Bright Eyes

Surviving Our Monsters and Learning to Live Without Them—A Memoir

By: Bridey Thelen-Heidel

Narrated by: Bridey Thelen-Heidel

Fans of Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died will root for Bridey Thelen-Heidel as she struggles to unshackle herself from her mother’s chaos in this triumphant debut memoir.

Bridey is tethered to her mom’s addiction to dangerous men who park their Harley-Davidsons in the house and kick holes in all their doors. Raised to be her mother’s keeper, rescuer, and punching bag, Bridey gets used to stuffing her life into black trash bags, hauling them between Alaska and California, and changing schools every time her mom moves in a new monster—or runs away from one. Desperately seeking the normal life she’s observed in sitcoms and her friends’ families, Bridey earns her way into a fancy, private college, where she tries to forget who she is—until her mom calls with a threat that drops Bridey to her knees. Watching doctors and police interrogate her mother at the hospital, Bridey realizes her mom has become a monster herself . . . and she doesn’t want to be saved.

But Bridey does.

Bright Eyes is about the indomitable spirit of a young girl forced to be brave, required to be resilient, and conditioned to be optimistic, and how she ultimately uses the same traits that helped her to survive her mother’s chaos to create her own happily-ever-after.

©2024 Bridey Thelen-Heidel (P)2025 Bridey Thelen-Heidel

We are all fighting battles that others know nothing about!

I loved that I could feel the raw emotion in the author’s reading of this very personal story.

Great story of perseverance

Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous! I was angry. I laughed. I cried. I cheered. I cried again! ❤️

Sad and happy tears

This was an amazing book that had me welling up with sad then happy tears both when I read it and listened to it. Bridey is one of the funniest and kindest people I know I am so glad her story has a happily ever after.

Beautiful Book

I had read this book when it very first came out and was absolutely moved by how beautifully written it was. It was so easy to be immersed in the world described and really feel the authors intentions. You will laugh, and you will cry, but most importantly you will be inspired by the words in this book.