Here's the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice Reviews

• Excellent

  
  By AAR8E3JF9K93P on 2008-10-14
  The Brady Bunch was a show that I discovered only in reruns as I was a little young when it first aired. By the time I did watch it, I was in my teens and thought the whole show was a bit of a joke and could not understand its cult following - however, over the years, it somehow kept resurfacing and despite myself, I got to know a little bit about each of the Brady kids. When I saw that Maureen McCormick was publishing her memoirs, I thought it would be interesting to read as I always thought she was the most interesting character on the show - and always felt that there was alot lurking behind the "good girl, hair of gold Brady".
  As soon as I started reading, I absolutely fell in love with the pace, the tone and the overall story being told. The first thing I noticed (and was eternally grateful for) was that although Maureen does touch on her childhood, she does not go on and on about it for half the book. She basically gives us the highlights (which includes some surprising facts about her siblings and her parents) and then moves on to her early career. Yes, she does spend some time on her "Brady days" but tends to gloss over some of the key elements that I believe would have been fun to read. She does go into quite alot of detail about the "crushes/kissing/fondling" that happened among the Brady kids, but I would have liked to hear more about the dynamics behind the scene - that did not necessarily relate to the teenage lust that seemed to be rampant. I would have like to find out more about the chemistry of the actors, some funny onset stories would have been nice. There is a minimal amount of this type of thing - it seems as though the Brady kids were all about "teenage lust" which is okay - but I felt there could have been a little bit more substance here. Besides which, somebody is going to have to explain to me why every girl (including Maureen) had a thing for Greg? I mean, the guy is really average looking in my opinion!!!
  However, what comes after the Brady years is really where you find the heart and soul of Maureen McCormick. Its going to be hard for me to write this review without giving away any of the spoilers, but I had NO IDEA just how far down she fell before she found the strength to pick herself up. To her credit, she exposes every raw nerve in this memoir and makes a point of saying that SHE alone is responsible for the situation(s) she got herself into. I have to say that she must have had a fairy godmother looking over her - because she really got herself into some horrible situations.
  The writing here is exceptional and we get a very clear picture of just how screwed up Maureen was. When she talks about her meeting with her future husband, you can actually feel the tone of the writing change - there is hope and love in the writing.
  
  Maureen McCormick needs to be commended for writing an honest, raw memoir. She could easily have gone the other way and written some bubblegum account of her life. Writing memoirs are always tricky because you can't or won't divulge other people's involvement in your life and Maureen has done an excellent job of keeping the focus on her and not on the "other" celebrities that she talks about in her book.
  
  I read alot of these types of books and I can't encourage you enough to run to the bookstore for this one.
  
  

• Trying to Find Herself

  
  By ALUJ15UFI1422 on 2008-10-14
  Here's the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice, by Maureen McCormick, is a memoir of a woman made famous by her role in the Brady Bunch, as the eldest daughter, Marcia. The Brady Bunch aired from 1969-1974, when Maureen was 13-18 years old. The Brady Bunch was a wildly successful show that ran on Friday nights--I know, I looked forward to it every week.
  
  McCormick struggles most of her life because of her role as "Marcia, Marcia, Marcia." (This now infamous line was uttered by the middle daughter, Jan, because she felt her older sister got all the attention.) McCormick writes: "Imagine being shadowed by a younger,prettier, more popular you," referring to her role as Marcia.
  
  I mentioned that I looked forward to watching The Brady Bunch every week--now, I was 8 years old when it started and it was the first show of its kind. But, it was always a bit dippy and moralistic. For example, whenever one of the kids did the slightest thing wrong, the whole family had to gather and mom and dad would lecture. GAG.
  
  McCormick had a thing about being "imperfect" her entire life compared to the "perfect" Marcia. Now, I was a kid, but it was pretty obvious this was a TV show--not something real. However, McCormick had family problems and the Brady's must have felt like the perfect family to her. She was instructed on what to say and do (it was a role, after all), but the perfection of the family life stuck with her through her adulthood. (Keep in perspective the times--there were no controversial TV shows on at the time--TV people all seemed to live happy, easy lives.)
  
