Julie Andrews's Memoir Published
Film and TV Star Writes Home: A Memoir of My Early Years
Julie Andrews, celebrated actress and singer, reveals stories about her childhood, early career, struggles and successes.
On April 1, fans of Julie Andrews, the celebrated actress, rejoiced. Long-awaited by many, Andrews’s memoir hit bookstores. The book, Home: A Memoir of My Early Years, is not Andrews’s first book (she’s written children’s books as well as a book with her daughter, Emma) but it is her first memoir, and the first opportunity to read, in her own words, about her early life, struggles and successes. (Previous biographies have been written about her, such as Richard Stirling's Julie Andrews: An Intimate Biography.)
The Reviews
Reviews of Andrews's memoir are positive, citing a crisp narrative voice and compelling recollections. Her childhood in London was not necessarily cheery, a departure from the many happy, wholesome roles for which she is known. In the International Herald Tribune, Emma Brockes writes, "...most of the book is painfully shrewd and written with real delicacy and pathos."
About the Book
The memoir spans from 1935 (the year Andrews was born) to the 1960s, from Andrews’s childhood to her being cast by Walt Disney in Mary Poppins. Topics include her home life as a child – she was extremely fond of her father, though she later learned the man that she loved dearly wasn’t actually her biological father) and had a complicated personal and working relationship with her mother and stepfather. She performed all over London as a child and was acclaimed from an early age. She was directed by Moss Hart in My Fair Lady as a young woman and married Tony Walton, a set and costume designer.
The Woman Behind “Home”
Andrews is a household name, perhaps most famous for The Sound of Music or Mary Poppins. Andrews has also starred in Victor/Victoria, The Princess Diaries, 10 and Hawaii, as well as television’s Cinderella. She’s known for (sometimes) wholesome film roles and a real-life bawdy sense of humor. Andrews has been nominated and won numerous awards, including an Oscar for Mary Poppins.
Andrews has starred in and been featured in many television specials, including with Carol Burnett (they are good friends).
Since 1969, Andrews has been married to director Blake Edwards.
In 1998 Andrews feared she would never sing again after undergoing throat surgery. But in 2004, she sang on the soundtrack of The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement.
In 1999 she was named a Dame by Queen Elizabeth II.
Additional Details
Excerpts from Home are featured in the April issue of Good Housekeeping magazine. Readers can also get a peek at the book on amazon.com.
Published by Hyperion, ISBN: 978-0786865659
