No comments about Liz: An Intimate Biography of Elizabeth Taylor/Cassettes.

5 comments about ME AND MY SHADOWS: A Family Memoir.

1. I recently read this book. Although it is not the best autobiography I have ever read it is not the worst either. It is a good interesting read. Ms. Luft is honest and straight forward with how she saw things. I have read other posts blasting her for false statements. And I have to ask those blasting her: Where you there? Did you live it?
   
   One reviewer is under the mistaken idea that Judy was forced to live in London at the end of her life. Not so. She went there quite often to do concerts and I believe was there to do a concert when she passed away. No one forced her out of the country if you read the book no one forced her to do anything no one dared!
   
   Frankly if you want to know the real Judy read this book from someone who loves and cares about her and was there with her constantly. As for cashing in on her mother I don't find that is the case here. I think she just wants to tell her side of the story. After all most books about Ms. Garland are full of false stories and written by people who really did want to cash in on her name. One that comes to mind is her last husband Mickey Deans, who only knew her for a few months not years. Talk about a garbage book.
   
   I didn't find that she was trashing her mother at all on the contrary she was trying to set the record straight. I had no doubt while reading this that she loved her mother very much. It had to be very painful to write this book. On many occasions in the book she says her mother was a great mother. These people blasting Ms. Luft are obviously people who have never lived with someone this dependant on drugs and this mentally affected by those drugs. As one reviewer says "sure she could be difficult, what addict isn't?" Difficult? She threw knifes at people on at least two occasions! This is a reviewer who has never had to deal with this type of problem. Thirty years of the volume of drugs Ms. Garland ingested is going to generate someone that is more than just difficult.
   
   To get on Ms. Luft's case for moving in with her father 10 months before the death of her mother is ridiculous. To say, as one reviewer did, at least the "sleazy hanger-on" were there at the end is ludicrous. Ms. Luft was a teenager. She should not have had to continue to live in that environment. It was not her responsibility to take care of her mother at that age. She did for many years, but it took its toll on her. It showed great strength to walk away.
   
   Reading some of these scathing reviews leads me to believe the people didn't really read the book. They are just Judy fanatics that cannot stand that there icon was not a saint. She was human with human frailties.
   
   Another reviewer blasts Sid Luft and his treatment of Judy and how he pushed her too hard. The book clearly says that Sid Luft did not want to be her manager that Judy wanted him to manage her, so he did. The book also states he watched out for her and monitored her pill intake so she would not take more than perscribed. From what is decribed in the book he had nothing but her best intrest at heart and would not do anything to hurt her.
   
   Everyone has a point of view. Growing up my memories are not the same as my sisters or brothers, but that does not make mine or their memories false just a different point of view. This is true of all families, whether you are famous or not, so the same holds true for Ms. Luft's memories of her family. She was there. This is her point of view on actual events that occured in her life; the reviewers here were not there, so if you want to learn about the real Judy Garland as seen through the eyes of someone very close to her read this book.



2. What is incredible about this book is Lorna Luft's first becoming acquainted, in her mid-thirties, with the theory of alcoholism as a family disease.
   
   It brings to mind Liza Minnelli's appearance on "Inside the Actors Studio" a year or two ago. She told the audience to look up alcoholism, because it actually is a disease!
   
   It makes one wonder whether these two were living under glittery, spangled rocks, or something.
   
   The book is an interesting read, but the many, many pages devoted to Ms. Luft's late-in-life revelations about her mother's and her sister's addictions are like patiently watching a child play with color crayons: You know you're doing the polite thing, but Gawd, it's boring.
   
   Finally, I wonder who edited this book. "Me and Joey," and "Me and Mama," and "Me and Liza," and so on. After the first few dozen, it's like reading a letter from camp.
   
   Is it to remind the reader of the title of the book he already has in his hand, or is it just plain bad grammar?



