Prairie Tale: A Memoir

This is a great book! Melissa is transparent with her struggles of addiction, her relationships and what it was like growing up as America’s Sweetheart. Being a Little House and Rob Lowe fan, I enjoyed reading about Michael Landon and his impact on her life. She describes her last poignant day on set with the Little House cast and crew and gives a heart tugging description of her last visit with Mike, as she called him, before he passed away. I have Rob Lowe’s autobiography but Melissa went into greater details about their relationship. I loved how she included all of the famous people she’s met and worked with, including Nancy Reagan. Great read! One of my favorite books!

This book was one I selected because I had enjoyed watching’Little House on the Prairie’ with my children and had especially loved Laura. I was amazed at what a challenging life Melissa Gilbert had led & how vulnerable she was in sharing her struggles!

This book is well written with quit a bit of humor, to make it more interesting. Who knew Laura Engalls could have an interesting life lol…She’s bluntly honest about herself and her experiences growing up. Like most of the 80’s bratt pack , she had her share of partying , but battled alcoholism in the end. I thought I would read more about her relationship with Micheal Landon.. However she does make it clear how close they were 🩷As you read her book, it’s plain to see she fought a lot of childhood issues and other battles into adulthood.One thing is clear.. she is one tough lady ! She survived it all to tell her story. :)

I have always loved Melissa Gilbert as an actress and I really enjoyed her Memoir.Not too much surprised me regarding Hollywood and the excess of egos, sex, cheating, drinking, drugs, violence and the complete ignorance of it all.I was surprised that she came from a family full of actresses and/or actors.Yes, I knew her sister Sara was an actress but not her entire family.Sadly, as all child actresses &/or actors their parents, or in this case her mother, pushed her to be the perfect child and actress.NO MATTER WHAT - EVERYTHING WAS PERFECT!!!Her mother would ignore anything that did not fit into her perfect world and did not discuss anything that did not fit into her perfect world. (Sounds like typical Hollywood)Unfortunately, her mother had a big effect on Melissa.Even Michael Landon whom Melissa looked up to as a father figure was no better. He pushed her on the set of Little House on the Prairie."Now, that's not going to happen again!!!"She is a child and as all children they need guidance and nurturing.NOT LECTURES AND SCOWLING FACES.He also had a big effect on Melissa.I am 2 years younger than Melissa but as much as I tried I did not like the show Little House on the Prairie.Specifically, because of Michael Landon. Even at my young age I could not figure out why Michael Landon always had his shirt off during a period of time which Little House on the Prairie was suppose to be set. Plus, there was something about him I just did not care for at all. Arrogance!!!Melissa was even too hard on herself regarding many issues but the main issue was being adopted.Sadly, meeting her blood relatives was extremely heart wrenching. It was not a heart warming experience in any way shape or form. She should have left the past in the past and focused on the family that raised her and loved her no matter what.No family is perfect by any means.She could have shortened up her love life with Rob Lowe and Bo Brinkman.Rob and Bo the ultimate liars and cheaters.Bo's violent temper - Good Grief.Amazingly, they blamed Melissa.Really - what a couple of Schmucks!!!Melissa was married to Bruce Boxleitner when she wrote her Memoir.It would have been interesting to read more about the other side of Bruce after the divorce. While reading this it was obvious that Bruce could throw temper tantrums like an 2 year old. Interesting for a grown man.He stated to Melissa when they started dating that he did not want to get married again or have anymore children. Well, he asked Melissa to marry him and then they had a son. Exactly what he did not want.What a Schmuck!!!I wished Melissa had discussed some of the other actresses &/or actors that she had worked with such as; Diane Ladd, Eileen Brennan, Talia Shire, Lindsey Wagner, Rosanna Arquette, Scott Valentine, Cyril O'Reilly, David Andrews, George Dzundza, Costas Mandylor, Brian Wimmer, Gregory Harrison, and (my favorite 😚) Joe Penny. Just to name a few.She did tell a wonderful story about working with Patty Duke on the remake of the Miracle Worker.The one chapter that did truly shock me was that Melissa decided to mention whom she lost her virginity too and she even gave his name and thanked him.That was a little much considering Melissa was 16 and he was 22. In any other state than California or in any other world than Hollywood that would be considered "Statutory Rape". Regardless, if it was consensual.Okay, onto bigger and better things. Melissa grew into a beautiful actress and the President of SAG.I will totally disagree with another review which claimed Melissa was name dropping. When you work in the business from a child actress to an adult actress and then become the President of SAG it would only make sense if she mentioned certain people's names.The Memoir would have made no sense without it.I am very proud of Melissa for all her accomplishments. I am even more proud of her that she has reached an age in which she can come to terms with alot of her issues and takes responsibility for the mistakes that she has made.She will continue to be a force to be reckoned with as an actress and a beautiful woman.Melissa's "Prairie Tale" A Memoir is the only memoir I have ever been interested in reading.I am very thankful that I did read her memoir as it gave me more insight into Melissa and her remarkable journey thru life. Her incredible sense of humor and poking fun at herself definitely helped with her journey.All journeys have there ups and downs. Melissa's final journey has landed her on a definite up note.Thank you Melissa for being so open and honest. An ordinary woman with ordinary problems. Melissa Gilbert is human and makes mistakes just like the rest of us. I could not put this book down. Fastest book I've ever read.I highly recommend "Prairie Tale" A Memoir if you are a Melissa Gilbert fan.You will not be disappointed.

