Forever Young: A Memoir
- Downloads：8254
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-08-22 18:21:08
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Hayley Mills
- ISBN：B08RYRTFWR
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Lisa
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Hayley Mills， born into a famous acting family， shares memories from her early career working for Walt Disney to her transition into adult roles。 It was interesting to find out more about this iconic performer whose life was not always sunshine and roses。 A marriage to a controlling abusive man much older than her nearly destroyed her career， the joys of motherhood to her two sons and her recollections of the famous people she worked with or encountered made this a very heartwarming and enjoyabl Hayley Mills， born into a famous acting family， shares memories from her early career working for Walt Disney to her transition into adult roles。 It was interesting to find out more about this iconic performer whose life was not always sunshine and roses。 A marriage to a controlling abusive man much older than her nearly destroyed her career， the joys of motherhood to her two sons and her recollections of the famous people she worked with or encountered made this a very heartwarming and enjoyable memoir。 。。。more
Josh Sharpe
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This inside look at the life of child star Hayley Mills is equal parts heartwarming and surprising- and always satisfying。 Mills has the voice of an accomplished writer （a talent passed down by her mother） and makes us， the reader， feel as if we are really there on her adventures。 Though Mills is candid and open， the memoir is never gossipy and her positive tone permeates throughout， making this a delightful and nostalgic read。
Sophia
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Childhood wouldn’t have been so golden without such films as Pollyanna， The Parent Trap， and That Darn Cat and then there was that clever， atmospheric Endless Night that gave me some good chills as a teen。 So， when I spotted the memoir of the sunny-faced actress that made these and other gems possible， I was jazzed to pick it up and delve right in。Hayley Mills came of an acting father and a script-writing mother， a thespian older sister， film-making younger brother， and surrounded by daddy and m Childhood wouldn’t have been so golden without such films as Pollyanna， The Parent Trap， and That Darn Cat and then there was that clever， atmospheric Endless Night that gave me some good chills as a teen。 So， when I spotted the memoir of the sunny-faced actress that made these and other gems possible， I was jazzed to pick it up and delve right in。Hayley Mills came of an acting father and a script-writing mother， a thespian older sister， film-making younger brother， and surrounded by daddy and mummy’s close friends in the trade。 Unlike her sister， Juliet， Hayley hadn’t had any particular plans to get into acting until one of her father’s acquaintances spotted her and decided she was perfect for the main child actor part in British film， Tiger Bay。 Even then she thought it was simply a lark and went back boarding school and life on the family farm without a backward glance。 Hayley is the middle child and happy to let life happen around her。 Her parents gave her and her siblings a stable， loving childhood though Hayley points out that their relationship and their work were priorities that she registered even as a young child。 Tiger Bay was well received and was the vehicle that got her in Walt Disney’s eye。 Disney wanted her for Pollyanna， but insisted on signing her to a six-film contract over the next seven years。 Her parents were ambivalent about that on her behalf because it would lock her into a career that would take up the rest of her childhood， but they consulted Hayley after making it clear what would be involved。 Eventually， she was making movie magic， dealing with adolescence， the woes of fitting school around an acting career， fame， and how it affected family life especially with her dad’s film career tugging the family in two different directions。 Hayley grew up on and off screen， but found that living up to peoples’ ideals and her own made for a big challenge and finding her feet as an adult and an acting career as well as adult relationships would be hardest of all。This memoir hit the spot for me。 Mostly， this is because I went in wanting the life of a child actress with enough personal and family background to set it in context。 I didn’t read it to get a deep dive into another person’s life。 Hayley was forthright about her family， her personality， her struggles， and her own choices that sometimes led to mistakes， but the memoir winds up when the child actress feels that she has finally finished with childhood and has a strong foothold on the path of adulthood with a relationship and a child as well as an adult career。 Some might want to know what happened in the intervening years to the present， but that was not addressed and， I honestly didn’t expect it based on the title and blurb， but I thought I should mention it in case other’s do。 It was enough to learn what such a life was like: behind the scenes on some films including her Disney ones， the rarified atmosphere she was in when she thought of Lawrence Olivier and Vivian Leigh as Uncle Larry and Aunt Vivian， when she was friendly with the Beatles including a date with George and went to the same parties as The Rat Pack， and some of her struggles that she had to overcome like feeling less educated than others since she never finished school， weight struggles， shyness and inadequacy， a mother’s depression and alcoholism， loss of her childhood earnings， and struggles of failed relationships。The author’s writing style took just the right tone。 It was engaging and in balance with her personality and her experiences。 There was some fun， some sad， and much in between。 The end wrapped up swiftly， but in a logical place。 I felt I learned a lot about Hayley Mills as a person and an actress so I was well-pleased with this memoir and would definitely recommend it to those who enjoy memoires of entertainment personalities or simply want to read about Hailey Mills growing up。I rec’d an e-ARC of this book from Net Galley to read in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Gary Shapiro
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A wonderful book！ Stories about Disney， The Beatles， Judy Garland， Maurice Chevalier and some great films are threaded through this coming of age memoir。 Highly recommended！
Nickie Cleaver
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U was excited to read this cus I like her as an actress。 Most of it I really enjoyed， but the end was very rushed！ I wanted more of an ending。
Alexa
