Crazy Is My Superpower

How I Triumphed by Breaking Bones, Breaking Hearts, and Breaking the Rules

By: AJ Mendez

Narrated by: AJ Mendez

Length: 8 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

The New York Times Best Seller

Recently retired WWE superstar AJ Mendez Brooks is a powerhouse - strong, quirky, and totally confident. But that wasn’t always the case. With humor and tremendous heart, she opens up for the first time about her harrowing struggle to understand her demons and the diagnosis that helped her gain control over her life.

Everything I was told should be my greatest insecurities and weaknesses, everything that I’ve been labeled - short, nerdy, skinny, weak, impulsive, ugly, tomboy, poor, rebel, loud, freak, crazy - turned out to be my greatest strengths. I didn’t become successful in spite of them. I became successful because of them.

Growing up AJ was a quiet girl trying to act “normal” when she felt anything but. As her family struggled with drug addiction, poverty, and mental illness, she found escape through comic books and video games, and was inspired by the tough and unconventional female characters. It wasn’t until she discovered pro wrestling that she learned superheroes could be real.

Determined to become the superhero she’d always admired, AJ trained and sacrificed for years to achieve her dream of wrestling professionally. Yet she quickly faced industry pressure to play the role of the damsel in distress and to dress more provocatively to cater to male fans. But she fought back and created an ass-kicking alter ego that was a genuine representation of herself: nerdy, enthusiastic, and a little bit crazy.

With humor and tremendous heart, AJ opens up for the first time about her harrowing struggle to understand her demons and the mental illness diagnosis that helped her gain control over her life. What most people view as a hardship, AJ embraced as inspiration for her superhero persona, shattering the stigma attached to mental illness.

Charting her journey from a scrappy girl in an unstable home to an empowered wrestling champion, Crazy Is My Superpower is an unflinchingly honest story and brave confessional about her long road to self-acceptance.

©2017 AJ Mendez Brooks (P)2017 Random House Audio

The best book ever!!!

This book will make you cry and laugh. I have never been happier to see my favorite superstar, idol, hero what ever you want to call her have her own book . Never know her entire life story now I do and respect the shit out of her even more !!!

Fantastic, Heartbreaking, Heartwarming

I loved this book! AJ’s narration was fantastic, the story of her life, her struggles, and how she’s continued to triumph and adapt made me feel all the feels and connect with the side of myself I tend to hide from the outside world. It’s made me want to go after my dreams and attack my writing after taking such a long time being consumed by work.

Great Insight

If you're expecting this book to be about just her time in the WWE, you'd be mistaken. AJ's path to the bigtime leagues, starting from her childhood, is one I had not expected. Any fan of AJ, or any wrestling fan in general, should enjoy this read.

Good overall. But was wanting more about wrestling

I enjoyed it, but not nearly enough talk about wrestling or real stories from it. all was glanced over with minimal detail. Where is your Pipe Bomb, Total Divas issues, Problems with Stephanie. The story of childhood was detailed but not of wrestling.

Moving story from a wrestling icon

AJ’s honesty about her life and career make for a powerful biography.

It was great to have AJ narrate the book herself to give even more authenticity to the story.

What was most inspiring was AJ’s openness in sharing her mental health diagnosis. Her candor helps de-stigmatize mental illness and will hopefully inspire others to seek treatment rather than to “tough it out”

Thank you AJ for sharing your story!

I don't even watch wrestling

And I don't even know who this woman is... but this book swallowed me up

If life gives you lemons, freeze & use as weapons!

Would you listen to Crazy Is My Superpower again? Why?

I would. I have a 12 year old daughter who loves wrestling, and ADORES AJ.
She's a couple years away from being old enough for this, but when she is, I'll gladly play it on a family road trip.

What did you like best about this story?

Listening to her bravery and honesty in detailing her struggles.

What does AJ Mendez Brooks bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Some of her inflections really emphasize some aspects of the story I may not have given the same attention to.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Revenge of the 5'2" woman!

Any additional comments?

A good book, recommended both for wresting fans, as well as dads trying to raise brave and self aware daughters.

I bought this book not knowing what to expect...

I bought this book as a wrestling fan comma not really knowing what I was going to expect. I was expecting a lot of WWE stories but I was surprisingly wrong. I just fell in love with the way that she told her back story and her struggles throwing up. I cried at least a time for this book because I was able to relate the struggle that she went through as a child and as an adult. I recommend everyone everyone to read this book how much I'm going to buy a few copies and give them to friends and family.

fucking amazing

this was such captivating story and I was hooked for every single second of it.

Wow what a story!

This was such a moving book! Definitely recommend to any person wrestling fan or not! Great read.