Some may know her as hot, gutsy, gun-totin' Foxy Brown, Friday Foster, Coffy, and Jackie Brown. Others may know her from her role as Kit Porter on ...
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Feb 03, 2011
Buggy
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Unlike most people reviewing this book, I actually knew next to nothing about 70’s B-movie and Blaxploitation star Pam Grier before I began. I’d only ever seen her in Jackie Brown and knew that Quentin Tarantino had written the role exclusively for her. However after receiving this book in a giveaway from the publisher (Thank you Goodreads First reads) I can now say that I’ve become an admirer of Ms Grier and her remarkable life. As far as biographies go this one is well written and flows easil
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May 18, 2010
Dorothy
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I remember back in the 1970's going to the drive in theater and seeing Pam Grier in the movies. I thought Foxy Brown was great. It was very inspiring to a teenage girl to see strong woman role in the movies. So I was very excited to get the chance to review her memoirs. Pam Grier wrote the book in a way that seems like she is just chatting and telling you what her life is about. Which makes the book a enjoyable personal read. Her memoirs help to bring to life many of the every day difficulti
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Jun 22, 2010
RYCJ
rated it: 
I was looking for one thing, and one thing only. Where did the passion in the characters Foxy Brown & Jackie Brown come from!?! In other words, who 'really' is Pam Grier?
I was hesitant at first... you know, waiting for the lid to snap off... when I got to Donatello and from there just watched Foxy go! Good Gosh, this here is the makings of one deft spirit that doesn't just ride, but drives!
What else did I love? Mom, for one, is a jewel, as was the mother/daughter rela More...
I was hesitant at first... you know, waiting for the lid to snap off... when I got to Donatello and from there just watched Foxy go! Good Gosh, this here is the makings of one deft spirit that doesn't just ride, but drives!
What else did I love? Mom, for one, is a jewel, as was the mother/daughter rela More...
May 30, 2010
Shannon
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Since I only knew Pam Grier from her role on The L Word, I wondered if I'd find this book interesting. I was also a little wary of a celebrity autobiography because of howwww baaaaad the Dorothy Hamill autobiography was when I read it earlier this year. She seems really interesting and down-to-Earth. This was a fun diversion read, and I won a copy through First Reads.
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Feb 25, 2010
Dora
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I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this at the library conference. When I saw it I just about died because I've always loved Pam Grier!
I always thought she was great, but this book opened my eyes to her very interesting life. Her personal history is so unique and profound, growing up in the 50s and 60s in the southwest, and her involvement in civil rights as a teen and early 20s in California. I loved all the stories she told, happy and sad, and felt completely connected t More...
I always thought she was great, but this book opened my eyes to her very interesting life. Her personal history is so unique and profound, growing up in the 50s and 60s in the southwest, and her involvement in civil rights as a teen and early 20s in California. I loved all the stories she told, happy and sad, and felt completely connected t More...
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Sep 29, 2011
D
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I truly enjoyed this book. It was a real page turner. Without knowing anything about her, you would probably think she lived the perfect Hollywood life….a life that you could only dream of having. She came from very humble beginnings; had quite a few ups and downs in life; and maintains her feet on solid ground. You’ll find abuse, heartbreak, and inspiration in this book. Two of the take-away points that I found helpful in this book were (1) when Pam warns about being careful not to “find”
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Apr 24, 2010
Angypants
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I didn't grow up in the 70's, when Pam Grier became a huge international actress. But I recognized, like many, what talent she had in "Jackie Brown".
I wasn't looking for anything gritty, but Pam tells it like it is. She is filled with a positive outlook, though; the excerpts from her life are well chosen. She's a real person here, and doesn't have any airs about her. "Foxy" is fun and heavy at some points, as Ms. Grier details her loves and triumphs.
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I wasn't looking for anything gritty, but Pam tells it like it is. She is filled with a positive outlook, though; the excerpts from her life are well chosen. She's a real person here, and doesn't have any airs about her. "Foxy" is fun and heavy at some points, as Ms. Grier details her loves and triumphs.
