“Portia de Rossi is probably more famous as the wife of Ellen Degeneres than she is for her acting roles, but that’s a shame because she is a very talented actress. This book is about her struggles growing up, questioning her sexual identity and her later years as a Hollywood success on the Ally McBeal show, hiding the fact that she was a lesbian and her ensuing battle with anorexia.
This book was often very difficult to read, but it did give me some insight in to how the mind of an anorexic works. The deprivation that Ms. de Rossi subjects herself to, combined with the never-ending exercise is truly astounding. Through her telling of this story we can really learn what a destructive illness anorexia is, as she lets us into her mind and thought prosesses. It is however not a story of her treatment as she doesn’t discuss what occurred during the time she sought therapy, only moving on to her happiness with her current life. It is also a book that should not be read by anyone who suffers from or has signs of becoming anorexic, because the book goes into great detail of Portia’s regimen and could trigger something in a person who has the illness.
I enjoyed the author’s writing style, it’s not an “I’m famous and you aren’t” tone but clearly lets you see how celebrities and idols are just as human as you and I and everyone struggles with their demons, some more successfully than others.
The book does explore the burden that the media and Hollywood put on appearance and the pressure women feel to be a ‘perfect’ size 0. Portia literally almost starved herself to death because she didn’t want to be a size 8, as that was obese by Hollywood standards; a size that over half the woman in this country would be only to happy to achieve. That Portia was able to come through this trial with therapy and the love of a good person, who happens to be a woman, is a testament to the human spirit.
Overall a very good, if at times gut wrenching, story that is well told and ultimately inspiring
”
Ladyslott wrote this review Tuesday, February 7, 2012.
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