Monday, December 05, 2011

Carrie Fisher- Shockaholic (Book Review)




Somewhere in my parents' house there's a photo of an eight or nine year old me in a Princess Leia hairdo and wearing a white dress. It wasn't Halloween or Purim: I just loved the look, and I loved Carrie Fisher. Her books,  fiction and non, have kept showing us difficult truths behind the pretty princess. Shockaholic, her latest mini-memoir tells the story of what happens after Wishful Drinking (the show and the book)-- a relapse, dealing with mental illness, undergoing electric shock therapy, the death of her father, Eddie Fisher. Heavy stuff.

Carrie Fisher tells the stories with humor and grace. She's candid and funny, and she really knows Hollywood. Some of the anecdotes will be familiar to those who've seen her on stage performing Wishful Drinking or read the book; but there's plenty of new material, from spending Christmas eve with Michael Jackson and his kids to patching things up with her once upon a time-stepmother, Elizabeth Taylor.

Shockaholic is more personal, more real and and poignant than Wishful Drinking. It's another step closer to the big memoir I hope Carrie Fisher will write one day (my guess: when Debbie Reynolds moves on to the great Hollywood studio in the sky). In the meantime there are many stories and some great photos to enjoy in Shockaholic.

Carrie Fisher- Shockaholic ($9.99 Kindle edition on Amazon) is available from booksellers everywhere.

Photos of Carrie Fisher on the set of various Star Wars movies: thisisnotporn.net

3 comments:

  1. Carrie Fischer is terribly funny. But... I have to say that I was disappointed by her endorsement of Jenny Craig. She's talked at length about how badly she was treated by Hollywood after gaining weight as a result of her bipolar meds. Why turn around and become a part of the machine that perpetuates that weight pressure on other women? It's the Kelly Osbourne effect, I suppose...

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  2. There's a similar picture of me around, I'm sure :)

    I had no idea Carrie Fisher was such a prolific writer. I'll definitely have to check this out, it sounds fascinating. I'm a sucker for memoirs.

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  3. I've yet to read any of Carrie's books. This does sound interesting and I'm going to pick it up.

    ~Katherine~

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