Jennette McCurdy was six years old when she had her first acting audition. Her mother's dream was for her only daughter to become a star, and Jennette would do anything to make her mother happy. So she went along with what Mom called "calorie restriction," eating little and weighing herself five times a day. She endured extensive at-home makeovers while Mom chided, "Your eyelashes are invisible, okay? You think Dakota Fanning doesn't tint hers?" She was even showered by Mom until age sixteen while sharing her diaries, email, and all her income.
In I'm Glad My Mom Died, Jennette recounts all this in unflinching detail-just as she chronicles what happens when the dream finally comes true. Cast in a new Nickelodeon series called iCarly, she is thrust into fame. Though Mom is ecstatic, emailing fan club moderators and getting on a first-name basis with the paparazzi ("Hi Gale!"), Jennette is riddled with anxiety, shame, and self-loathing, which manifest into eating disorders, addiction, and a series of unhealthy relationships. These issues only get worse when, soon after taking the lead in the iCarly spinoff Sam & Cat alongside Ariana Grande, her mother dies of cancer. Finally, after discovering therapy and quitting acting, Jennette embarks on recovery and decides for the first time in her life what she really wants.
Told with refreshing candor and dark humor, I'm Glad My Mom Died is an inspiring story of resilience, independence, and the joy of shampooing your own hair.
Okay, so this book has interested me for a while, that title right? And my kids love iCarly and Sam & Cat, so I thought I’d give the audiobook a go. Well, I wasn’t sure what to make of this. I gave it 4 stars, but was leaning more towards 3 ½. This book starts with Jennette being at her mothers bedside. I thought ‘aw she is going to reminisce about good memories with her mom’. What should have been good memories, ended up being what I would honestly call abuse. Jennettes mom physically, mentally abused her. She would give her breast and vaginal checks until she was around 16 years old, she would shower her and wash her hair, as well as her older brother being in the shower too. I hated how manipulative her mom was, crying when Jennette didn’t want to do something until Jennette changed her mind, and the tears stopped.
I know she has loving memories of her, but I’m glad she found counselling and understands what was done to her was wrong in so many ways. What mother would limit their child’s calorie intake the way she did, trying to keep her body childlike so she would be cast more? Honestly, it made me mad. I feel for Jennette, I really do. She was forced into a life she didn’t want. I know people will say oh well she has a lot of money, had a good career, but that’s not what she wanted at all. I hope she’s doing better now.
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