3. Its difficult to believe that anyone anywhere would get anything out of this auto biography. her whole point seemed to be that Sid Luft was the greatest man and has gotten a bad rap . Her book vindicates him, and she has a way of portraying her mom as a nightmare without actually coming across as being a rotten daughter. Very clever of her but unfortunately her book isnt as clever or well written to make up for the denial and genuine lack of insight or honesty in the book.
   Talking about your drug problems is NOT honest. its just common knowledge and quite acceptable in todays society.
   Lorna seems to reduce everything in her life to addiction, her mothers, her own and her sisters.
   As for Liza, well, i agree with another review, Lorna manages to talk alot about Liza's addiction while glossing over her own.
   And as for the quote on the back of her book
   " Lorna is the most talented of us all"
   Judy Garland
   well, i dont want to state the obvious but
   We know who we're talking about when we say
   JUDY or
   LIZA
   how many trys would someone have to come up with when they heard
   Lorna
   before they said Luft?



4. This is a great book and being a Judy Garland admirer, nothing about her life would make me not be a fan but it's more refreshing to hear what happened from someone who was there instead of a biographer who "makes up" stories of what he/she has heard.
   
   This is a great book - it's truthful, compassionate and real.



5. I read Luft's version of her own mothers story. A very good book, told from someone close enough to feel the total pain and agony that the rest of the world felt- only amplified as her daughter.
   Luft's book does paint a little fairy tale into the mix, but is a shocking story of watching your mother slip down a long dark slope.
   Luft tells about Judy's start in Hollywood which is equally as interesting as the photo's in the book. Luft paints that love story between her mother and father and leaves you feeling his loss for her.
   She also explains the relationship between her and sister Liza Minelli.
   It's a great boigraphy.

1 comments about Sharkproof.

1. This book is easily one of the most amazing books I have read. It is my business to read books on careers and this is in the top five books without a doubt. Not only is it motivational and informative, but it will help you learn what holds you back from taking the risks you need to take -- not just to succeed -- but to excel.

2 comments about Seeing the Franklin D. Roosevelt Home & Museum with Julian Padowicz.

1. As a middle school instructor of U.S.history I found Mr. Padowicz's taped presentation: Seeing the Franklin D. Roosevelt Home & Museum to be a valuable teaching tool. His "tell it like it was" approach was refreshing and my students seemed to appreciate his honest and open approach to the many complex facets of the Roosevelt's lives and accomplishments.

   In or out of the classroom I highly recommend Mr. Padowicz's book on tape having found it to be both entertaining and informative.




2. This six hour, five cassette audiobook presentation of Julian Padowicz's experiences and observational commentary showcases the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt museum and home. Julian describes their lives, the history that surrounded them, and the history they made. Listeners will learn about such contemporary notables as Sara Roosevelt, George VI and Elizabeth of Britain, Winston Churchill, Theodore Roosevelt, Louis Howe, Lucy Mercer, Al Smith, Harry Hopkins, and many, many others. The times and circumstances of the innovative 32nd American president include the Great Depression, the new Deal, World War II, and the personal drama of disability and marital challenges. This highly recommended "theater of the mind" format is superbly recorded and provides listening that is as entertaining as it is informative.

5 comments about What Falls Away.

1. It's a beautifully written book, which reveals a lot about her past which is sad, and not revealed in such detail before. But the degree to which she bashes Woody Allen, including very personal details about his life, was excessive.



2. I had meant to read this memoir for years, mostly because of the curiosity I had surrounding the sordid mess between Woody Allen and Soon-Yi Previn. I figured reading this book would probably set the record straight, and it definitely seemed to.
   
   The whole book was well-written, and I wonder why, if she had no help from a ghostwriter, didn't she try her hand at further writing efforts. It would make sense that she might be especially cut out for writing for children, as much as she has dedicated her life to them.
   
