I'm Glad My Mom Died

By: Jennette McCurdy

Narrated by: Jennette McCurdy

Length: 6 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
#1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

A heartbreaking and hilarious memoir by iCarly and Sam & Cat star Jennette McCurdy about her struggles as a former child actor—including eating disorders, addiction, and a complicated relationship with her overbearing mother—and how she retook control of her life.

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.

©2022 Waffle Cone, Inc. All rights reserved. (P)2022 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

Amazing job

So proud of you , I listen to this since it came out this morning at 12 am . Good job

My mom isn’t dead

But I often wonder what it would be like/feel like when she does die. This book was so good for me to listen to because a dysfunctional mother/daughter relationship is not talked about often. I appreciate Jeanette’s candor and the way she told her story.

Honest, Pure, Brave, and Sadly familiar

To the author: So sorry you went through/will be going through so many challenges in life. I have always thought of you as a very talented actress and have enjoyed most roles you have taken on. I then read you were ceasing your acting career and was sad to hear a little bit of the reasons why. Was very eager to read/hear you read your book as it is a subject I'm all too familiar with. Obviously in different ways with different varying degrees of behaviors, but nonetheless familiar.

To the reader/listener: This is such a sad thing for children then adults to have to live with much less in the public eye. I think she did an amazing job telling her story involving you in each step from the perspective of the age that she was in in the timeline. her language changed right along with her age to make it feel even more like you were seeing it from her eyes. she is a very gifted writer and performer and when you see reviews talk about her reading in a monotone rushed fashion that's just her brilliant way of performing and reading something that's probably very emotionally difficult for her to read. I think the tone and the pace is very fitting for what had to have been going on in her brain during the time. she touches on things that so many people in the world have to deal with from their parents most specifically the relationship with a mother and I think she's incredibly Brave for telling it the way she does. I'll never give away what would be called a spoiler but just know you're going to hear things that are devastating to the development of a child that unfortunately carry on into adulthood and she does a wonderful job of braving through them and continues to do so.

I'm Glad Jennette Told Her Story

It's a story that I couldn't hear from anyone else believably - Jennette McCurdy had to be the one to speak on her experiences, to outline her struggles, and to illuminate just how much it affected her life.

That being said, the delivery is a bit stiff and may not have thrilling drama or excitement mirrored in the narration, but I think that lends to its authenticity even more.

It's not something that should be given endless amounts of pomp and circumstance to make things more dramatic or to really be a page turner - it's a raw, harrowing tale of a girl who was abused for multiple years of her life by her own mother, in her own words and in her own voice.

In a way, I'm glad to hear her tell the story.

Wow!

I could identify with a very dysfunctional mother. She was brave to share her story.

If You Have A Difficult/Toxic Mom, You get it

Jennette McCurdy and I grew up similarly and moms who follow similar behaviors. If you have a mom like this, you get the title. And the whole book is like that. She is honest in her words and descriptions. Her book reads more like a story than a self-help explanatory set up. And I found that more helpful than a self-help book. Because it reads like a story, she walks you through her experiences as if they're your own. And you don't feel alone feeling what she felt as a kid. I will say if you are a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, her synopsis of her childhood religion can feel a little antagonistic, even if it does highlight some of the cultural discrepancies of being a member that cause a lot of hurt among members that dont fit the mold.

Overall I'm grateful I found her book. I found a lot of healing in it myself.

Amazing that she made it to 31.

I'm torn as to whether having having her voice her book added or detracted from it. Her reading is manic and somewhat detached from emotions. Maybe that is the way it really was for her. The story has common themes you have heard before but she has all of them...abusive stage mom, child acting, eating disorders, driving problems... It was amazing that she could function at a high enough level to keep getting acting jobs. She seems to have got out alive but she is still only 31. I wish her well.

Devastating and beautiful

I was crying through most of this book, and laughing at times. I appreciate how honest Jennette is, there are so many difficult topics and feelings covered within. If you’ve ever dealt with illness or grief, the way it is depicted is so spot on. The feeling of nihilism and depression and anger contrasted by the outside world. I felt all of her struggles through her descriptions. I can’t imagine the pain of revisiting some of these memories to write this.

BEST LISTEN EVER!!!

This has been one of the hardest books to get through but very necessary. I highly recommend listening!

A must read

Easily one of the best books I've ever read. Simply stunning and emotional. Finished in two days.