Valerie Bertinelli came to the public’s attention when she was cast in the hit sitcom One Day at a Time. She was the perky young teen opposite Bonnie Franklin and Mackenzie Phillips. Valerie’s public image was the girl next door, but privately she was a different person.
While the public knew of Mackenzie Phillips’ drug issues, they never knew that during that time Bertinelli was getting high along with Mackenzie. And later, Valerie added to her drug use when she was dating then married to rocker Eddie Van Halen. She still looked like a sweet, innocent young woman, but the real Valerie was much different.
An Open and Honest Autobiography
In Losing It – and Gaining My Life Back One Pound at a Time, Bertinelli imparts her story openly and honestly. Her style is easy-going. It’s almost like the reader is sitting with her over a cup of coffee and Bertinelli is spilling her guts out, but in a friendly and often funny style. If someone wanted to know how Valerie thinks, all they need to do is to read this book. It’s her voice coming through loud and clear.
Through the entire story Bertinelli relates her former eating habits as well as her weight at each milestone in her life. She loved to eat, and that is evident all over the pages. But today she is known for her weight loss and for being a Jenny Craig spokesperson, so this book tells the story of how her weight yo-yoed through the years and how her marriage and the way she dealt with problems turned into weight issues.
Bertinelli Finally Ends Her Tumultuous Marriage
Eddie Van Halen had drinking, drugs, and smoking issues which negatively affected his life, and the strain this put on their marriage was horrendous. Besides these issues, both Valerie and Eddie looked elsewhere for sexual comfort, which was another way in which they sabotaged their marriage. But they stayed together through the tough times, at least until it was clear to Valerie that they both needed a more stable existence. The one thing they apparently did right in their long marriage was raise their son Wolfie (Wolfgang) to be a level-headed young man.
The book takes readers through the various film roles and what was going through Bertinelli’s mind during each shoot. Whether she was in Utah, making Touched by an Angel, or on location making a TV movie, Valerie seemed to find comfort in food.
Valerie Bertinelli Suffered With a Poor Self Image
Though she imparts that she didn’t feel she lived a charmed life, this woman has traveled the globe and experienced places and people many readers simply dream about. Whether it was being with Steven Spielberg or being hit on by Warren Beatty, Valerie had some very interesting experiences. But what is striking is her deep rooted unhappiness. Bertinelli internalized everything and every set back. Then she turned to food for comfort.
Having lost several jobs because of her weight, when she was approached by Jenny Craig to be their new spokesperson, Bertinelli felt that by putting her weight out there in the public’s eye she might finally have the encouragement and self-determination to lose the 50 pounds she desired to take off.
The Jenny Craig program not only uses their pre-made food, but also requires their participants to walk 10,000 steps a day and go to meetings. Bertinelli took her new role seriously and was successful in losing her weight and maintaining it.
This book is not solely about her journey with the Jenny Craig program. Rather it is mainly about her life up until she finally took her weight issues public. It is a candid book about her life, loves, career, hopes, desires, and ups and downs. It takes readers right into her world, in a very personal way.
Valerie Bertinelli is a good writer and the book is fun and entertaining, as well as educating as readers learn about the real Valerie Bertinelli, instead of what they might think they know about her from the characters she has played or what has been printed about her in the tabloids. It is an enjoyable journey told in an enjoyable way.
- Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group
- Paperback, 288pp
- ISBN-13: 9781416569688
- ISBN: 1416569685
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