, and living a very public persona while trying to nurture the little girl she once was.
One quote speaks volumes about how she was perceived in the public eye vs how she saw herself.
"The truth is I've never fooled anyone. I've
let men sometimes fool themselves. Men sometimes didn't bother to find
out who and what I was. Instead they would invent a character for me. I
wouldn't argue with them. They were obviously loving somebody I wasn't.
When they found this out, they would blame me for disillusioning
them--and fooling them."
What I loved most about this memoir is hearing Marilyn talk about herself in a way that felt real. It felt natural. It felt like she finally wanted the world to see her as she saw herself. While her memoir is unfinished, I managed to snag an illustrated edition that included photos taken by Milton Greene. Dozens upon dozens of iconic Marilyn photos can be found in these pages and I absolutely loved it.
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