   Her early life as a child of a famous actress and director was fascinating and I enjoyed the bits and pieces from her various and many acquaintances, friends, and associates. She does not say so much about her siblings throughout the book, which made me constantly wonder throughout the reading of this book if any of them were very close.
   
   Her relationships with men seemed to be tenuous and immature. It seemed like she didn't really fight for either marriage, to Sinatra or Previn. In fact it seemed like she went into marriage both times with blinders on, without really knowing either men.
   
   Unfortunately it seemed to be a mix of naivete and neediness that led her to spend about twelve years with Woody Allen, who she potrays as the most juvenile, immature, temperamental, arrogant, rude, socially inept person I've ever read about in any memoir. Indeed, her biggest mistake was wasting all those years with that person.
   
   It is ghastly to think about what Ms. Farrow went through when the ---- hit the fan with Soon-Yi and Woody Allen (I love how she starts to refer to him as 'Woody Allen' instead of 'Woody' when she finally starts to come to her senses). I don't understand why it took so long to finally extract him out of her family, though. She gave him far too many chances and allowed him way too much access after the accusations began to fly.
   
   Overall, though, it is without a doubt that she has been a doting and loving mother to all her children, and I applaud her humanitarian efforts. Angelina Jolie could take some notes from Ms. Farrow.



3. I have always wanted to know what exactly happened between Mia and Woody Allen (I knew he'd been accused of bad things regarding her daughter Soon-Yi but didn't know much more than that) and this book sheds a lot of light on those rarely-talked about circumstances. This relationship takes up a good portion of the book, which is to be expected because of the length of time they'd been together not to mention the custody battles. But I definitely found out way more than I had known coming into the book. She is awfully kind to Mr. Allen in the book by not totally attacking him like she could have, considering what he was accused of doing. I feel like she is honest and forthright enough to be believed in these matters. Fascinating stuff.
   I'd always been interested in why she married Frank Sinatra as well, however I still feel like I didn't really get to find out exactly why they became interested in one another. I liked reading what glimpses into their life together she gave, like the time he came out of a casino in Vegas a little steamed over something that had happened inside moments earlier, hopped on a golf cart and drove away only to veer back suddenly (with Mia in the cart with him) and drive it into a plate glass window in the casino. Maybe it's in retrospect, but she really seems to take his behavior in stride.
   And that's one little thing that irritated me in this book. Basically, it was how she was (and kind of still is) extraordinarily PASSIVE about things that would elicit much more of a response in people. If she hadn't been such a passive personality, she would never have gotten involved in ANY of her relationships. It's like she was a young girl being led around by whatever guy was interested in her at the time and she just did whatever they wanted to do. She followed Previn on tour and to foreign coutries, basically putting her career on hold; she followed Sinatra around the same way, seeing as how he was a tad bit controlling and didn't want her to work at all and wanted her to be his arm candy 24-7 whenever it suited him to have her there; and as for Woody Allen, she should have seen THAT train wreck coming a mile away but she didn't.
   Among other things, this book can serve as a warning to teenage girls in the ways of choosing relationships that are healthy and unhealthy for you.
   I do admire her abilities as a mother, though. She must have the patience of a saint. I had no idea how many children she'd adopted. She spends a lot of time writing about her kids and her adoption experiences, which were interesting as well.



4. This book was a suprisingly interesting read, and Mia Farrow strikes me as a caring, compassionate person, but rather naive and illogical in her thinking. For a person who writes so well and is an avid reader of philosophers, she appears to be quite intelligent but strangely out of touch with reality. Perhaps this is due, in part, to a childhood that was both very happy (except for a bout of polio) and extremely sheltered and isolated from "the real world." It is apparent that she had little parental guidance past childhood as she seems to have received no warning that an affair/marriage to Frank Sinatra, more than twice her age, might be a mistake. Her judgement of the character of others, even as she grows older, is inconsistent at best . . . she calls her father both a "devout Catholic" and a "womanizer" in the same sentence; she identifies with Sinatra's lack of self knowledge (ignoring the fact that he should have had, at that age, twice her maturity); and she "adores" her children and "loves" Woody Allen but turns a blind eye to his emotional detachment from most of her kids while being overly tolerant of his inappropriate behavior toward others. While the book does, very vividly, take you into a "Hollywood" life, it seems sad that, by the end, Mia (while acknowleding how much she has learned) seems very vulnerable to repeating the same mistakes.



