A Paper Life

Rating:
Summary: Little Tatum is all Grown Up
Review: I was so enthusiastic to read this autobiography from Tatum O'Neal. I'm so glad I did it was a very good read. My earliest memory of Tatum O'Neal takes me back to her 1980s movie called "Little Darlings" with Kristy McNichol, Armand Assante, and Matt Dillon (who I had the largest crush on!! FYI-I met him in NYC years later and the dork wouldn't give me an autograph but I did get a hug!!)

"A Paper Life" is an unbelievable tale that is so hard to believe is true. Yet, I beleive it is. Tatum has overcome major difficulties since her childhood years it is amazing that she is such an intelligent, capable and loving person today. She certainly comes across as a courageous person that deserves alot of credit for getting over her messed up life. I can not believe her parents: Ryan O'Neal and Joanna Moore actually take credit in parenting her as she did most of her own nurturing and that of her younger brother Griffin.

Life as a young Hollywood actress had its perks and many lows. The underlying theme is the sense of being loved and security that she never felt from her father nor her mother. Her childhood was an awful ordeal, Tatum strived to gain the attention she so deserved as a little girl and often only received it from unlikely sources such as her directors and her father's girlfriends. For this reason, she clings to a young John McEnroe who showers her with attention and love.

The latter part of her book deals with her marriage to John McEnroe. We soon learn he was just as abusive off the court as we witnessed for years on the court. He does seem to have cooled down these past few years as a tv host and commentator alas it was alittle too late. Tatum also overcame his obsessiveness and abuse, on a positive note they have three wonderful children together.

I definately recommend this book, the only comment I have is in parts the story jumps back and forth between timelines which becomes frustraing and confusing. I love that Hollywood Gossip! Who knew about Melanie Griffin..gotta read the book to find out!




Rating:
Summary: A riveting read
Review: Its hard to imagine the horrors that Tatum has endured in her
life. Her book is a very frank disclosure of the ups and downs
of Hollywood life, as wells as the depths of drug addiction.


Rating:
Summary: Readable, but needs better title...
Review: Like "How I Remain a Victim Because I Can't Grow Up". No wonder she is a "has-been.

Rating:
Summary: A Story about the Healing Power of Love
Review: Tatum clearly suffered a great deal through her life, and turned around some very difficult circumstances. This book recounts aspects of her life that many people can relate to: childhood neglect, family drug-use and addiction, negotiating with divorced parents who have their own problems, troubled relationships, lonlieness and (sadly and shockingly) sexual abuse. Beyond this she related a number of fascinating stories particular to her unique experience of being a successful child star, the child of a famous actor and notorious playboy, and running with the Hollywood A-list and jetset. While detailing the latter, she frames the parties and high-level hobnobbing in a perspective of a young person who felt isolated and frightened.

What is inspriring is that she's turned so much negativity around, and that she has conquered her addictions, fears and personal demons. She suffered many ugly experiences with her family, but it was members of her family who ultimately saved her: her brother Griffen motivated her to drop the drugs, and the plaintive appeal of her young daughter Emily gave her the final "push" to quit. It seems that this was her dream: to be rescued by her family. And in her case, the dream came true (with some notable failures on the part of her father and husband).

Tatum has tremendous depth and sensitivity, honed in years of self-searching through writing and therapy. I really like her after reading this book. Also after reading this book, I have an incredibly low opinion of John McEnroe. If he didn't want her to write a book, then he shouldn'tve written one first - and he shouldn'tve badgered her into signing a prenup (right after giving birth) that stripped her of any rights to joint property (totally unfair, since he expected her to give up her career for him). Tatum doesn't *need* to badmouth John McEnroe. All she need to do is recount facts, because the facts place him in a terrible light. No wonder he is upset about this book. And who is *he* to criticize her drugging if he was doping (taking steroids) during tennis?? I can't believe that he charged her $6,000 a month to live in his New York flat after she left him. What a miser. She was correct to leave him, of course. He just seems like such a difficult person, all around. Tatum was very brave to leave him, and her struggles afterward only prove how hard this must have been for her to do.

Tatum allowed all these things to happen, and she was a terrible negotiator, but she deserves to make her case, tell her very interesting and colorful life story, if she so desires. I hope that this book gives some new impetus to her career, since she is still a lovely, lovely woman (she doesn't look her age at all), and a talented actress.

Rating:
Summary: poor little rich girl
Review: Tatum O'Neal appeared to have it all. A true child of Hollywood, which resulted in a girl who was "eight going on twenty-eight," as writers have noted in the early 1970's. However, she failed to gain my pity from her early years because she always appeared pampered and far from neglected. How can we have pity on a girl who apparently got whatever she wanted, and lived a life most of us can only dream about? She is the one who messed it up in her grown-up years. But of course, she blames her parents. This book's one redeming quality is it gives an inside look at the fast track lives of the Hollywood rich and famous. However, one aspect of the book that really became tiresome is Ms. O'Neal's constant dropping of famous people's names. It is like she is trying to place herself in the same category of people that only associated with such a young girl because of her famous father. I am sorry I bought this book. The bottom line is, who really cares?