I read this book right after I read Alison Argrim's "Confessions of a Prairie Bitch" as a fitting and natural companion piece. It's interesting to read about Melissa Gilbert's life if you knew her as Half Pint on "Little House on the Prairie" and watched the show. Otherwise, I'm afraid it won't adequately hold your attention. She has a marginally interesting history. She comes from a veteran showbiz family as her grandfather was one of the creators of the Honeymooners (she gets to have a private audience with Groucho Marx as a child). She is adopted, and the story of her birth parents is still something of a mystery. Her mom is the quintessential stage mother. She is certainly bright, slightly self deprecating and not without humor. But it's not the rollicking great ride of a book as that of her tormentor on the series--the indomitable, bitchy Nellie Oleson, who also happens to be one of her life-long friends.Gilbert comes from an indisputably privileged background, and like most people that hale from the wealthy enclaves she grew up in, she doesn't remark on that much. She vaguely seems to realize that she's had a charmed existence, but is very matter of fact about her good fortune. She will causally talk about her mother going to Hugh Hefner's movie nights as if it's the sort of thing that all mothers do. Her mother's husbands and the various father figures in her life aside from Michael Landon, seem entirely incidental and it was her mom's influences that clearly were the driving force behind her career. Melissa may have been working in the biz from infancy, but her mother still saw to it that she remained overly sheltered. Her years on Little House were spent almost exclusively in the company of the cast and crew--she even went on vacation with Michael Landon and his family every year. She also went to school with his daughter and dated his son Michael Landon Jr. Basically, she didn't get out from the confines of her highly arranged life very much. Regardless, she was a talented, and compliant child and her natural gifts came fairly easily to her. She was a people pleaser and was rewarded in kind. I personally loved her on "Little House" and watched it throughout my childhood, until the later part of the series when she began to grow up and it became awkward. I think that's a good analogy for this book. The early parts about her childhood are entertaining, but the older she gets, the less interesting things are.She's got some good stories, and it's a fun glimpse into the 80s when she's dating Rob Lowe and cruising around Hollywood with the early brat pack set. Still, no matter how many stars she meets, parties she goes to, or television specials she works on (and there are an endless string of Lifetime made for tv projects that followed the Little House years) something is lacking. Even though she has her compulsory problems with addiction, and goes to rehab a few times, there is never a sense of her ever really suffering or learning from her mistakes. She wanted very badly to escape her image as a goody two shoes, but trying to be one of the cool kids just doesn't come naturally to her. It's tough when she gets to New York and she can't even manage to take the subway or go out on her own, and this seems to be her greatest handicap. She matured early in some ways because she worked so hard throughout her childhood, but she remains out of touch with reality and normal life. This is not exactly her fault. She was brought up in a bubble. The problem is that she remained in the bubble.Gilbert is a seemingly very grounded person, slightly insecure (her plastic surgery on her nose and problematic breast inplants reveal her need to conform to the standards of the "business") and she makes some practical choices out of necessity. She seems desperate to feel desired and desirable, and this is the catalyst for so many of her disastrous choices in men. The end of her book loses its momentum as she navigates the challenges of relationships, motherhood and a demanding career. We could totally do without the SAG presidency parts and her animosity toward Valerie Harper comes across as whiny and self indulgent. Her first disastrous marriage is almost painful to read about. Her second marriage to Bruce Boxlightner was also rocky and unstable in spite of how long she remained with him. She has since divorced him and this comes as no surprise after reading the book either. She has an insular group of friends, a supportive family, and enough money to never worry about anything but still maintains a solid work ethic that is undoubtedly her greatest asset. But even though she supposedly stopped drinking, she still seems somewhat unrealized. She writes perfunctorily about her adult life, the joys and struggles of parenthood and the pressures of celebrity, though none of her later life experiences seem to be very compelling, or at least she hasn't figured out a way yet to write them as if they are.I like her. But the key word is like. There is nothing glaringly wrong with anything she does. But there's nothing that is excitingly right either. If you are a fan of "Little House" you will enjoy the stories about the series and her relationship with Michael Landon, her distaste for Melissa Sue Anderson (Alison Arngrim mirrors that dislike and is a lot more funny about it too) and the dilemmas she faced as an adolescent and young adult. Her adoption story and the speculation around her birth parents is focal point, although unresolved to the end. Her status conscious mother comes off as being a believable prototype for shows like "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills." She enthusiastically professes the great love she has for her much younger sister Sara Gilbert of "Roseanne" and now "The Talk" fame, but she doesn't disclose personal stories or details about their relationship or delve into the heart of their family dynamic. Her younger brother Jonathan, who played Willie Oleson on the show, abandons the family at age 18, and that leaves more questions than answers. It's shrugged off as an "oh well--nothing I can do about it" inconvenience, although one can only wonder what it was like for him to have suffered through everything revolving around her and her career while they were growing up when he was constantly assigned to play second fiddle. He obviously was thrust into something that he really wasn't interested in doing for her sake, but this doesn't seem like a family that ever talked about their problems (When Melissa's father suddenly and unexpectedly dies when she is nine it's almost as if they ignore that it has happened). Coming from a home where the dirt is routinely swept underneath the carpet undoubtedly left scars, yet Gilbert barely acknowledges the dysfunction that existed in her early life. Success in the family was highly valued. Behaving and adhering to her mother's wishes was of the utmost importance, and glossing over any past or existing unpleasantries mandatory. It's surely why Melissa flew the coop at such an early age, yet she never delves into the issues that arose from being a puppet of sorts. Consequently, her life as a pampered yet strictly regimented child actress left her entirely unprepared for the grittiness of the real world. Somehow, you get the sense that this hasn't changed much in the past 30 years.

