Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more
Flip to back
Flip to front
Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty Hardcover – April 29, 2014
See all 6 formats and editions
Hide other formats and editions
| Amazon Price | New from | Used from |
|
Paperback, Large Print
"Please retry"
|
$14.18 | $14.04 |
|
Audio CD, Audiobook, Unabridged
"Please retry"
|
$18.31 | $16.50 |
$19.70
FREE Shipping on orders over $35.
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Gift-wrap available.
NO_CONTENT_IN_FEATURE
Start reading Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty on your Kindle in under a minute.
Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?.
|
Editorial Reviews
Review
Praise for Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty
“Relaxing and charming . . . like a dishy lunch with the movie star you thought you’d never be lucky enough to meet. . . . This is delicious writing and is full of a positive point of view, exclamations of the beauty of ordinary things and helped turn me from sour to sweet in the few hours that I was reading her book. . . . Diane Keaton is in a class by herself and this book is good for the soul.”—Chicago Tribune
“Wise, witty, thoughtful, uplifting, the truth, unvarnished—and very funny.”—Toronto Star
“She’s talented, iconic, quirky . . . and wonderfully blunt. This is just a small sampling of the reasons we love Diane Keaton, and they all permeate the pages of her new memoir. . . . Keaton sticks to her guns and keeps it totally honest. And it is beyond refreshing.”—Elle
“A breezy little volume by an actress facing old age with aplomb. . . . [Keaton] sprinkles memories of her long career, including her friendships and more with certain leading men . . . [and] drops plenty of names.”—Kirkus Reviews
Praise for Diane Keaton’s Then Again
“A far-reaching, heartbreaking, absolutely lucid book about mothers, daughters, childhood, aging, mortality, joyfulness, love, work and the search for self-knowledge.”—The New York Times
“A poem about women living in one another’s not uncomplicated memories . . . Part of what makes Diane Keaton’s memoir, Then Again, truly amazing is that she does away with the star’s ‘me’ and replaces it with a daughter’s ‘I.’ ”—Hilton Als, The New Yorker
“As warm, funny, and self-deprecating as Keaton’s onscreen persona—[Then Again] traces a profound dramatic arc: that of a young woman coming into her own as an artist, and of a daughter becoming a mother.”—Vogue
“Both heartbreaking and joyful, [Then Again] covers the gamut of life experiences facing all women.”—Chicago Sun-Times
“Relaxing and charming . . . like a dishy lunch with the movie star you thought you’d never be lucky enough to meet. . . . This is delicious writing and is full of a positive point of view, exclamations of the beauty of ordinary things and helped turn me from sour to sweet in the few hours that I was reading her book. . . . Diane Keaton is in a class by herself and this book is good for the soul.”—Chicago Tribune
“Wise, witty, thoughtful, uplifting, the truth, unvarnished—and very funny.”—Toronto Star
“She’s talented, iconic, quirky . . . and wonderfully blunt. This is just a small sampling of the reasons we love Diane Keaton, and they all permeate the pages of her new memoir. . . . Keaton sticks to her guns and keeps it totally honest. And it is beyond refreshing.”—Elle
“A breezy little volume by an actress facing old age with aplomb. . . . [Keaton] sprinkles memories of her long career, including her friendships and more with certain leading men . . . [and] drops plenty of names.”—Kirkus Reviews
Praise for Diane Keaton’s Then Again
“A far-reaching, heartbreaking, absolutely lucid book about mothers, daughters, childhood, aging, mortality, joyfulness, love, work and the search for self-knowledge.”—The New York Times
“A poem about women living in one another’s not uncomplicated memories . . . Part of what makes Diane Keaton’s memoir, Then Again, truly amazing is that she does away with the star’s ‘me’ and replaces it with a daughter’s ‘I.’ ”—Hilton Als, The New Yorker
“As warm, funny, and self-deprecating as Keaton’s onscreen persona—[Then Again] traces a profound dramatic arc: that of a young woman coming into her own as an artist, and of a daughter becoming a mother.”—Vogue
“Both heartbreaking and joyful, [Then Again] covers the gamut of life experiences facing all women.”—Chicago Sun-Times
About the Author
Diane Keaton is the New York Times bestselling author of Then Again, which was named one of the ten best books of the year by Janet Maslin of The New York Times, People, and Vogue. She has starred in some of the most memorable movies of the past forty years, including the Godfather trilogy, Annie Hall, Manhattan, Reds, Baby Boom, The First Wives Club, and Something’s Gotta Give. Her many awards include the Golden Globe and the Academy Award. Keaton lives with her daughter and son in Los Angeles.