  Now, I would have killed to look like Marcia---thin, with long, straight, blond hair. We learn that she was always worried about her stomach not being flat, that this beautiful teenager didn't feel worthy of her role.
  
  McCormick provides details of what it was like on the Brady set,including crushes and such. I felt that there were too many details--do we really care about when she first got her period and how it happened? Or that she was jealous that Eve Plumb developed breasts before her?
  
  The book is enjoyable, don't get me wrong--but it gets 4 stars, not 5 because it should have been edited more. Too many details throughout, the book drags at times.
  
  McCormick reveals her family history (her mother's dad had syphilis and passed it to her mother) and her own life that included drug use, bulimia, and depression.
  
  When McCormick turned 50, she agreed to be on the Celebrity Fit Club, a reality series in which the stars try to lose weight. McCormick is very successful at losing weight and feels good about herself. She writes: "After spending my life worrying about what people thought of me, what they might think of me, and trying to present a certain image, I gave up and was just me."
  
  Ultimately, Maureen McCormick was brave to share this revealing memoir with the world. If nothing else, it shows that perfection is an illusion and that we would all be much better off if we could simply accept ourselves for who we really are.
  
  Nice work.
  
  By the author of the award winning book, HARMONIOUS ENVIRONMENT: BEAUTIFY, DETOXIFY & ENERGIZE YOUR LIFE, YOUR HOME & YOUR PLANET.
  
  

• I LOVED THIS BOOK!

  
  By A1DI8TH297JGFX on 2008-10-16
  I read this book in two days, and I loved every minute of it. I thought it would be interesting to read about Maureen, the actress behind Marcia, to hear stories about the Brady Bunch, and to learn about her life today. What I got was that and so much more.
  
  Maureen let's us in on who she is. Her life, her pitfalls, her triumphs, and writes an inspirational story many of us can relate to. We all have secrets, and Maureen tells them in a way that show us how easy it is to fall in, and better, what it takes to get out. It's nice to get to know Maureen through her book, to know that she's not Marcia, and to know that all of us have tough times, but that together we can get through them.
  
  Bravo Maureen, thank you for writing such a bold book, I have so much respect for you.
  
  

• I was disappointed...

  
  By A3TV150HHA43L6 on 2008-10-19
  I really wanted to like this book, because Marcia was my favorite Brady and I really wanted to be Maureen McCormick...petite, blonde, talented, and beautiful.
  But I just couldn't connect to Maureen's story...bulimia, cocaine addiction, lesbian fantasies, bipolar disorder, elder abuse, a love/hate relationship with her mom...you name it, Maureen seems to have suffered it all. And unfortunately, she put it ALL into this one book.
  Some sections of her life are glossed over (each season of "The Brady Bunch" probably got between one and three paragraphs), and others are detailed more than is necessary, leaving me wanting both more and less at the same time. The book could have used an editor with a firm hand.
  
  

• Here's The Story of a Lovely Lady

  
  By A2BPFPVOWCTKDJ on 2008-10-17
  If you are of a certain age and you were raised in a home with a television set, then the face of the cover of this book is very familiar to you. And whatever your age, if you watched this show with any regularity, you felt that you knew the character the author played on the Brady Bunch and perhaps even envied her apparent perfection. So, we watched her, liked her, and then she pretty much disappeared from view when the show ended.
  
  Well, she's back ! One of the most redeeming aspects of this book is that it isn't just another celebrity book about the struggles of being a child star. I found this book to be optimistic, down to earth, and just plain enjoyable. If you liked the actress who played Marcia and if she was part of your childhood experience, you may be shocked to find out how much turmoil she experienced while she worked on this show. In spite of considerable past personal challenges, she seems to have harnessed her demons and come out whole. I hope so.
  
  I didn't expect to like this book as much as I did. The story the author tells is at times sad, funny and for some of us, it's a story we can relate to. It's also a revealing peek at the goings-on behind the TV screen of a television family that many of us visited weekly for years.
  