Enjoyed this book very much. Melissa Gilbert had an amazing life. I couldn't put this book down. I have always been a fan of LHOTP so naturally to me Melissa has always been Laura. But... She's so much more! Definitely a must read for fans of this beautiful, talented lady!

Livre écrit en anglais

A trip down memory lane. A very well written memoir

adoro laura

Zugegebenermaßen bin ich ein Fan der "Unsere kleine Farm" Serie und habe dieses Buch nach den Biographien von Laura Ingalls Wilder und Allison Ingram ("Nellie Olson") gelesen. Das Buch ist wirklich spannend geschrieben. Wie erhofft beschäftigte sich ein maßgeblicher Teil mit der Zeit, die Melissa Gilbert in der "kleinen Farm" mitgespielt hat und es war nett, einige Hintergrundinformationen zu erhalten, zumal mein Mann und ich kurz zuvor die Wiederholungen der TV-Serie angeschaut hatten. Aber auch neben diesen Episoden hat mich das Buch über weite Passagen sehr gefesselt und ich war erstaunt, in wievielen Filmen Melissa Gilbert mitgewirkt hat (in deutschen Ausstrahlungen hatte ich bisher nur ein oder zwei weitere Filme mit ihr gesehen). Auch für "Nicht-Native Speaker" ist das Buch gut zu lesen, wobei mir sicherlich diverse Sprachfeinheiten entgingen.