5. Ms. Farrow is not only a talented actress, she is also a surprisingly good writer. She takes us behind the scenes of "Old Hollywood" in her memoir WHAT FALLS AWAY, and shares some of the pains and joys of growing up in an atmosphere where the motto seemed to be "Show the World how well you're doing even if you don't have a dime!" Mia bravely talks about her own mistakes which are so much a part of living and growing up. Behind the tall gates, idols and icons become real people with ordinary struggles.
   
   This is not your run-of-the-mill Hollywood memoir. This is an excellent book which happens to be well written. {It should be noted that Mia is also a well recognized humanitarian who has helped and/or adopted numerous children with various challenges.}

5 comments about Psychic Warrior: Inside the Cia's Stargate Program : The True Story of a Soldier's Espionage and Awakening.

1. Very disappointing. The story of the actual work he did as a remote viewer was fascinating. The rest is dreck and casts doubt on the credibility of everything he writes.
   
   He plays the victim card with the Army, acting surprised that his superiors didn't want him to publicize details about his highly classified duties.
   
   The reader is left to wonder how much of his experience he distorts or omits. For example, he conveniently forgets to mention his apparently romantic relationship with a subordinate until it comes up in the investigation the Army conducts against him, then tries to justify it.
   
   He also is inconsistent. He writes about how unhappy he was in his assignment after Stargate, then about how he curses at the person who calls him out of the blue to offer him a job back at Stargate.
   
   He comes across as an undisciplined narcissist who sacrifices his career and family life for his own selfish gain. It is evident why he is an outcast in the military's remote viewing community.



2. This book is a waste of time, because all non-practical stories, and lack of facts. Very tiring reading.



3. I bought this for my husband for Christmas. He started the book and within a couple of days he was finished and concluded by saying YOU'VE GOTTA READ THIS ! Which he rarely recommends anything.



4. This book was impossible to put down. Morehouse tells his incredible story in such a down-to-earth manner that you feel like he is right there talking to you. And because of what he is telling you about remote viewing and his experiences "in the ether" you, you can't help but get chills up your spine! As a fellow military officer, I was equally as interested in reading about the military's reaction to Morehouse's story, and was shocked to read the depths to which the intelligence community went to keep Morehouse from going public with his information. An absolutely incredible personal account that you will NOT be able to forget. Very highly recommended!



5. but I'm not sure if this book is the best place to learn about it. Too many things on the military side don't seem to add up and it left me wondering how much of the information in this book is accurate, how much is conjecture and how much is just sensationalism.
   
   I don't doubt that the U.S. conducted research into remote viewing... evidence is very strong that the Soviets did as well during the Cold War. But remote viewing would have been of very little value and the program itself a dead-end militarily. It's a pity that there don't seem to be any books which seriously looks at this subject, the origins behind it, any possible successes, etc. Instead all we seem to have is this.
   
   A fascinating read, but take it with a grain of salt.

5 comments about Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig.

1. I read this book while in middle school and it inspired me. Yes even a Red Sox fan enjoyed this book. This is not a book about a Yankee or baseball but a story about an amazing person.



2. Author Jonathan Eig has written a fantastic character study of New York Yankees great Lou Gehrig, a shy, Momma's boy who always followed the rules and didn't want to let anyone down. A proud man, Gehrig always handled himself with class. He had few equals on or off the field.
   
   Eig paints a sensitive portrait of Gehrig while discussing his relationships with his mother, his wife, Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio and his other teammates as well as Yankees management.
   