  
  
  
• ABSOLUTLY AMAZING
  By AL2QD6XM3QG0G on 2008-10-17
  I thought this book was incredible, I read in less than 2 days staying up all night because I could not put it down. The strength it took for Maureen to write about some of the most horrific times in her life is incredible.I have so much respect for her.She was definately as far down as she could go and she picked herself up then to be able to write a book about it takes alot of courage.Courage most of us will never have so Kudos Kudos and more Kudos to you Maureen.I grew up wanting to be like Marcia Brady and now as an adult I wish I could be half the woman Maureen McCormick is
  
  
• Here's the story... It should be: Here's the WHOLE story...
  By AMHTXO19KZJYV on 2008-10-20
  I read this book today. My mother always said, "watch out for the quiet ones." Wow! She wasn't kidding. Maureen left nothing out. I was at times, shocked, disappointed, angry, sympathetic, impressed, etc.
  
  This is not a book about The Brady Bunch or the character Marcia Brady; though she did write about that part of her life; and it was connected. The book is about the person, Maureen McCormick: actress, wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend, neighbor.
  
  This book brought on a roller-coaster of emotions: Maureen was really a mixed bag. Sometimes you really felt for her, other times you found yourself asking, "how stupid and naive can one person be?" At times she showed courage and others she was a coward. She was a victim; but yet much of it was self-inflicted.
  
  She waited so long to grab the bull by the horns, that I found myself getting angry. But I guess that's part of it...when you are timid, insecure, strung out, imbalanced and vunarable, you lack the know-how in taking those first steps.
  
  I think I was angry because with all of those around her who claimed to care; no one took the initiative to really stand tough.
  
  I admire her for "coming out" with her true "self" because I was one of those, who truly believed that she was perfect, had it all, and led the perfect life; boy was I mistaken. See how we we judge, and perceive what we want to?
  
  She could easily have continued to let the world believe in the "Marcia" perfect image and non of us would have been the wiser.
  
  It just saddened me that no one used tough love and forced her to seek help; her husband who is passive, stood by for 20 years! Someone, anyone, should have shook her by the shoulders and forced her to get the help she needed.
  
  She really never had any real home-life. When she finally ventured out on her own, she fell prey to a "life-style" and spiraled and spiraled.
  
  The one message that readers should get from this read is: Seek help, no matter how scared, don't be afraid to seek help...the heck with the stigma. There was no humor in this book whatsoever, it is stark reality. I commend her and admire her new-found strength...but what were you waiting for? I pitied her for wasting so much valuable time!
  
  I give it four stars. Worth reading...but needed a bit more editing.
  As a fellow: wife, mother, daugher, sister...I wish her all the best.
  
  The two questions the book left in the balance are:
  
  1. Why was everyone but Eve Plumb acknowledged? Was there something there that she left out of the book? She touched on her Brady days; she should have included that little tid-bit.
  
  2. How are things with her father and brother Kevin at present?? I was somewhat left wondering; unless perhaps at press time, nothing was resolved with her Dad's situation.
  
  
• Raw and Authentic, Atypical Hollywood Memoir
  By A1YUL9PCJR3JTY on 2008-10-23
  *****
  This is the memoir of a woman who happens to be a famous actress, not a typical celebrity memoir. Unlike some Hollywood autobiographies, this lays out pretty much everything in Maureen's life in a well-written way; it is an interesting, entertaining, and riveting book.
  
  Whether or not you are a fan of the Brady Bunch doesn't matter---that part of the story is only found from pages 25-76 out of the entire 269 page story in which the author shares the deep pain and struggle she has been through, and how she got through it to a much better place. That is the main point of her memoir. It is a book for adults as it deals with recreational drug use, sex, abortions, mental illness, terrible family secrets and dramas, and more---she does not hold back. However, Maureen has come a long way to get to the stronger place where she can write about this.
  
  The point of reading this, what I took away from reading this, is a reminder that we are basically all the same no matter how famous we are. And we all have pain, we all struggle, and if we do indeed come through it, then we are fortunate, we are blessed. I admire Maureen for sharing her unique journey, for persevering in overcoming so much, and for having the courage to share it with us.
  
