Managing Expectations: A Memoir in Essays
- Downloads：5675
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-06-22 06:51:52
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Minnie Driver
- ISBN：0063115301
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
A MARIE CLAIRE BEST MEMOIR OF THE YEAR - A USA TODAY MUST READ BOOK - A W MAGAZINE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK - A SHEREADS BEST MEMOIR OF THE SUMMER
A charming， poignant， and mesmerizing memoir in essays from beloved actor and natural-born storyteller Minnie Driver， chronicling the way life works out even when it doesn't。
In this intimate， beautifully crafted collection， Driver writes with disarming charm and candor about her bohemian upbringing between England and Barbados; her post-university travails and triumphs--from being the only student in her acting school not taken on by an agent to being discovered at a rave in a muddy field in the English countryside; shooting to fame in one of the most influential films of the 1990s and being nominated for an Academy Award; and finding the true light of her life， her son。 She chronicles her unconventional career path， including the time she gave up on acting to sell jeans in Uruguay， her journey as a single parent， and the heartbreaking loss of her mother。
Like Lena Dunham in Not That Kind of Girl， Gabrielle Union in We're Going to Need More Wine and Patti Smith in Just Kids， Driver writes with razor-sharp humor and grace as she explores navigating the depths of failure， fighting for success， discovering the unmatched wonder and challenge of motherhood， and wading through immeasurable grief。 Effortlessly charming， deeply funny， personal， and honest， Managing Expectations reminds us of the way life works out--even when it doesn't。
A charming， poignant， and mesmerizing memoir in essays from beloved actor and natural-born storyteller Minnie Driver， chronicling the way life works out even when it doesn't。
In this intimate， beautifully crafted collection， Driver writes with disarming charm and candor about her bohemian upbringing between England and Barbados; her post-university travails and triumphs--from being the only student in her acting school not taken on by an agent to being discovered at a rave in a muddy field in the English countryside; shooting to fame in one of the most influential films of the 1990s and being nominated for an Academy Award; and finding the true light of her life， her son。 She chronicles her unconventional career path， including the time she gave up on acting to sell jeans in Uruguay， her journey as a single parent， and the heartbreaking loss of her mother。
Like Lena Dunham in Not That Kind of Girl， Gabrielle Union in We're Going to Need More Wine and Patti Smith in Just Kids， Driver writes with razor-sharp humor and grace as she explores navigating the depths of failure， fighting for success， discovering the unmatched wonder and challenge of motherhood， and wading through immeasurable grief。 Effortlessly charming， deeply funny， personal， and honest， Managing Expectations reminds us of the way life works out--even when it doesn't。
Reviews
Nic
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Beautiful and engaging stories of Minnie’s unusual life， but too short！
Tin Wegel
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Beautiful language and written with such disarming candour that I really didn’t want to stop listening。 The last story in particular really tears at the heart with just the right strength to still leave it intact。 I hope that Minnie Driver will write another memoir in due time。
Sharon
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Minnie has a wonderful way with words and is given to deep reflections about her life and experiences。 Written during the pandemic and including the death of her mother， she still manages to maintain an upbeat feeling throughout。 Left me wanting to hear more。
Emily
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I recommend the audio book， Minnie is a brilliant narrator。 The first half of the book is 5 stars， I really enjoyed the essays on her childhood and early adulthood， however when we got to the essay "you're it" I just felt it was way too long， I understand she had to cover this part of her life as it was played out so publicly but to give it so much detail so many years later I don't think was necessary。 Also "sea-based incursion" just left me thinking that she's a celebrity breaking the rules be I recommend the audio book， Minnie is a brilliant narrator。 The first half of the book is 5 stars， I really enjoyed the essays on her childhood and early adulthood， however when we got to the essay "you're it" I just felt it was way too long， I understand she had to cover this part of her life as it was played out so publicly but to give it so much detail so many years later I don't think was necessary。 Also "sea-based incursion" just left me thinking that she's a celebrity breaking the rules because she can get away with it and although she tried to make it sound exciting it was a boring chapter。 The second half of the book she just doesn't seem to have grown & she comes across the same as the first part of the book， immature & a bit spoilt。 。。。more
Cale
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This memoir was an unexpected delight。 Driver has a lovely， contemplative voice。 I wish it were longer！
Mary Reilly
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Four and 1/2 stars。 Read by the author which is a plus for me。 Had me laughing and crying。 Definitely some language。
Deborah Rogers
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I don't read a lot of celebrity memoirs， they can be a bit too "dishy" for me。 But I do like Minnie Driver and heard a short NPR interview with her， so I picked this up on a visit to the library。 It was such a great read， start to finish。 It is billed as a "memoir in essays，" and that is exactly what it is， without any Hollywood gossip or excessive name dropping。 She mostly comes off as a very intelligent， sensitive and down to earth person with pretty normal family relations。 The last essay， ab I don't read a lot of celebrity memoirs， they can be a bit too "dishy" for me。 But I do like Minnie Driver and heard a short NPR interview with her， so I picked this up on a visit to the library。 It was such a great read， start to finish。 It is billed as a "memoir in essays，" and that is exactly what it is， without any Hollywood gossip or excessive name dropping。 She mostly comes off as a very intelligent， sensitive and down to earth person with pretty normal family relations。 The last essay， about her mother， was so touching and caring， it reminded me of my own experiences with my mom around a very similar circumstance。 The entire book is well written， evenly paced， insightful and entertaining。 。。。more