   Never considered colorful enough to merit the press' attention, Gehrig played in the shadows of Ruth and DiMaggio.
   
   Thanks to locating letters between Gehrig and his physicians at the Mayo Clinic, Eig is able to shed light on the relationship the Yankee great had with his physicians, what the doctors told him about his disease (ALS) and how he handled it.
   
   After reading Eig's biography, you'll have a deeper understanding of Gehrig, the man, and a better appreciation of Gehrig, the baseball player.



3. Lou Gehrig has always been an interesting subject for me. I'm a so-so baseball fan, but I am a fan of individual's who appear to have the same values and morals that I hold.
   
   Jonathan Eig does a very nice job in this book of focusing on Gehrig's baseball qualities and his qualities as a man. I really enjoyed the book that gave a tremendous insight into how Gehrig acted behind closed doors.
   
   A few things that really interested me:
   
   I didn't know he was nearly that good of a baseball player. If ALS wouldn't have ended his career he might have gone down as the greatest first baseman ever. Eig did a very nice job in citing statistics and comparing those to other players in Gehrig's era and in the modern era.
   
   I also didn't know that a number of times Gehrig would play an inning or two and get credit for a game. I appreciate the fact that the writer didn't get caught up in the legend of Gehrig and pointed out the streak and how it lived basically because of the manipulation of Gehrig and Yankee manager Joe McCarthy. That definitely diminshes the accomplishment of consecutive games played in my mind... not by much because Gehrig did play with a lot of injuries and issues.... but it does diminish it. It also puts that much more of a wow factor into the consecutive games streak of Cal Ripken because I believe he had to play 5 innings to get credit for a game.
   
   That said, Eig did a really nice job in pointing out that Gehrig really was much more than just "An Iron Horse" at first base. The stats, the clutch hitting, etc. were well documented by Eig.
   
   I also liked the detail that Eig provided on ALS and Gehrig's final years. As I was reading the book, I was thinking we are sure flying through his playing career and there is a whole lot of book left here. That was because Eig wanted to take some time to describe in detail Gehrig's final years and he did a very nice job.
   
   I would suggest this book to anyone wanting to know more about Gehrig, Yankees history, or if you just want to read a great account of a man who should be well-admired for his work ethic and moral values.
   
   A great book and great subject matter.



4. I'm a Yankee hater, but I loved this book. I always found the story of Lou Gehrig to be an inspirational one. Jonathan Eig did a great job of not only telling Gehrig's story, but also making you want to root for Gehrig to survive. At times I found myself forgetting that he dies in the end, only wanting to read more about his amazing feats on the ball field. A great book that everyone should read.



5. Looking through the glass of hindsight, everyone just flat out looks better. Life is funny that way. If you were mean in reality, history may classify you as "gritty." If you were thoughtful, history may remember you as "genius." Or if you were fat, you may be labeled as "stout and strong." The story of Lou Gehrig is not necessarily an example of this. In reality I will never know. The author will probably not know either. Lou is painted as larger than life in "Luckiest Man." He was thoughtful, kind, humble, and amazing. Not only that, but he brought to the public the story of ALS and its affects. It became real and tangible to the whole world. His personal health tragedy no doubt amplifies his kinder qualities, as it would in most people's remembrance. Not to say it is undeserved, but in this book, it seems exaggerated. Gehrig is not really made into a real person. He is made into a monolithic figure. In baseball, he was one, but in his personal life, he would have hated this.
   
   I have always had a soft spot for heroes, especially heroes in baseball. No doubt Lou Gehrig is a hero in this regard. He played in the shadow of one of the largest figures in history, Babe Ruth. Not only did he thrive, but he made a name for himself that, in my opinion, out shined Ruth on the field. No one could outshine him off of it. I have no doubt that if the opposite had occurred, Ruth would never have made it in Gehrig's shadow. His accomplishments, unlike his character and personality, are in black and white. His statistics say it all. Amazing in his steadfast play, he also shone when it counted most, the World Series. Back in those days baseball meant something to everyone, and he had the privilege of playing and delivering in those times.
   
