2023 is coming to a close. Can you believe it? In 2023, I found myself reading more than ever and really getting into memoirs! I have surpassed my goal of 50 books for the year, and probably at least 10 of the books I read were memoirs. Three of out of the five of my best memoirs for 2023 were actually published in 2023, so you do have to bear with me there 😉
If you are like me and enjoy listening to memoirs via audio book, you can get 2 free audio books with Audible Premium Plus here!
I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
I know this one came out in 2022, but it had a HUGE wait-list at the library so this was the first book I read in 2023! I would also say that it was the best memoir I read this year!
This memoir is written by Jennette McCurdy who is a former child actress who was in a couple of shows on Nickelodeon in the 2000’s. Specifically the one that I watched her on: iCarly. There’s been reports of alleged misconduct coming out in recent years about the creator of iCarly, Dan Schneider. Jennette touches on her interactions with Dan Schneider in the book; however, the majority of the memoir is about her childhood and rise to fame with the center point being her relationship with her mother. Her mother passed away a few years ago, but Jennette talks about the abuse that she encountered with her mother and her complicated relationship with her mom. The audio book is narrated by Jennette and it was really well done and made me cry.
If you grew up watching Jennette on Nickelodeon, I think you will enjoy this memoir!
Why do we romanticize the dead? Why can’t we be honest about them? Especially moms. They’re the most romanticized of anyone.
Jennette McCurdy, I’m Glad My Mom Died
Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
Michelle Zauner is part of the indie-rock band, Japanese Breakfast. If I am being honest, I have heard maybe one Japanese Breakfast song, but that did not stop me from LOVING this book. You absolutely do not need to know anything about or be a fan of Michelle or her band to thoroughly love this memoir.
Michelle talks about growing up Korean-American and the sometimes complicated relationship she had with her mother. I think a lot of women can relate to some of the aspects of Michelle’s relationship with her mom, but Michelle also talks about culture, food, and grief. It’s a beautifully written memoir that made me cry!
I remember these things clearly because that was how my mother loved you, not through white lies and constant verbal affirmation, but in subtle observations of what brought you joy, pocketed away to make you feel comforted and cared for without even realizing it.
Michelle Zauner, Crying in H Mart
The Woman In Me by Britney Spears
This memoir was highly anticipated for anyone like me who enjoys pop culture, especially if you grew up in the 90s or early 2000s. When Britney was finally released from her conservatorship, she signed a book deal and I feel like we have all been eagerly awaiting it since!
I did the audio book for The Woman In Me, and Britney only speaks briefly at the beginning to introduce the book. I wish the whole thing was narrated by her, but I completely understand her resistance to do so and have to relive the things that she talks about in it.
Open Book by Jessica Simpson
OKAY OKAY I know this one didn’t come out in 2023, but I read it in 2023 OK? If you enjoy pop culture and have not read Jessica Simpson’s memoir, you have to add it to your list. It’s one of the best done celebrity memoirs. I was not even remotely a big Jessica Simpson fan but it made me see her in such a different light.
There’s specifically one part of the book that really got me, where Jessica talks about performing at a chili cook-off where she wore high waisted jeans. When the photos were released, the media tore her apart. I even remember this in 2009 watching Entertainment Tonight with my mom and them referring to her as curvy and implying that she had gotten fat.
Looking back it was absolutely INSANE to consider her fat in the photos, but I remember watching them talk about her on TV and thinking “oh she is big” and thinking she looked bad, which negatively messed with my own self-image. She admits in the book that she was a size 4 when those photos were taken. A FOUR!!! That is nowhere near overweight, but she was body shamed like crazy at the time. That incident was seared into my memory, so it was really heartbreaking to hear it from her perspective.
I don’t think you have to be a big Jessica Simpson fan to enjoy this book (I’m not), but if you enjoy pop culture and especially grew up loving it in the 2000s, you will enjoy this memoir!
Spare by Prince Harry Duke of Sussex
This was definitely not my favorite memoir I read this year– in fact, I think it needed a LOT cut out of it, but there was a lot of interesting things that I learned from this book.
The parts about his time in the military were the most boring for me to get through and I really wish it had been cut down significantly. There just wasn’t a lot of interesting information that he was conveying. The parts I found the most interesting were the parts about his mom (Princess Diana), dating and marrying Meghan Markle, and leaving the royal family. His mom was by far the most interesting parts though. Especially the parts after her death were especially heart breaking. He talks about how for a long time he believed that she faked her death to escape the media and that she would eventually come back for him. Eventually he works with the police to see all of the photos and things taken from her death to get some closure. Harry talks about looking at photos of the crash and that there were all these light orbs in the photos that he initially thought were like a ghost or her spirit after she passed. But then he realizes that the photos were ones that they confiscated from the paparazzi that were at the car crash. The light orbs were photos flash from the paparazzi that continued to take photos and try to capture Diana’s face instead of attempting to help her after her car crashed.
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