Megan Parisian
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4。0-4。5It was very interesting learning more about Minnie’s life。 I am always shocked by how memoirs have very vivid memories of childhood （journaling？！？） and Im sure trauma and hardship can play into memory， for sure。 I still can’t get past her stories of her dad leaving her to hotel life！！ 😳Quite an interesting life filled with a lot of travel， hard times， and good ones as well。 She wrote （and spoke - I listened on audiobook） so beautifully which made for an even more enjoyable listen。
Kay
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I really enjoy memoirs however this style of writing sadly didn’t click with me。
Chris
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Do yourself a favor and listen to the audiobook。
Jane Gregg
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Interesting view over the shoulder。
Jo
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Audio。 This was so well written and read。
Paul Reid
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A beautiful， beautiful book。 The last chapter describes something only people who’ve been through will understand， with such wonderful writing。 What a great person Minnie Driver is。
Pam Aleshunas
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4。25
Mary
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Quite good for a celebrity memoir。 Definitely not a "tell all"。 A series of essays that give you a sense of where Ms。 Driver came from and who she is。 She is certainly an interesting and unique person。 Quite good for a celebrity memoir。 Definitely not a "tell all"。 A series of essays that give you a sense of where Ms。 Driver came from and who she is。 She is certainly an interesting and unique person。 。。。more
Lorindia
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She may be an actress， but I always knew underneath the necessary facades was an interesting articulate woman。 I enjoyed this book from the beginning。 It promised laughter and tears with the feeling the writer wasn’t trying to be appreciated， but wanted to articulate her story with the kind of reality that ultimately you must embrace。 Enjoyed every moment。
Kerry Cowell
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I ate this book up & never wanted it to end！！ If you can， listen on audio because Minnie reads it！
Thomas
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Well written。
Kelly_Hunsaker_reads 。。。
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Minnie Driver tells her life stories in the form of essays， and I found them to be sweet， funny， charming， and sometimes shocking。 Her open storytelling style felt honest and authentic， witty and wise。 This woman is one that I want to sit across a table from， over a long lunch while she regales me with tales of her completely unique life。 I came away from the book liking her even more。
Holly McDaniel
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I listened to it。 She’s the narrator and it’s great to hear it in her voice！
Emma Hardy
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An absolutely brilliant memoir that will make you laugh， cry， cringe and gasp- sometimes all at once。 This captures some surprising moments and focuses on Minnie the person not Minnie the actress。 Its candid and definitely doesnt shy away from some hard subject matters。Full of passion and it made me look at life slightly differently。
Jess Bu
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Loved all the chosen moments from her life ， the last chapter we especially floored me。 So beautifully written， I would defy anyone to not ball or at least gently weep at how this last chapter was written。 Touching， insightful， humorous and totally human。
Jess
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Loved it， just wanted more！
Lizzie
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Fascinating book of essays which are beautifully observed。 Minnie Driver is a great writer and the audiobook is brilliantly performed。 I loved it
Kristy
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I was so pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this memoir。 I don’t consider myself a huge Minnie Driver fan， just an average fan， and I don’t usually read celebrity memoirs， but she’s a great storyteller with a very interesting life。 Great on audio listening to her read it herself。
Shannon
，
A heartfelt and incredibly vulnerable collection of essays from Minnie Driver， detailing her tumultuous childhood sent away to boarding school and the ups and downs of her time in Hollywood。 For me， the best chapters were about her experience becoming a mother and coping with her own mother's cancer diagnosis。 While she does cover a range of very personal topics， I felt this book was more of a highlight reel rather than an in-depth accounting。 I was hoping for a little more depth but overall sti A heartfelt and incredibly vulnerable collection of essays from Minnie Driver， detailing her tumultuous childhood sent away to boarding school and the ups and downs of her time in Hollywood。 For me， the best chapters were about her experience becoming a mother and coping with her own mother's cancer diagnosis。 While she does cover a range of very personal topics， I felt this book was more of a highlight reel rather than an in-depth accounting。 I was hoping for a little more depth but overall still a good listen and great on audio read by the author with an interview included at the end。 。。。more
Mckenna Bailey
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i haven’t stopped thinking about the final essay。 storytellers， generally， should be protected at all costs。
Karen Richardson
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Loved the audiobook and hearing Minnie Driver read it。 Sometimes she even lapses into French or Spanish and I'm not sure that she pronounced everything right， but it certainly sounded good。It's a great series of vignettes that cover a wide range of her her experiences。。。not the regular kind of memoir。。。but it works。 Found the ending interview on the audiobook a bit precious - that's when I speed up audiobooks - so not a problem。 Loved the audiobook and hearing Minnie Driver read it。 Sometimes she even lapses into French or Spanish and I'm not sure that she pronounced everything right， but it certainly sounded good。It's a great series of vignettes that cover a wide range of her her experiences。。。not the regular kind of memoir。。。but it works。 Found the ending interview on the audiobook a bit precious - that's when I speed up audiobooks - so not a problem。 。。。more
Susan Lyons
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Love love loved it。
Jeff Shelby
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