9 Memoirs Every Aspiring Actress Should Read
1/11In any profession, there is no replacement for wisdom earned the hard way… but it can’t hurt to try and save yourself a little trouble. To that end, it can be helpful to find mentors in and take internships with the kind of people you’d like to one day emulate. However, for would-be performers outside New York, LA, or any other major entertainment hub, this can be particularly hard. Sure, you want to absorb the stories of the people who’ve struggled to make a name for themselves locally, but sometimes it can be equally helpful to hear the stories of the wildly successful – just so you can put their experiences into perspective.
There are endless memoirs written by celebrities lining the shelves of any bookstore or ebook app, most written with the help of a ghostwriter (or two!) to flatter their subject and impress upon the reader just how awesome the “author” is. Luckily though, there are gems out there written honestly by genuinely remarkable stars just waiting to be read by a young hopeful.
Here are 9 such books we’d strongly recommend any aspiring thespians or comedians pick up and thumb through:
2/11Yes Please by Amy Poehler
Often when an author attempts to give advice and share a worldview, they either preach to the choir or their work falls on deaf ears. But because Poehler’s voice is so relatable and the advice is so pitch perfect, you’ll find yourself nodding in agreement over your shared experiences and actually absorbing the life lessons she imparts. Not only do the laughs come fast and often — you’ll be pushing your copy into your BFF’s hand just so you can repeat lines to each other — but they’re also often mixed with some of the most conflicting emotions and profound observations about life to be found in modern media. From taking creative chances to knowing when to leave the party, this book is the ultimate example of memoir as a textbook for life.
3/11The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl by Issa Rae
A lot of the time it can feel like the Hollywood success story is always out of reach and reserved for somebody not quite like you. Well, Issa Rae is here to tell you that there is nobody more deserving than a hard worker with a point of view. Issa shatters your preconceptions about what success looks like and who can have it with her brutal honesty and frank analysis of her life’s story, but it’s her total reliability and boundless sense of humor that will win you in the end.
4/11Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? and Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling
Hey, these are two books! Well, it might sound trite, but we couldn’t pick just one. Kaling’s two compendiums reflect on stories from her life before and after the solo success of The Mindy Project, and gives fans insight about what changes about the day-to-day struggles of an adult who thinks they’ve finally had their dreams come true. Both books are incredibly funny and packed with juicy details of her life as a comedian and actress, but it’s the way Kaling dramatizes the events of her life and gives voices to the people she’s known that will really give you a sense of what a gifted person she is.
5/11Self-Inflicted Wounds: Heartwarming Tales of Epic Humiliation by Aisha Tyler
If you’re not failing early and often, you’re not trying hard enough. Tyler’s memoir is a collection of such disasters and it’s a joy to watch her turns those lemons into lemonade for us. Her stories of accidental fires, peeing herself in public, and all the people she’s managed to offend and accidentally cross the wrong way are like a warm bath to those of us who manage to pull our social muscles on the regular. When in the midst of a legendary screw-up, you could do a lot worse than emulate this hilarious comedian.
6/11I Don’t Care About Your Band by Julie Klausner
Before she was the creator and star of her own TV show with best friend Billy Eichner, Klausner was just another performer in NYC scraping together an audience by any means necessary. In this book, Klausner tells a series of anti-romantic comedies from her 20s, and expounds upon all the knowledge she’s gleaned from the hearts she broke along the way. If you’re ever concerned that maybe there isn’t a special somebody for you out there, sometimes it’s good to remember that you’ll always have your craft to come home to… and the priceless stories you can tell for the rest of your life.
7/11One Life: The Autobiography of an African American Actress by Ellen Holly
Ellen Holly tells readers her story of being talented, poised, keenly observational, and a black woman in an industry that didn’t want to do her any favors. As a young woman, Holly was certain she could have it all. But, after seeing what showbiz would ask of her, she details the struggles she faced just to get her career together. Holly shows us her career through the lens of the social struggles and progress that were swirling around her at the time, giving prospective performers a taste of just what kind of adversity the world can throw in their way — even if they’ve got the skills to do the job.
8/11Girl Walks Into a Bar by Rachel Dratch
Early in their careers, performers are asked to take a good look at themselves and evaluate just how they'll fit in to the pantheon of stock roles. Are they protagonists, villains, or character actors? Will they be pigeonholed as the “best friend” or allowed to take a stab at the solo numbers? Dratch deftly evaluates her journey to find a place among the talented friends she grew up with at Chicago's famed Second City and Saturday Night Live, while telling us about her equally complicated personal life. Her story asks readers: Are you the kind of girl who can fall in love, start a family, and bring the audience to tears every week? The answer might surprise you, but what that life looks like will surprise you even more.
9/11Happy Accidents by Jane Lynch
Sometimes you can do all the right things and be all the right places and have all the skills required and still not get your shot at the big time – because, and this is a tough lesson, the world doesn’t work on your schedule. Lynch’s story of growing up awkward, gay, and frustrated with the world around her will make you laugh, cry, and most importantly reassure you that even if you’re not a teenage superstar, hard work and raw talent can win in the end. All you need to do is keep plugging away and wait for the right “happy accidents.”
10/11*I Know I Am But What Are You? * by Samantha Bee
Samantha Bee has long been one of the funniest people on television, but thanks her new show on TBS, she’s just now getting the recognition she deserves. Written while she was working on Jon Stewart’s era of The Daily Show, her collection of essays analyzes just what kind of life gave her the unique outlook on the world that she’s capitalized on so well and how childhood, motherhood, and marriage have continued to inform her as a comedian and actress. She’s equal parts self-deprecating, snarky, excitable, and earnest in all the best ways. Her hilarious cynicism makes for the perfect weekend companion.
