Review: Where Am I Now? – Mara Wilson

Book Description

(From Amazon)

This funny, poignant, daringly honest book introduces Mara Wilson the former child actress best known for her starring roles in “Matilda “and “Mrs. Doubtfire “as a brilliant new chronicler of the experience that is growing up young and female

Mara Wilson has always felt a little young and a little out of place: as the only child on a film set full of adults, the first daughter in a house full of boys, the sole clinically depressed member of the cheerleading squad, a valley girl in New York and a neurotic in California, and an adult the world still remembers as a little girl. Tackling everything from how she first learned about sex on the set of “Melrose Place,” to losing her mother at a young age, to getting her first kiss (or was it kisses?) on a celebrity canoe trip, to not being cute enough to make it in Hollywood, these essays tell the story of one young woman s journey from accidental fame to relative (but happy) obscurity. But they also illuminate a universal struggle: learning to accept yourself, and figuring out who you are and where you belong.

Why I Bought It

I love Mara Wilson. Well… to be honest I love Matilda but Mara is the closest thing I’m gonna get! I thought it would be fascinating to read about her life and find out more about the person behind my favourite character. It had been sitting on my amazon wish list for months until I discovered third party sellers who sell second hand books which means I can finally afford more books!

Overall Thoughts

I think I actually expected this to be one of those books that I sort of like but don’t really go mad on but I was wrong.

I always wanted to find out more about the actor behind Matilda and this really gave me the dose I needed.

Mara Wilson is brutally honest about how her acting career when she was younger took its toll on her mental health and even goes into detail about all of the mental health issues she has had. I loved how honest she is – she doesn’t try to sugar-coat it or turn her memoir into a self-help book. Instead she says everything as it is and exactly how it felt for her.

I loved reading about her friendships with other actors, especially Danny DeVito and Robin Williams. I’d previously heard quite a bit about her friendship with Danny DeVito and was really interested in how much he had looked after her while she was working on Matilda.

The only reason that it didn’t make it to five stars from me is that I hoped for a bit more on Matilda, but she seemed to glaze over it a lot.

Overall though, it’s a really interesting read and definitely worth picking up.

Buy Where Am I Now? from Amazon here.

Rating: 📚📚📚📚

Genre: Memoir

Recommended to: Matilda, Mrs Doubtfire and Miracle on 34th Street lovers

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Have you read it? Let me know in the comments!