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May 20, 2010
Tara
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I have always known of Pam Grier, but I didn't really become familiar with her until I started watching The L Word, one of the best shows of all time. I was excited to read her book because I loved her so much on that show. The book was good and has it's interesting parts, but she is a little too squeaky clean and wholesome. Which is good, but doesn't really make for a good book. I love her morals and her feminist ideals but she must have done something wrong that she regretted during her 60+ ye
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Nov 24, 2010
drbarb
rated it:
Well, Pam Grier is one cool woman. Her autobiography sounds like she wrote it, not like Hollywood pablum. Her upbringing and her experiences are very interesting. Now I saw Fort Apache the Bronx, and was completely grossed out by her prostitute/coked out freak/murderer character at the time. When you hear her describe how she came up with that character, you have to admire her. It might not be Shakespeare (oh, if you saw that dog of a movie, you know it WASn't Shakespeare) but she took it on wit
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May 31, 2010
Molly
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I like Pam Grier and was glad to learn a little more about her, but a lot of her memoir is .. well, dull? It's just not particularly insightful. Maybe I'm just wanting it to be as good as Backing into Forward, which is probably unfair.
And my jaw dropped when I got to page 88, where she wrote this:
"When girls start having lots of sex at young ages, they wear their vaginas out. Literally. What do you expect if you have intercourse four or five times a week with different partn More...
And my jaw dropped when I got to page 88, where she wrote this:
"When girls start having lots of sex at young ages, they wear their vaginas out. Literally. What do you expect if you have intercourse four or five times a week with different partn More...
Apr 27, 2010
Holly
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Pam Grier is known for a lot of things. She is known as a truly gifted, hard-working, dedicated and passionate actor. She is known for being at the forefront of the blaxploitation scene, for her role as Coffy, Foxy Brown and for Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown, a role, it turns out, that Tarantino wrote specifically for her. She is also known as Kit Porter, the ex-alcoholic and known singer who turns her life around and truly re-discovers herself within a group of supporting and loving friends,
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Aug 02, 2011
Joanna
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I have never seen any blaxploitation movies, but when I caught the Samuel L. Jackson remake of Shaft on TV, my interest in the genre was piqued. To this end, a friend lent me this book, which happened to be an advanced copy. I really enjoyed it; I hadn't really known anything about her life and work. The writing style is very casual and chatty, and that might turn some people off (one of the reasons I gave it three stars) and like said friend mentioned, it does devolve into a bit of name-droppin
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Apr 27, 2011
Meg
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I really enjoyed reading this book (ok, I read the entire thing in one evening, not even noticing the time was passing so quickly!) and was really moved by Pam Grier's resiliency and optimism. I also enjoyed her upbeat descriptions of things she enjoyed (traveling to different countries, meeting interesting people...). I haven't seen many of her movies, but I'm inspired to watch more by her descriptions of how much work she puts into developing her characters. I also enjoyed her strong femini
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Aug 20, 2010
Pamster
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She is AWESOOOOME. God, she is so absolutely interested in everything. She talks about race, gender, rape, friendship with other women, her love of animals, her romantic relationships (holy shit Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Freddie Prinze, and Richard Pryor!), FILM, and so much other stuff. Love her to death. Total farm girl, totally serious actor, totally pro-woman, the best. She'll just mention things like being into architecture or comic books, and you just know she has so much more in her to write t
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Dec 09, 2011
Kimberly
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Pam Grier is a remarkable woman. My God, I cannot believe all she went through in her life. We, as audience members, on the outside looking in, always think that celebrities have such a great life, and although Pam has a good life, this woman has gone through some horrible tragedies. A woman who has never been married, never had children, but has had some great loves. I was shocked to learn whom she had lengthy relationships, starting with Kareem Abdul Jabar, Freddie Prinze and Richard Pryor
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May 05, 2010
jim
rated it:
Autobiographies are a tricky proposition. Balancing drama and tension, if there is any, with what amounts to an expanded cirriculum vitae is not an easy task. In Pam Grier's book Foxy the balance works. Sometimes. Sometimes it doesn't. I've always admired her work and had a gut feeling she was personally tough. Unquestionably, the best aspect of this book is knowing about the many hard knocks she's endured while keeping a positive outlook on her life and career. At worst it flips the old
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Sep 15, 2010
Rochonne
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I have always been a Pam Grier fan and was excited to read this book about her life. Her battle with cancer, a survivor of being a black actress in a white male "Hollywood" gave me more reason to respect her and thank her for opening up the doors for other young black women who want to become an actress. She wrote with honesty, expressing little regret for the life she lived. More importantly, she painted herself as more than an actress, but as a well-rounded woman. I would have to
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Sep 06, 2010
Shelley
rated it:
Pam Grier and I are birthday twins...that and the fact that she is a badass, awesome female led me to want to read this book. I was fortunate enough to get a first reads copy so it saved me from having to run out and buy it.