   Gehrig was a great role model, and a great player. His character and approach to the game are things I would teach my children, and plan to. These type of stories may not be completely true, but sometimes it is the legend and myth that build from simple beginnings that can shape our lives and build on our own morality.

5 comments about Martha, Inc.

1. This book is just ok. I wanted to read about marthas life and why she is such a rude and arrogant person in real life but this author takes it to a new level. He over dramatizes the whole entire book. This book would have been half the size if he left out his own fantay additions to the book. I am not a fan of Marthas and would never stand up for her but this author is better at fantasy than he is fiction.



2. Chris Byron's schtick is to pretend to be a friend of Martha Stewart, but tell her story in the most cruel light. No friend would write a book like this. Hence, from the start one feels he is disingenuous while trying to establish his cred.
   
   I am probably the one person in America who knows almost nothing about Martha Stewart, but Byron's account assembles such a string of digs that before long it gave me the feeling of being stuck in an elevator where someone had vomited. Why subject yourself to this? I skipped ahead a few times trying to find a different tone, but the guy continues his vicious ways while feigning disinterested storyteller, and I finally had to throw it down.
   
   I do not understand this writer's motivations for such unkindness.
   
   This book makes me wonder about the value of all such book. By what standard is a book considered a good book? Does it inspire us? Yes, it is well researched and well written... but so are so many others. This book is disrespectful to a fellow human being and for what purpose?
   
   With so many other books in my reading pile, I have to skip out and move to the next.



3. Martha Stewart's story has all the trappings of fiction: written and read by author Byron, it tells of her rise to fame, her hidden world, and a background which led a quiet girl to become the richest self-made businesswoman in America, selling her confidence and poise to a nation. An intriguing story of Martha's surprising roots evolves in a memorable biography.



4. I found this book to be informative in the respect that it was not a "tell all" but instead an attempt to deliver accurate information. However, while the author tells the reader that he is a neighbor and friend of Martha's he also gives a critical review of how her busness took it's toll on her personal life. The only reason this is done is because Martha is a woman and so is expected to devote time to her family and run an empire at the same time, Of course this is not something expected of her male counterparts, Just as asking Martha about her hysterectomy is not something asked of bussnessMEN. As for some reviewers here who state that she is everything they hate about women, thats a good thing because I don't think Martha is looking for a date from you anytime soon.
   
   What this book does show is that Martha is able to overcome many problems to create an empire out of idea's that the old boy's network envy. Afterall, how dare Martha become one of the richest and most successful business woman in America by putting a value on what women do?



5. Yeah I see all these women defending Martha Stewart, because basically they think it's OK to be a mean bitch as long as it makes you a lot of money and gets you where you want to go. This is the lifestyle they aspire to, apparently, to be a bunch of greedy ballcrushers who enjoy the finer things in their spare time. Welcome to the evil side of women.
   
   Anyway, this is a pretty good book. I liked "Just Desserts" better, but this book was written later, so it has additional dirt on Mothra, such as the time she deliberately injured a neighbor's gardener with her car. I would like to know if she is still terrorizing and abusing her employees after getting out of jail. It just makes me sick that a horrible, abusive person like Mothra would be so successful. I despise her so much. She is everything that I hate in women: aggressive, greedy, grasping, vicious, controlling - always must have everything her way. It makes me sick that women continue to buy her products. It shows me they don't care if she's a mean bitch. They probably like it. That's probably what her fans are. Not all women are bad, but I really hate the bad ones with a passion and I don't take any of their garbage when I meet them.

1 comments about Marlene Dietrich: Life and Legend (4 Cassettes Read By Roddy Mcdowall).