Rating:
Summary: Triumphant Autobiography
Review: Tatum O'Neal is a strong woman with an important story to tell. It's gripping from beginning to end. And I wouldn't call it an expose. There are no cheap thrills. It's no kiss-and-tell romp. This is serious truth told elegantly. There's pain here, but there's also purity, purity of heart and mind, and there's hope. Maybe we too can lift ourselves up from our own disgraces, if we're honest as Tatum is. There is no shame in truth-telling. A PAPER LIFE is a beautiful example of the relevance of confession. I am so proud of her!

Also recommend A SECRET WORD, a novel with the same kind of truth-telling, and GOOD GRIEF, and anything by Jodi Picoult.

Rating:
Summary: GRIPPING AND INSPIRING - A REAL PAGE TURNER
Review: This book leaves a long lasting impression on the reader. It could have also been titled "The Tragedy and the Triumph".

It is something of a "poor little rich/famous girl" book, but written without a real shred of self-pity. Tatum is too intelligent for that, and she is strong. You can tell that she has done a lot of work on "righting" what has been wrong in her life, much of it due to circumstances beyond her control. However she also freely admits her mistakes, sins of commission and ommission.

I came away from this book admiring her and learning not to judge others too harshly, 'cause ya just never know what they've been through and what they come from.

Rating:
Summary: Dramatic
Review: This book left a strong impression on me. But I loved it in the end. Rebirth triumphed over tragedy. A great story about a sad little rich and famous girl who lost and found herself again, of the pains she went through, of the horrors she inflicted on herself and of her acknowledgement of her path to self-destruction, an acknowledgement that led to her self-redemption. It is beautifully written. Tatum emerged as an intelligent and strong person. What emerges in this book is the fact that she has done a lot of work on correcting her flaws. I finished the book admiring her and learning not to be too hard in my judgment of others, especially child prodigies.
Also recommended: I recommend THE USURPERS AND OTHER STORIES, Things fall apart, Disciples of Fortune

Rating:
Summary: Sad story, fast read
Review: This is one of the liveliest star autobiographies I have read since the late John Phillips' "Papa John." Phew, who knew that the spunky little girl who became the youngest Oscar winner ever was living a childhood from Hell, saddled with a hopelessly, helplessly alcoholic mother and a father, the actor Ryan O'Neal, who emerges here as one of the most abusive parents in Hollywood, a monster right up there with Joan Crawford and Bing Crosby. If it wasn't bad enough that she had a selfish, self-absorbed, verbally and physically abusive father with a serious anger management problem, then, as Freud could have foretold, she chose the same kind of selfish, self-absorbed hothead to marry -- John McEnroe. What a loser this guy is, former "number one tennis player in the world" or not! Also portrayed in a bad light is Farrah Fawcett, who enabled Ryan O'Neal in their relationship for many years and apparently failed to intervene when he would rage and beat up his children in front of her. She must have a terribly low self-esteem also to have tolerated this abusive goon for so long! Now I hear that Farrah is about to have a reality TV series on a cable channel, the highlight of which is scheduled to be her marriage to Ryan! I hope readers of this book will have the decency to give this series and these two pathetic excuses for human beings a wide, wide berth, just as viewers turned away in droves from McEnroe's recent talk show. Bleahhh... It's time we demand some accountability for their actions from our celebrities, as well as our lying politicians and steroid-abusing athletes. At any rate, it's a wonder that Tatum survived her upbringing, apparently due to the positive influence of a twelve-step program. If her unfortunate brother Griffin and half-brother Redmond survive to tell their tales, those books will undoubtedly make for compelling reads as well. Once again this book proves that all that glisters is far from gold, and that the fair faces of Hollywood can hide some hideous demons inside.

Rating:
Summary: An Eye Opener
Review: What a story! A PAPER LIFE by actress Tatum O'Neal is a fascinating read. How many times have we all been bit by the jealousy bug only to learn our lesson, because things aren't always what they seem?
Everyday on TV screens and magazines we are bombarded with images of celebrity life, and how great it is to live that way, but how do we know what really torments and haunts these people?

In O'Neal's tell-all autobiography we get an elicit view on this famous actresses troubled past. From her abusive father, to her neglegent drug-addicted mother who left her and her young brother locked in a bathroom, somedays forced to eat dog food.

My heart broke for the young girl who craved attention, and a normal life despite all the fame she received after becoming the very first child to win an Oscar at a very young age.

Its no holds barred as she also spewed out and confessed to her own drug problem, as well as the abuse she suffered at the hands of her then husband, tennis player John McEnroe. A cycle of never ending upbraiding and pushing around.

How do you even begin to turn your life around after suffering at the hands of a fate so disheartening? She did, and it is amazing to me how she is still sane.

There is also PLENTY of celebrity name dropping, so detailed that I would not be surprised if she ended up on the "Most Hated" list, as she speaks of renowened actors, actresses, musicians, comedians from days of old, to now. It is an unbelieveable tale. Pick up your copy today!