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
104 of 114 people found the following review helpful
By
Geneva Lewis
VINE VOICE on April 25, 2014
Format: Hardcover
Vine Customer Review of Free Product
(
What's this?
)
Comment
Sending feedback...
Diane Keaton follows up her book, "Then Again," which was a look back at her own life, but especially viewed through the eyes of her parents' marriage and family life in southern California. She returns with "Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty," a book ostensibly about the difficulties of aging, compounded by her career (actress). This book doesn't stop at surface observations or pity one-liners, it is a complex and deep book about the life we think we should have versus the life we actually have, and is a celebration and examination of beauty in all its definitions and the struggles girls face beginning with the understanding of "beautiful" versus "pretty." From stories about Diana Vreeland to a philosophical jaunt to Victoria's Secret with her teenage daughter who has a $200 gift certificate burning in her pocket, this book is full of thought-provoking inspiration and humor.
What I also find the book to be is a free-form, artistic offering of reminiscences and realizations, regrets and observations of a life filled with challenges, disappointments, and some joy (thankfully). This is a melancholy book, of a woman with loss (her parents, lovers) but also a steely determination to Be Herself, an extraordinary accomplishment in itself, but particularly in the milieu of Hollywood. What I love best about this book is Keaton's bravery at showing her vulnerability from youth to today, which can be viewed in the world as a liability but at its essence is the secret to her enduring success and connection with audiences the world over. A thoughtfully wrought, creative, and illuminating view of an artist and a woman.
What I also find the book to be is a free-form, artistic offering of reminiscences and realizations, regrets and observations of a life filled with challenges, disappointments, and some joy (thankfully). This is a melancholy book, of a woman with loss (her parents, lovers) but also a steely determination to Be Herself, an extraordinary accomplishment in itself, but particularly in the milieu of Hollywood. What I love best about this book is Keaton's bravery at showing her vulnerability from youth to today, which can be viewed in the world as a liability but at its essence is the secret to her enduring success and connection with audiences the world over. A thoughtfully wrought, creative, and illuminating view of an artist and a woman.
Thank you for your feedback.
If this review is inappropriate, please let us know.
Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again
90 of 101 people found the following review helpful
By
E. M. Griffith
VINE VOICE on April 28, 2014
Format: Hardcover
Vine Customer Review of Free Product
(
What's this?
)
10 Comments
Sending feedback...
"Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty" will be released tomorrow, and it will be interesting to see how well it's received by fans of Keaton and readers in general. I came of age watching her onscreen. Loved her in a few of her roles. Admired her quirkiness, which seemed to make her more approachable/relate-able than other celebrities. When my pre-publication copy of her newest autobiography arrived, I truly wanted to love it. It's not surprising, though, that a few reviewers have already given it a 1 star rating.
Reading the introduction, this book almost seems to have been sparked by an online article titled 'Top 10 Female Celebrities Who Are Ugly No Matter What Hollywood Says', in which Keaton was number five. The writer refers to Keaton as being as old as dirt and ugly when she was younger. Which is unarguably a cruel, demeaning public opinion. Keaton seems to have taken it too much to heart; the 189 pages of "Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty" read like a cross between personal diaries and tabloid fodder. Most of the chapters meander. It's an *editor's* job to make a final draft flow with cohesiveness, so I won't fault Keaton there.
What I will say is she sometimes puts the capital M in TMI, and appears to be a walking, breathing contradiction in terms. For a mature, accomplished woman who admires (even embraces) individuality and advises women to be themselves proudly, she has a lot of dissatisfaction with just about every aspect of herself. There's humorous, mild, self-depreciation, and then there's ripping yourself to shreds unnecessarily... even painfully for the audience. Why? What's to be gained from it? And while her personal fashion style covers everything up, she lays her life and soul bare in this book. Or at least seems to.Read more ›
Reading the introduction, this book almost seems to have been sparked by an online article titled 'Top 10 Female Celebrities Who Are Ugly No Matter What Hollywood Says', in which Keaton was number five. The writer refers to Keaton as being as old as dirt and ugly when she was younger. Which is unarguably a cruel, demeaning public opinion. Keaton seems to have taken it too much to heart; the 189 pages of "Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty" read like a cross between personal diaries and tabloid fodder. Most of the chapters meander. It's an *editor's* job to make a final draft flow with cohesiveness, so I won't fault Keaton there.