  Highly recommended.
  *****
  
  
• The most annoying person
  By A2Q8KDR1AGZ2FI on 2008-11-23
  She sounds like she was (and still is) the most melodramatic, emotionally unstable, immature needy person I've ever heard about. I felt compelled to finish reading it since I bought it and started it, but it was tough to get through when she tells stories like the one where in week two of her relationship, she got into the most enormous fight, where she immediately went from intimately sharing stories to screaming, crying, and not speaking for days. I think even at 50 years old, she'd be a draining person to be around!
  
  
• Don't waste your money
  By A2KK4XGY7D3873 on 2008-10-18
  This book is total garbage! Don't waste your money on it. Maureen made up everything in this book and it is all lies.
  
  
• Entertaining and interesting
  By A25X4F1TS2SW27 on 2008-12-13
  I gave this 3 stars because I felt it was a good, quick read, but nothing I'd read over and over again or have a need to own. I was impressed with most of her writing; there was nothing fancy about it but she didn't try to pretend to be some experienced writer and I liked that.
  
  What I really liked is that she gets to the interesting stuff right away. So often, biographies start so far back and take forever to get to the part where things start to get interesting. Instead, McCormick really only spends a short chapter giving a background on her family and then weaves them into the picture throughout the book as necessary, until they become the focus later on.
  
  She's had some of the already-seen struggles of a child celebrity such as bulimia and cocaine addiction. In fact, be forewarned if you're hoping to find Marcia Brady inside Maureen McCormick. The good girl you saw on the small screen is a bad girl off-screen for much of her 20s. Her plain-spoken manner lends itself well to the story, and aside from being a celebrity, she actually comes across as pretty down-to-earth (minus the heavy-duty vices she elaborates on in the book).
  
  Later, though, she talks about challenges of claims of elder abuse by her psychotic brother and her senile father, and it goes into a pitiful account of her struggles with that. Knowing some of her struggles may keep others as interested as I was in my eagerness to keep reading more. Still, she seems powerless in a lot of situations and it's hard to always pick up from her writing just how she got to be that way.
  
  The parts about the Bradys were the best, and if that's what you're looking for, then this is a worthwhile venture. For a die-hard Brady collector, this is a good book to have, and it's certainly deeper than Barry Williams book (although in fairness hers concentrates on a lifetime of celebrity and struggles whereas his book centered specifically on the Bradys). She recounts some juicy details and she didn't waste time getting to them, which was a real plus. Like I said, 3 stars because it was entertaining; I just reserve the higher ratings for something I'd be entertained by reading multiple times and maybe even owning.
  
  
  
• THAT'S ONE POWERFUL LADY
  By A1KI3A9G3L8E1N on 2008-10-20
  I had this book read in less than 24 hours. I could not put it down. Boy....and we think we have a hard life sometimes huh? It's amazing how at times we think about doing something and don't, or delay doing it and end up paying a price. How many of us expect a perfect lifestyle, a perfect family especially when we go out of our way to accomplish such? Maureen teaches us in her book, that it is ok to make mistakes, it's ok to not be so perfect and thankfully even God forgives us when we do goof-up in a big way.
  
  Thanks Maureen for sharing with us your ups and downs. Now my downs don't look so down anymore. God Bless You Always!
  
  LINDA
  
  
• Disappointed
  By A3E1DWI1JSPL7P on 2008-11-03
  I couldn't put this book down, turning each page hoping that it would get better. It didn't. It was boring and uneventful.
  
  
• "Here's the Story" by Maureen McCormick
  By A211OI5U3YBYMM on 2008-11-21
  I "just" finished this book a few minutes ago. Let it be known that I am "NOT" a 'Reader'...but finished this book in 2 sittings! Maureen, if you ever read this review...I commend you!! And "yes" your Mother would've approved this book! This is a book that 'everyone' who has ever known "Marcia Brady" needs to read....ESPECIALLY if they are a Baby-Boomer! My age is 56 and I identified with Maureen throughout the whole book!!
  Bravo!! (and not Johnny either! :)
  
  Darlene E.
  Wisconsin
  
  
• She should have been a writer
  By AW82OBL0WDBCU on 2008-11-29
  I couldn't believe how well written this book was and I don't see where it shows a co-author. She should have been a writer rather than an actress. This sums it up: She talks about surviving your mistakes, making peace with the past, acquiring some wisdom and learning to like yourself. I don't see how the husband stuck it out; he is a saint. This book will make you wonder about all the child stars of Hollywood.
  
