Anna Kendrick

"A collection of whimsical autobiographical essays by the Academy Award-nominated actress and star of Up in the Air recounts memorable milestones from her New England upbringing to the blockbuster films that have made her one of Hollywood's most popular actresses,"--Baker & Taylor.

Scrappy little nobody

Anna wrote this in a way that felt really personal but at the same time, as if she were writing to a friend. I enjoyed it. I even loved the book club questions at the end and wished I would have thought to suggest it to my own book club just so we could go over them.

Christa Bell

“The crazy wants out.”

Anna wrote this in a way that felt really personal but at the same time, as if she were writing to a friend. I enjoyed it. I even loved the book club questions at the end and wished I would have thought to suggest it to my own book club just so we could go over them.

Erin G.

Completely won me over after I promised myself to read more fiction in 2017. Laughed out loud, googled the outfits, great behind the scenes realness.

Soha

Not sure if everyone will appreciate this book but if you love Anna Kendrick's sense of humour, this book is for you ❤🔥✨

Aamna

3.5 / audiobook

For all the issues I have with this book I hold the editor responsible. The first few chapters about Anna’s child acting career and her family are rather drab. The self deprecating humour feels forced or overdone. But as teenager Anna becomes a 20 something Anna things get more engaging. She gets real about stuff - like how she was broke when she got her oscar nomination for Up in the Air, how her outlook towards multiple things has evolved. I liked that. 

Note on the audiobook - Anna talks really fast so actually had to listen at 0.8x for a bit to adjust my brain.

Scrappy Little Nobody

Denaiir

Loved this audiobook narrated by Anna Kendrick herself, it was funny, quirky, full of light anecdotes and behind-the-curtain scenes, I enjoyed it immensely and will definitely listen to it again whenever I feel a little bit depressed. Had a blast!

Briar's Reviews

Going into this book, I didn't think I was going to like it. Honestly, the intro had me humming and ha-ing about whether I would actually enjoy the book. But, once I got into the actual biography and got to peek inside Anna's life as an actress, I really enjoyed it! The last few chapters didn't sit well with me, but I did finish the book.

I enjoyed Anna's sense of humour and a peek inside the entertainment industry. Reading that she's an introvert that's just in a very extroverted career was also very interesting. There is a lot of depth into this book about being an actor, and of course the odd swear word because it's Anna Kendrick. She's honest about her career and makes sure the reader sees both the good and the bad about being an actor in Hollywood.

Overall, this was nice read.

Three out of five stars.

Krystyna 

I was originally going to read this book but when I found out that Anna Kendrick narrated the audio version I quickly switched to the audiobook format. Her personality really shines through her narration. It was a great book to listen to on audio.

Juliana Matias

I just found this book highly entertaining.

I didn't particularly know much about Anna Kendrick before this, but I was reading a review on Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls, and Everything in Between (which I still haven't read, btw), and the reviewer made a comment on memoirs, about how they thought this book was much better. I had an audible credit, and since I am struggling to reach my 2017 goal (I had 18 days to get through 4 more books - 3 books, 16 days now), listening to someone tell fun stories while I did calculations at work sounded like a good idea to speed this up. 

Such a great idea. I am patting myself on the back now.

Maybe because it was read by the author, but it felt like I was talking on the phone with a friend, who kept telling me the most entertaining stories to help pass the time. I found Anna to be incredibly down-to-earth, funny and relatable. The book lasted for 6 hours, but I barely noticed the time going by. 

She's not talking about anything in particular - I believe the print book is organized in essays (?) -, she's just going back and forth telling us funny little anecdotes about her life, being in Broadway as kid, foregoing college and moving to LA, dating in her early 20's and how unglamourous her life even post-oscar nomination really is. (I, by the way, had no idea she had been nominated for an oscar - maybe I need to try and keep up with Hollywood a bit more.)

But the book itself is great, I think I'll miss it now that it's over. I gave it 4 stars, mainly because I don't think I've ever given anything 5 stars. It's light, it's funny, and it's guaranteed to make you smile.

P.S.: Although I think this must be a really easy read as well, I think I'd recommend getting it as audio regardless. It flowed flawlessly this way.

Arturo Hernández

It's the tale of a young funny actress that has just recently found fame but can't accept it.

Izza

4 stars | This was pretty great. I love Kendrick's sense of humour and now I want to watch all her movies again...even 'Twilight'...

