Description
“In Britney Spears’s memoir, she’s stronger than ever.” —The New York Times
The Woman in Me is a brave and astonishingly moving story about freedom, fame, motherhood, survival, faith, and hope.
In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice—her truth—was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey—and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history.
Written with remarkable candor and humor, Spears’s groundbreaking book illuminates the enduring power of music and love—and the importance of a woman telling her own story, on her own terms, at last.
The moment that truly struck me and left me emotionally shattered was when Britney wrote, "My freedom in exchange for naps with my children - it was a trade I was willing to make. There is nothing I love more, nothing more important to me on this earth, than my children. I'd lay down my life for them. So, I thought, why not my freedom?"
As a mother, I resonated with this passage on a profound level. It evoked a profound sense of heartbreak for her, as no one should have to sacrifice their freedom to be with their own children. It's a sacrifice that speaks to the depth of a mother's love.
I couldn't help but think about her sons, who will one day read this and understand, but the sad truth is that they could never truly comprehend. They are boys, and they will never bear children in their own bodies or feel the anguish of a mere thought of not being able to protect them. In her book, Britney expressed how difficult it was for her to let anyone, even her own mother, hold her babies when they were little, and I completely understood that sentiment.
In "The Woman in Me", Britney Spears bares her soul, making it a poignant reminder of the sacrifices and complexities that come with motherhood, leaving a lasting impression on every reader.
What her family and her ex-husband did to her was criminal. I am just so heartbroken for her. I am rooting for you, Britney. I wish you all the love, health, and happiness on this planet.
Since I kept tabs on Britney's journey, I knew most of the mentioned occurrences. Regardless, I needed to discover how in-depth the conservatorship was slowly chipping at her well-being. We all remember 2007 when Britney snapped at the paparazzi, and after reading WOMAN IN ME, I get it now as a parent. As a mother, she was hurting, and no one cared! Her sad excuse of a father and the rest of her family failed her. Instead of protecting their child, they took advantage of her success. I hope they rot, along with Justin Timberlake, Kevin Federline, and everyone else who took advantage of this kind soul.
Britney must have had a lot of input in this memoir. Her graceful voice was evident throughout as I addictively flipped pages. Whoever ghostwrote it with Britney did a remarkable job of capturing her beautiful essence. WOMAN IN ME made me feel closer to Britney again. It takes great bravery to put your private life out there to be judged, so I thank you, Britney, for telling us your heartbreaking story. I hope she finds peace within herself. Maybe one day, she'll grace the stage, but for now, her devoted fans will be with her every step of her soul-searching voyage.
First I’d like to say I love how in the first few chapters she touched base about her families background and ways of life before really getting into her childhood and going into her story.
What I was surprised was the amount of people that she was surrounded by in those 13 years and no one said this isn’t right and tried to step in and help? I don’t know how Hollywood works though and I would imagine maybe some or most of those people are in the “not my life not my problem” attitude and go about their day. It’s just still very sad.
My heart breaks for her and what she has gone through, and possibly still going through(Kevin about the kids). Being a mother, who honestly cares and loves her children to see them taken away from her and then her punished by not seeing them because her father said so, I can’t even imagine and I felt disgusted. I have some choice words about Kevin, and her family but I won’t say them.
I feel this book was not only for her to tell her story, her way, her point of view, in her own real feelings but it was also a way for her help grieve through her pain and heal. I don’t care about any “tea” or gossip, that’s not what this book is about. What it is about is how in all the horrible things that has been done and said to Britney, she has found the strength of Woman in her, again. I hope she continues to find that strength and continues to find the woman that she truly is again because she really is a kind, beautiful spirited woman! And she deserves her freedom just like anyone else living their life. Let her dance and let her live.
The paparazzi was INSANE around her. There were so many tabloids and photos taken of her throughout the years that by the time I reached age 17 or 18, I refused to purchase or even PICK UP a magazine while standing at the store checkout- in solidarity with Britney. What they did to her was disgusting, invasive and abusive. It makes my skin crawl, just thinking about it.