  
  
• Maureen, diagnose Kevin!
  By A2X34UWD1ZFD02 on 2008-10-24
  Throughout the book, Maureen's brother Kevin displays symptoms and signs that are clearly indicative of a mental disorder. Because I am familiar with it professionally, I assumed at some point Maureen -- and the reader -- would learn that Kevin had been diagnosed with schizophenia. To my shock, the book ended without any mention of this. Given the fractured family situation, it will no doubt be difficult to get Kevin to a doctor, but he most certainly should be treated for schizophrenia, as he displays nearly every symptom of the paranoid strain.
  
  Beyond the clinical, this book was difficult reading for a Brady-era kid like me. Back then, THE BRADY BUNCH embodied everything we wished we could have had within our own fractured families. How many of us, at our darkest moments, wished we could be Bradys? As I read this book, I couldn't help but feel the irony that McCormick -- and the rest of the Brady kids -- didn't have that gift every Friday night at 8, the ultimate fantasy to believe in as long as we could. A big thanks, then, to Maureen, and Barry, and Eve, and Chris, and Mike, and Susan from a whole American generation -- whatever travails you've experienced in your lives, we on the outside can only wish that you'd had what you gave us to get through... the ideal of pork chops and apple sauce, fright night, exact words, and a brother to play Cyrano when we needed him most.
  
  
• The photos were better than her story...
  By A2AC0I0DWI20E5 on 2008-10-27
  I am not going to judge Maureen, but I do call BS on this book. I have a hard time believing that someone so wasted on drugs will recall all of the facts of her conversations and relationships. Never having done drugs myself, I cannot say firsthand, but one would think that if she was so "fried", as she put it, she may not recall her conversations during her drug years.
  
  Besides, telling facts about yourself is ONE thing, but then ratting out petty things about your tv family is another. And if Florence Henderson did indeed go topless to swim around a young Maureen, wouldn't that be viewed as creepy? Telling her mom's secret to the world, too, are you kidding? Is there nothing sacred in a family?
  
  I call a lot of BS in this book. Just my opinion, and kind of boring, too. I hope she finds peace, though. Her immediate family is very beautiful from the book photos.
  
  My overall... don't waste your time. It's not the worst I've read, but extremely far from the best.
  
  
• Needed a bit more behind the scenes
  By ADQFXXF6KFYL0 on 2008-10-27
  Overall a pretty good read. I had no idea what Maureen went through post Brady Bunch. She is definitely a "survivor". I ended up loving her and hating her brother Kevin. What a piece of work that guy is. My only criticism would be it would have been fun to hear more of the behind the scenes stories on The Brady Bunch. Barry Williams book is great in this regard and it would have been fun to hear Maureen's take.
  
  
• Finally she has arrived
  By A7RGH5KRVMIM0 on 2008-10-28
  It was sad to read yet another child star who struggled through the better half of her life drowning in addiction and mental health issues. Her family's legacy with addiction and syphilis to name a few was incredibly depressing. The impact on her life sexually as a woman and later as a parent was harrowing to read. I read the book in one evening. There was a lot to skim that was quite boring
  
  I grew up watching the Brady Bunch. The book captures a glimpse into that world but really covers the author's personal demons. Her search for meaning through therapy and the church as well as her love affair that led to a 20 year marriage (still going strong) helped us navigate through her stormy life.
  
  I know becoming a member of the Celebrity Fit Club was a challenge and success for her but for me I felt embarassed by her participation in a seedy reality show as well as some of the acting gigs she accepted. I hope Maureen finds her way as a parent and can embark on some new journey outside of acting. There is so much more to life and regretfully that industry failed her in many ways.
  
  
• a little more brady a little less dysfunctional sibling
  By AGDH58CGE5HW on 2008-11-01
  I enjoyed a lot of this book. M McCormick is honest and forthright. She tells her story without guile and she accepts personal responsibility without throwing anyone else under a bus.....rare for a hollywood biography. While her brady years were short I thought she short shrifted them given they are the source of her celebrity. By contrast the family dysfunction involving her dad and one crazy brother seemed to drag. Kudos to the woman shes become though. I really found myself liking her tremendously.
  