Steph L 

I loved this book. If you looking for a dun light read pick this one! It has tales of Anna from childhood, through her adult life and Hollywood. It was filled with stories, and much like Anna herself, it was very witty. I just loved it.

Jordan /

Much better if you listen to the audiobook!

Rebeca Keren Nuñez

Divertido, honesto y agil. Se siente muy cercano. La verdad lo disfrute mucho y lo recomiendo.

Sarah Ryan

I'd probably give this a 2.5. I read it as she seems like a fun person in interviews ... and it was free. The beginning of the book had some enjoyable parts but the end wasn't great. I enjoyed her stories about her start in theatre and early auditions. She never actually covers how she landed her roles in Twilight or Up In The Air though, despite talking about her time filming and her Oscar nomination, which I thought was odd. The 'I'm just a normal person' tone is a little laboured. If you like reading celebrity memoirs you'll probably like this.

Robin M Cabana

My rating is more like a 3.5. I did find parts of this book really funny and interesting. I loved Anna Kendrick's stories about growing up, her start on Broadway, making movies and just trying to be a normal person in Hollywood. I would have liked more stories about that and less about awards shows and photos shoots, which it seems almost every actress/comedian is obliged to include. I love her attitude and perspective and enjoyed listening to her on the audiobook version. I also need to see Camp soon!

Caroline Lewicki

A great book, Anna Kendrick is funny and sassy and you'd want her to be your best friend. A nice side of celebrity dishing and behind the scenes feels, she is sharp and funny with just the right amount of "I'm just like you."

Lauren Attaway

** spoiler alert **
           Sometimes you just need to read something that doesn't shatter your whole way of thinking! This book was the perfect amount of light and enjoyable! I've read Tina Fey, Mindy Kaling, etc. books and while I may not have enjoyed this as much as some of the others, this was exactly what I needed to read this week. Excellent post-election read.

Courtney ✿ @librarycutie

I freaking love Anna Kendrick, she’s witty and cracked me up through the whole book.

Paige Carter

Fun. Quirky. Great narrative and an easy read. Kendrick has a very funny voice as an author and I found myself laughing out loud a number of times while reading this! Coming from a similar background (not the celebrity thing but smallish town suburban, middle class family thing) this memoir was relatable in a very honest way. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a fun, easy read to keep your mind off of the drama in the world. Perfect for a plane ride or bus trip (that's where I read it) although people might look at you weird if you start laughing in the middle of take off..

Becky

3.5 stars (I feel like I am giving that rating more and more)

What can I say? It was a book by Anna Kendrick about Anna Kendrick and her limited number of years on this planet. I would have previously thought books like this are a waste of time but I've discovered they are funny and books which can make you laugh are good books to have.

This book employs a brand of humour which suits my sense of humour. Kendrick is self-deprecating and just plain old funny. She doesn't take herself too seriously and she knows a lot of the things she talks about, like award shows and press junkets, aren't relatable to most people but she successfully makes herself seem like a real, genuine person who knows they aren't relatable and instead is letting you into this secret about what real celebrity life is like. She discusses being brave, what it was really like being a child star and how she had to work damn hard to get where she is. I learnt about her struggles moving to LA and actually affording to live and how I can totally relate to her confusion at how to interact with people without seeming like a crazy person.

As a whole, I really enjoyed this book. I enjoyed learning about what made Anna Kendrick and hearing small snippets of her life. It was interesting and funny and was frequently laughing to myself when reading whilst also trying to muffle my laughter because laughing alone definitely makes you seem crazy.

Jimena Vázquez Oliver

If I thought I was obsessed with Anna Kendrick before I am ABSOLUTELY 1,000% MORE obsessed with her now. 😂😂😂

Caitlyn DeRouin

The thing that I loved about this book was that it felt very conversational. It was easy for me to imagine that I was just listening to Anna ramble about whatever it was she felt like talking about at that moment. It was interesting, witty, hilarious and truly heartfelt. Can I be her best friend now?

Emir Andrés Ibañez

Ok, this was a funny read.
It made me laugh out loud several times but it also has some "serious" stuff, it is well balanced and yes, this made me love Anna even more. This book felt like we were just lying in the grass and talking after a year of not seeing each other or something. I had a problem with the audiobook tho, she was talking very fast and English is not my first language so I had some problems trying to understand what she was saying but the next moment she was talking about something else and I just had to read it the old way.
Anyway, give it a chance! :D

Tanja Hoffmann

3.5 
Fun, but nothing special, the sections on her anxiety and whenever she reflected on fame were the most interesting.