But, her music was fire. The mixture of dub step rhythms with her music was so fun and energetic. I still listen to it from time to time and dance.
The book was written pretty simply. You can see that she has done some therapy and has gained some insight into her life, her history. She is trying to understand why she did the things she did and why she trusted those she trusted. The kinds of betrayals she has endured in the past two decades will need some serious CBT to re-write those neuropathways into a healthier train of thought.
Our society is still learning what entails "abuse" and what does not. I've definitely felt my share of emotional and psychological abuse. It hangs inside of your thoughts long after you've stopped being around those people. You must be constantly diligent to stop those negative thoughts toward yourself and to re-write what your mind says to you. You hear what your mind tells you WAY more often than you hear negative words from others. You are with YOU 100% of the time. There's nowhere to run. So, you need to become your own best friend.
I hope this book was written by her and that she is receiving the payments from purchases. I hope that she wrote it and it was done with her consent. I find the timing of the release of this book crucial- but, maybe if I was released from "prison", I would run to publish my side of the story, too. I would have probably been writing in journals the entire time.
I hope she heals. She seems to be on her way. I hope she simplifies her life and stops letting outsiders inside of her mind. The book was easy to read, doesn't get TOO DEEP into her psyche. It is very surface level. She is TELLING her story. it's not super deep or introspective or thought provoking in any particular way. I am definitely confused as to why the conservatorship was done in the first place, and then held for 13 years- but I was already informed about that before the book. I read the book in 2 and 1/2 hours.
Many times, I wished that she would tell more details of one story or other. But, so much of her life has been an invasion of privacy, that I understand maybe she doesn't want to allow more than just the surface level story out there. It's her choice.
Hindsight is a beautiful thing exemplified in more ways than one by this book. The beginning was rather clunky I found but it dawned on me that Britney very bravely wrote this having been recently emancipated from 13 years of bullying and control inflicted by her 'family'. She may have been in a very muddled head space, conflicted with her innate empathy that clearly still remains for those who took advantage of her. I could feel her strength increasing through the pages and I have to admit that I learnt so much and can now honestly say, I was wrong for judging her. I have nothing but profound respect for her and simply wish her well. As a girl, she conquered the world once; I am certain that the Woman in Her today will do so again.
Finally, to those who took advantage of her wellbeing all those years. You all know who you are and shame on you. Jamie and Lynn - her 'parents' - shame. Simply shame.
I couldn’t help but feel so much sadness and anger reading about what she went through. I feel like going into this I already knew a lot about the events in Britney’s life but hearing her share her story gave such insight. Britney didn’t seek to explain much in this book, but rather I feel like she just provided some context for what we’ve already been told and the context really shows just how awful the media and her family were to her. And what’s crazy is I remember so many of the events unfolding in real time and the narrative the media told which in today’s context is just wild. Britney was treated horribly and she so effortlessly showed the insane sexism, misogyny, abuse, and prejudice she suffered by simply recounting a handful of experiences. It was clear to me at least that this autobiography isn’t even the half of what she’s experienced and yet there was so much sadness and mistreatment I don’t even know where to begin.
In terms of the actual writing, I do feel like it left a lot to be desired. The first half felt like a whistle stop tour of her accomplishments, which I suppose was it’s purpose in many ways as it’s clear in the later half that the conservatorship was where Britney wanted to dedicate more of her time discussing.
Even the later half only really skimmed the surface on what Birtney endured during the years of her conservatorship. The whole book was really quite short and I feel like we have only been given a taste of what she has experienced - which is frustrating as a reader but which is so empowering as a fan. It feels like Britney was in control of sharing what she did and did not want to share here, which we know hasn’t been something she has been allowed to do in far, far too long. So while The Woman In Me wasn’t as deep and thorough as I wanted, I also love knowing that we have only been given exactly what Britney wanted to give; and not a drop more.
I loved how this ended and getting to hear Britney’s philosophy on her life now. I just hope she really is free now and is living her life the way she wants because god knows she deserves to!
Britney is so inspiring and has such a beautiful heart, I wish her the best for every second of her life. This book is enlightening.