1. Having read Maria Riva's book on her mother along with Dietrich's own autobiography, I didn't really expect any new revelations from this book -- but I couldn't have been more wrong! Mr. Bach is to be congratulated on his fascinating and respectable work honoring Miss Dietrich and her life. What a remarkable performer and a remarkable human being. We could sure use a few more like her in today's world. This is a must read for fans of the Lady and the Legend!!

5 comments about I'm The One That I Want.

1. 
   The book begins with some very painful childhood experiences... she was not just bullied, she was reviled. Even at a church sponsored summer camp, she was traded off by girls who should have been her friends, but sought social acceptance by joining in Margaret's (Moran's) humiliation. There are no adults around to intercede. Her parents seem to agree with the world's negative opinion of her. It is no surprise that she drops (flunks) out of school and finds companionship among those in society's other outcast groups.
   
   There are many raw examples of what was wrong with her life. For this reason, the book is probably censored away from the many badgered and taunted teenage girls who could use these reality lessons to understand the dynamics that are working against them. Margaret figures it out finally--- after some real hard knocks lessons.
   
   I read this in succession with Steve Martin's memoir about his stand up career Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life. In contrast, Margaret's book is much more intimate, informative and graphic. While Steve says it's lonely on the road-- Margaret describes it. The vignettes about finding a room around Fordham, driving on black ice, the booing in Monroe and the off duty bell hop, and more give the reader a real feel for what happens. Similarly, she describes how TV pilots are made from the business meeting with the humorless executives who decide what comedy shows will fly, to the high priority on the actress's weight, to the lack of interaction of the star and the writers. Martin reveals none of his experiences here.
   
   This book is raw and real. Fortunately it has an affirming ending for the reader, but especially for Margaret.



2. I've always really liked Margaret Cho when I've seen her do stand-up on television. She can be extremely funny and edgy. Imagine my disappointment, then, when I listened to (most of) this CD. I couldn't even finish it, it's so bad. It's just her reading her routines, and not even doing that very well. She sounds like she's sitting alone in a studio, bored, reading from a script - no energy, no life. Don't waste your money.



3. Margaret Cho's autobiography, a deeply personal and revealing journey through her life and career, draws you in and fascinates you. The book, written in 2001, candidly chronicles some of the most painful events imaginable. Anyone who has ever been discriminated against can relate. Cho, who is (for the most part) straight but remarkly and sincerely supportive and part of the queer community, felt the sting of anti-woman and anti-Asian prejudice from pre-school on and endured astonding "body-type" discrimination as well. She openly presents her pain, and her drug and alcohol abuse reaction to it, in a remarkably direct and frequently funny way. It's one of the few autobiographies ever that doesn't insist at the end that all the problems have been solved (autobiographers usually write that whether it's true or not.) Yet, there is a strength in Maraget Cho's words that makes the reader feel hope.
   "I'm the One That I Want," By Margeret Cho, Ballantine Books $22.95



4. i literally couldn't put the thing down. there was just nowhere that i wanted to stop! it's margaret cho's life in a nutshell and it really teaches you some things about her life that you never knew happened, that she doesn't mention in her stand-up.
   an autobiography is an autobiography. but if you love margaret cho, get this book immediately. one of the only books i actually own.



5. It's difficult to surmise that Margaret Cho, who's usually funny (at least when you watch only one of her shows, and only once, because repeating the experience is often tiring), can write such a boring, unfunny book that feels like Chicken Soup for the Sexually-liberal Korean Soul.
   
   Granted, some situations Cho describes ably, but she often winds up beating the humor into the ground, as with the incident when the producer grabbed her breast. Most of the book is annoying because of its italicized reflections and questions about the Self that are reminiscent of a diary of a teenage girl, but definitely not one of Cho's caliber.
   
   And that's too bad. Cho had the potential to hash out a really great book here. It's sad she didn't take advantage of that opportunity.