  
• Generally good biography
  By A2080TZHTZTYX5 on 2008-11-07
  This was a generally good biography; it definitely held my interest. Maureen seems to have a few strange personality quirks; in particular, she seems, even today, to make poor decisions (she recently decided to appear on the Howard Stern Show). However, from what I can see she married an exceptional person, and overall it looks like her life has worked out well.
  
  
• Syphilis,Syphilis,Syphilis! ...and Eve Plumb gets snubbed in the thank you's..
  By A1PY6EBL2YVL45 on 2008-11-10
  Props to Maureen for being honest, but this book is not that interesting in large part because the Brady stuff is old news,ie:Greg went out with Florence;Robert Reed was a frustrated Shakesperian, Ann B was a carpet muncher;(ok I made that one up..),ect ect same old Brady tidbits. Tho we ARE told that Jan/Eve walked around naked,farting in thier dressing room so I guess that's ONE new piece of information. The next Brady to write a book needs to come up with some new dirt. I love me some Brady Bunch but just my opinion.
  
  
• Growing Up In Public
  By A3TZV5SXQ8F6ST on 2008-11-27
  Even for those who meticulously follow the roller-coaster ride that is pop culture, it may have been a shock to see Marcia Brady on the 2007 Celebrity Fit Club.
  
  And here is where the problem lies....that was actually Maureen McCormick, not the cute teen character who will never grow old during the endless reruns of the iconic TV series, The Brady Bunch. Marcia is fake and Maureen is real. But it took Maureen many years and many falls to seek out her real self.
  
  In this candid memoir, McCormick openly discusses her life as a young actress and the years on the TV series, but it's a period of time after the show ended in 1974 that finds her trying to shed the TV popular, perky girl persona in her professional and personal lives.
  
  In a case of life imitating art, McCormick had trouble finding work due to being typecast as Marcia. She also jumped onto the freeway of living in the Hollywood fast lane of drugs, parties and tossing opportunities into the gutter for the "fun" that could never end. That she pulled herself together after several unsuccessful stints in rehab and trying experimental/controversial cures are powerful sections in the book.
  
  The honesty is astonishing and McCormick's biggest role is taking things one day at a time, while following her true voice. And that her words may help others will be the ultimate reward for growing up in public.
  
  
• Skip this read!
  By A1RLJVHF14Y1KS on 2008-11-30
  too over-hyped in the media. Book is badly written and not interesting at all. I highly suggest skipping it
  
  
• Another One Bites the Dust
  By A2VWI2UCI8FTJX on 2008-12-09
  Though she may now be at her personal pinnacle of self-awareness and emotional growth, Maureen McCormick's career in entertainment (including the book industry) most definitely peaked with her role as Marsha Brady. It's not in any way bad that she has made it through the things she has gone through, but the problem is that her recount of her self-inflicted "adversity" makes me want to self-inflict, because it's so obvious that she could have avoided the majority of her problems with the application of a medium amount of common sense and a smidgen of maturity. Drugs, prostitution, the typical superstar "sob story;" It's all very trivial.
  
  Almost all of the chapters read like they belong in a supermarket gossip rag, and those that don't, sound as if they're straight from the 1991 Christmas edition of the Reader's Digest. This book is like Jeffrey Dahmer, it will eat your body and let your brain stagnate in the freezer.
  It may be true that she was America's sweetheart, and that's fine and dandy, but there are only a few remotely stimulating moments contained within Here's the Story, and of those, none of them are unique to her life. It's essentially the same experience as turning the TV on and watching True Hollywood Story with the Lifetime channel on the picture-in-picture. Mind-numbing is the first description that comes to mind.
  
  
• Verytali
  By A35S6Y6M6XCQ3H on 2008-10-20
  I found this story to be very sad. If you are looking for the happy stories of "The Brady Bunch", look elsewhere. This book is well written, interesting, and I read it in three days. I kept wanting to get to the happy ending that never really came.
  