What I will say is she sometimes puts the capital M in TMI, and appears to be a walking, breathing contradiction in terms. For a mature, accomplished woman who admires (even embraces) individuality and advises women to be themselves proudly, she has a lot of dissatisfaction with just about every aspect of herself. There's humorous, mild, self-depreciation, and then there's ripping yourself to shreds unnecessarily... even painfully for the audience. Why? What's to be gained from it? And while her personal fashion style covers everything up, she lays her life and soul bare in this book. Or at least seems to.Read more ›
Thank you for your feedback.
If this review is inappropriate, please let us know.
Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again
35 of 39 people found the following review helpful
By
Karie Hoskins
VINE VOICE on May 3, 2014
Format: Hardcover
Vine Customer Review of Free Product
(
What's this?
)
1 Comment
Sending feedback...
I adore Diane Keaton. When she started doing beauty commercials/ads – I remember thinking how beautiful she was and that “I want to be like her when I grow up”. (I’m in my forties.) She just looks radiant, comfortable in her own skin, and someone who is beautiful in an unconventional and fabulous way.
Turns out? She has the same worries and insecurities about her looks that I do – that we all do. At one point in “Let’s Just Say it Wasn’t Pretty” – she recounts a “bad hair day” she had when she ran into someone she knows. “I left my car with the valet, walked into the elevator, and immediately ran into Nancy. Just my luck. Just my **** luck. And of course she was chipper and tall and attractive. “You look good,” she said. I smiled, knowing she didn’t mean it. She hated my hair.”
And later, still worried about her hair as she watched her daughter Dexter in a swim competition, “Dex was in the water with 299 other people who weren’t thinking about their hair.”
At times, this book gets a little bit rambly and freestyle and I started to lose the thread of Keaton’s thoughts. But most of it was fascinating. I never expected, for example, to find out that one of the walls in her house is covered with pictures of men. She has Marlon Brando, Gary Cooper, Paul Newman, Morgan Freeman, Adrien Brody, Jeremy Renner… “In the end, there are two ways of seeing male beauty. Real or imagined. There’s the looking-in way and the being-seen way. There’s the man himself and the man I’ve made up. I’m guilty of one, and proud of the other.”
She admits to, despairs of and also relishes the anxiety she has about her outward appearance – which is refreshing from a movie star. “I am a sorry example of the truth that women, as well as men, are losing their hair.Read more ›
Turns out? She has the same worries and insecurities about her looks that I do – that we all do. At one point in “Let’s Just Say it Wasn’t Pretty” – she recounts a “bad hair day” she had when she ran into someone she knows. “I left my car with the valet, walked into the elevator, and immediately ran into Nancy. Just my luck. Just my **** luck. And of course she was chipper and tall and attractive. “You look good,” she said. I smiled, knowing she didn’t mean it. She hated my hair.”
And later, still worried about her hair as she watched her daughter Dexter in a swim competition, “Dex was in the water with 299 other people who weren’t thinking about their hair.”
At times, this book gets a little bit rambly and freestyle and I started to lose the thread of Keaton’s thoughts. But most of it was fascinating. I never expected, for example, to find out that one of the walls in her house is covered with pictures of men. She has Marlon Brando, Gary Cooper, Paul Newman, Morgan Freeman, Adrien Brody, Jeremy Renner… “In the end, there are two ways of seeing male beauty. Real or imagined. There’s the looking-in way and the being-seen way. There’s the man himself and the man I’ve made up. I’m guilty of one, and proud of the other.”
She admits to, despairs of and also relishes the anxiety she has about her outward appearance – which is refreshing from a movie star. “I am a sorry example of the truth that women, as well as men, are losing their hair.Read more ›
Thank you for your feedback.
If this review is inappropriate, please let us know.
Sorry, we failed to record your vote. Please try again
Most Recent Customer Reviews
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