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A solid celebrity/Hollywood memoir， if limited in scope。 And it IS limited in scope--read if you're a fan of Hayley Mills' childhood/classic career and would like a view into that period of her life。 From that perspective， I did enjoy it。 However， the memoir cuts off at the point Hayley has her first child。。。 which is in the late 70s！ So you don't get the last 40 years of her life。 Which， ya know， does she owe us every single spec of her life？ No， but I was a bit surprised。 I had been looking fo A solid celebrity/Hollywood memoir， if limited in scope。 And it IS limited in scope--read if you're a fan of Hayley Mills' childhood/classic career and would like a view into that period of her life。 From that perspective， I did enjoy it。 However， the memoir cuts off at the point Hayley has her first child。。。 which is in the late 70s！ So you don't get the last 40 years of her life。 Which， ya know， does she owe us every single spec of her life？ No， but I was a bit surprised。 I had been looking forward to that part--it sounds silly but because I was born in the 80s and came up with early Disney Channel subculture （I didn't have cable but I still knew the shows！）， I was really hoping to hear about Good Morning Miss Bliss and The Parent Trap 2。 Maybe even her perspective on seeing The Parent Trap remade for a new generation。 That said， Mills' is a lovely writer--perhaps why I wanted to read more？ No surprise her mother was a writer， and a bit of a surprise Hayley's never had a go at it before this with a novel or something。 I was impressed at points， especially her journals when she was younger。 Her maturity and imagination come through。 And overall， it's lovely to spend time with her--she's very obviously a kind， lovely person。 She has nothing but nice things to say about pretty much everyone， except for one actor she's very honest about being a misogynist。 She also grew up surrounded by some seriously famous people （not just her dad） and it's kind of a trip to read her casually name-dropping "Uncle Dickie" （Richard Attenborough） or Larry and Joan--Sir Laurence Olivier and Joan Plowright （and Vivien Leigh also gets a mention）。 She also speaks lovingly though realistically about Walt Disney--I liked how she recognized he was absolutely warm and wonderful on a personal level， but also a shrewd businessman。 You also get insights into her parents and how she grew up--I wasn't super familiar with her parents， but I'm sure Brits will find it all pretty fascinating。A solid memoir to get a snippet of a bit of Old Hollywood （as it was fading in the 60s） and a childhood icon。 I have a soft spot for Hayley Mills--I've always loved her！ The one sadness for me is she keeps calling herself fat， and she does briefly acknowledge she had an eating disorder at the time， but like lord。 She was never fat！ Hayley was always gorgeous。 I hate that she was made to feel that way :（ 。。。more
Wendy
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Forever Young: A Memoir by actress Hayley Mills chronicles her recollections of her childhood when she became a Disney star to transitioning to grownup roles。 Hayley was championed by Walt Disney himself in such movies as Pollyanna， The Parent Trap， and That Darn Cat。 The daughter of actor John Mills and playwright Mary Hayley Bell， Mills found her transition from a wholesome teen to more mature roles difficult as fans wanted her to stay “forever young。”Mills offers a look into her family， and i Forever Young: A Memoir by actress Hayley Mills chronicles her recollections of her childhood when she became a Disney star to transitioning to grownup roles。 Hayley was championed by Walt Disney himself in such movies as Pollyanna， The Parent Trap， and That Darn Cat。 The daughter of actor John Mills and playwright Mary Hayley Bell， Mills found her transition from a wholesome teen to more mature roles difficult as fans wanted her to stay “forever young。”Mills offers a look into her family， and if readers thought she lived a charmed life， she did， but not without obstacles。 She shared her parents with an older sister， the actress Juliet Mills， and a younger brother Jonathan Mills。 While she had a marvelous relationship with her father， she often found herself at odds with her mother， who she felt drank too much。 Mills also experienced the fate of other child actors whose income was never realized as the Crown received most of it。While the scope of the book covers her childhood through the birth of her first child， there is still much opportunity for another memoir about her adult life…and I， as a great fan from childhood on， hope that she will take a breath then write the second half of her memoirs。Hayley Mills was born in London， where she currently resides。 Born in 1946， she made her first appearance in films in 1959 in Tiger Bay， starring her father。 Living in California for many years， she starred in “Good Morning， Miss Bliss，” the Disney forerunner of “Saved by the Bell，” more material that could be mined for a second memoir。My review will be posted on Goodreads starting July 25， 2021。I would like to thank Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review。 。。。more
Casey Wheeler
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This book is a disappointment in that it was a sort of memoir that tended to ramble about other people and films/plays and only covers basically the first half of her life with later years rushed in the last couple of chapters。 It would have greatly enhanced if it was written by a biographer who would have helped keep the author focused。I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley， Goodreads， A This book is a disappointment in that it was a sort of memoir that tended to ramble about other people and films/plays and only covers basically the first half of her life with later years rushed in the last couple of chapters。 It would have greatly enhanced if it was written by a biographer who would have helped keep the author focused。I received a free Kindle copy of this book courtesy of Net Galley and the publisher with the understanding that I would post a review on Net Galley， Goodreads， Amazon and my nonfiction book review blog。 。。。more
Becky
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I remember playing my VHS tape of Pollyanna， then rewinding and beginning again， over and over and over。 Imagine my excitement to see a biography of this talented actress coming across my radar！ Unfortunately， the pace of the book was plodding， filled with list of films and theatre performances and endless but brief comments about co-stars and co-workers that did not lend to the development of the story。 What began as what I had hoped would be an introspection， ended as a dry retelling。 I'm disa I remember playing my VHS tape of Pollyanna， then rewinding and beginning again， over and over and over。 Imagine my excitement to see a biography of this talented actress coming across my radar！ Unfortunately， the pace of the book was plodding， filled with list of films and theatre performances and endless but brief comments about co-stars and co-workers that did not lend to the development of the story。 What began as what I had hoped would be an introspection， ended as a dry retelling。 I'm disappointed that this didn't live up to they hype I had in my head。 Thank you to Net Galley and Grand Central Publishing for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review。#ForeverYoung #NetGalley 。。。more
Kristen
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