  
• Marcia! Marcia! Marcia!
  By A124THO7AI00QR on 2008-10-21
  Just got this book yesterday & cannot put it down. *WOW* What a great read! Kudos to Maureen for having the courage to face & write about a not-so-perfect life growing up in the public eye while greatly suffering thru a horribly dysfunctional home life. Anyone who grew up in a dysfunctional Catholic household will relate. A "Brady" life it aint! Lots of surprising bits & pieces that will surprise & shock readers. If you are hesitant about getting this book, just bite the bullet & do it! You will not be disappointed! Thanks Maureen! You go girl!
  
  
• Whose Biography is This, Anyway?
  By ASSBFVPIN0WKE on 2008-10-27
  Although I read the hype surrounding this book's release ("Marcia Brady" admits to troubled family history, trading sex for cocaine, etc.), I suppose I still expected the book to read like a typical celebrity memoir, filled to the brim with Brady Bunch anecdotes and tales of various Hollywood exploits in the fading glory, post-Brady years ... in other words, like a bio of Marcia Brady with a few real-life tragedies thrown in for marketing purposes.
  
  This is definitely not that book. This is Maureen McCormick's story and hers alone. Brady exploits are dealt out in small portions, mostly between the lines. For the rest of the book, McCormick bounces from one set of self-destructive habits to another, chronicling each in desperate detail. Somewhere around the halfway mark, I had to put the book aside for a few days and invite sunshine back into my life. Perhaps that's the best evidence future sociologists (or prison psychiatrists) may acquire of how deeply I, and others of my generation, identified with the Bradys. Reading of McCormick's downfall was like watching a loved one die a slow and painful death.
  
  Here's a spoiler: McCormick is a survivor. Her story begins badly, but ends well. And while I wish she had included more Brady trivia, more "Marcia" material, I think if there's anything the book really lacks, it's more detail on her recovery from cocaine addiction. Instead of taking readers through that process in a way that might be helpful to other addicts, McCormick presents it as though it were a one-off phenomenon: God touched her and she was healed, give or take a relapse or two and a lot of support from her husband. It's odd that McCormick could be so candid about her problems, and then gloss over the solutions.
  
  But maybe there's a sequel in the works ...
  
  
  
• Totally understandable
  By A1SO8AE23KZ0HZ on 2008-10-27
  Typecasting is an occupational hazard for actors in iconic roles, but it's hard to find a more extreme example than Maureen McCormick. The woman is over 50, but will be called "Marcia" to her face until the day she dies. Wouldn't we all like to be sixteen forever? My guess is not.
  
  It seems like Maureen has avoided cynically "cashing in" over the years more than her castmates; it seems that in any case, this is partially driven by the excesses of her youth and other uncontrollable events. Drugs, sex, more drugs, typecasting, periods of unemployment, more than her fair share of dysfunctional family issues, and drugs in Maureen's life provide a good deal of drama and fair warning to others.
  
  Still, Maureen's life is humorous, sad, fascinating, and quite frankly an interesting read. For those looking for "Brady" dirt, yes, there is some gossip, but that's not the point of "Here's The Story." This book is quite serious in most parts, and is not at all like Barry William's autobiography.
  
  A great read that fairly fleshes out the public persona of a '70s icon.
  
  Recommended.
  
  
• Surviving Marcia Brady
  By A1MALRPGB24CLS on 2008-10-30
  Here's the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True VoiceI really enjoyed this book. I found it hard to put down. I am the same age as Maureen and although I have not had the experiences with acting or doing drugs it's difficult to begin getting older and having people compare you to what you looked like in your youth. Getting older comes with the weight gain, depression and wrinkles and it's hard enough when you're not in the public eye as she is. I think she has had a very interesting life and reading that someone as beautiful and talented as she is could bare herself to the world in her book and let us all know she is just as human as the rest of us was great. I think she has overcome many obsticales and she still looks great. I'll always think of her as Marcia Marcia Marcia.
  
  

• Too Fat to Fish
• sTORI Telling
• Losing It: And Gaining My Life Back One Pound at a Time
• Pieces of My Heart: A Life
• Multiple Blessings: Surviving to Thriving with Twins and Sextuplets