This Is Not My Beautiful Life, Victoria Fedden
This Is Not My Beautiful Life, Victoria Fedden
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This Is Not My Beautiful Life
A Memoir

Author: Victoria Fedden

Narrator: Jorjeana Marie

Unabridged: 10 hr 21 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 09/27/2016

Synopsis

When a squad of federal agents burst through her parents' front door, Victoria Fedden felt ill-prepared to meet them: She was weeks away from her due date, and her T-shirt wasn't long enough to hide her maternity undies. As for the question of how to raise a child when you've just discovered that your mother and stepfather have allegedly masterminded a pump-and-dump scheme? She was pretty sure that wasn't covered in What to Expect When You're Expecting—and she really hoped that Bradford Cohen, the noted criminal defense attorney who famously waived his exemption on The Apprentice, would prove them innocent.

This Is Not My Beautiful Life is the story of how Victoria lost her parents to prison and nearly lost her mind. No one ever said motherhood would be easy, but as she struggles to change diapers, install car seats, and find the right drop-off line at preschool—no easy task when each one is named for a stage in the life cycle of a butterfly—she's also forced to ask herself whether a jumpsuit might actually complement her mom's platinum-blonde extensions and fend off the cast of shady, stranger-than-fiction characters who populated her parents' world.

About Victoria Fedden

Victoria Fedden received her MFA in creative writing from Florida Atlantic University. Her blog Wide Lawns and Narrow Minds was voted 2011's Best Humor Blog by the South Florida Sun Sentinel, and her personal essays have been anthologized in I Still Just Want to Pee Alone, Scary Mommy's Guide to Surviving the Holidays, Chicken Soup for the Soul, and My Other Ex. She also regularly contributes to Elephant Journal, and her writing has appeared on Scary Mommy, Babble, and xoJane, among other blogs and websites. She lives with her family in Fort Lauderdale.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Amber on May 08, 2016

I am always a sucker for a good book on a dysfunctional family and this book hooked me right from the beginning. I was intrigued by the changing dynamics of the relationships and the evolution that each person makes over these few years. Each character remains strangely likable (family members anywa......more

Goodreads review by Rachel on February 02, 2017

Meh. Felt like I was reading the script for a low-brow reality show that thinks it's zany and edgy, never realizing it's just sad. I've never been entertained by people's misery and certainly not by adults whining about how hard adulting can be (aren't there enough 15-min of fame blogs out there?).......more

Goodreads review by Patricia on August 27, 2016

The first couple of chapters drew me in but as the book progressed, the author sounded more and more like a neurotic, whiney spoiled brat who refuses to grow up. Her husband is a saint to put up with such nonsense. Honestly, who runs off in the middle of the night leaving a newborn at home? Weird bu......more

Goodreads review by Kerri on May 11, 2016

I received this book as a advance reader's copy through a Goodreads giveaway. "This is not my beautiful life" is a memoir detailing the author's journey through the messy and often hilarious complications of her family life. At 36, she's living with her parents, weeks from giving birth, when the hou......more

Goodreads review by Noelle on September 30, 2016

A memoir on family dysfunction always draws me in. The array of characters was entertaining and I began to root for the writer to survive this trauma early on. Loved the way she told the story and offered insights into what she had learned along the way. She's hilarious too. The part about the grano......more

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