Foxy reads like you're having a conversation with Ms. Grier and she's telling you her life story. I'm sure that some die hard fans will already know much of the information that she shares in the book but even if you've heard the stories, it's different to hear More...
Foxy reads like you're having a conversation with Ms. Grier and she's telling you her life story. I'm sure that some die hard fans will already know much of the information that she shares in the book but even if you've heard the stories, it's different to hear More...
Feb 10, 2011
Gwen
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I recognize Pam Grier as an actress. It was amazing to read her life from the beginning. She tells it like it is and was in her life. As I was reading it, I kept thinking "it is interesting to read about a strong woman who lived and survived through racial discrimination and the women's movement." I couldn't decide if she liked to drop names or if these were people she just knew and how neat was that.
Aug 24, 2010
Jasmine
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What you do learn about Ms. Grier is that she is humble as well as graceful about her life and career as a gun-toting, karate-choppin' bad ass. Her honesty about her personal life which includes romances with an athlete, comedians and businessmen as well as a bout with cancer is to be respected. However, you are left wanting to know more about her career - at least I was.
Feb 06, 2011
Ashley
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I found this a really enjoyable book, learning about one of the pioneering African American actresses in the blaxploitation genre of film popular when Pam Grier first started rising to success. Ms. Grier is a strong woman who has managed to overcome a variety of trials, from a rape at the age of six by her cousins all the way up to her fight with cancer.
Jun 12, 2010
Sarah
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Despite the many horrible things that have happened to Pam Grier--racism, multiple rapes, cancer, cocaine cervix (yep, you'll see)--she has had a pretty good life. Her gratitude and positivity come through without making the book dull. I found the writing to be hit and miss; I wish that people who hire ghostwriters would hire BETTER ghostwriters.
Mar 09, 2011
Sharon
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I read my life in three acts in three acts, and couldn't believe that she was in a relationship with freddie Prince and Richard Pryor or kareem that was strange to read about how her life was growing up and the sex abuse that happen in her life I was very surprise by the story. But it was good to understand the person she was.
May 06, 2010
Nandi
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To me, the most anticipated book I have waited for since the year started. Pam Grier means many things to folks. Star. Survivor, Friend, Actress, Activist and the list moves on. This offering of a glimpse of her life makes you want to cry with her, root and cheer when you finally come to the end. She is easy to read, candid and to the point.
Jun 01, 2010
Sarah
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Ms. Grier has had a fascinating and turbulent life and she describes it candidly and modestly. It was easy to root for her as she disclosed her experiences with discrimination, sexism, illness, and failed romances with not a shred of whining, blaming, or self-pitying to be found. Ms. Grier seems like a humble, approachable person and she writes as if she's telling you her life story over tea. It was inspiring to read about a woman who lives her life with integrity, determination, optimism and a
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Sep 01, 2010
Elmonteban
rated it:
I really liked this booked.
I love a book that makes me go to google and find out more information.
Her journey was rough but the way she told her story assured me that she was going to be okay in the end.
She quite frank about her relationships and she knows who Pam Grier in.
I love this woman.
I love a book that makes me go to google and find out more information.
Her journey was rough but the way she told her story assured me that she was going to be okay in the end.
She quite frank about her relationships and she knows who Pam Grier in.
I love this woman.
Jul 22, 2011
Ashley
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I love reading memoirs because you get to dig deeper in to the life of someone in the limelight. This book allowed me to see the many sides of Pam Grier that I never knew she had. She has a very interesting background and story and I'm glad she opened herself up by sharing this with the world.
Jun 18, 2011
Bliss
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Aside from the slew of famous people Ms. Grier has known and been friends with over the years, her life story is compelling on its own merit.
I love the way she is not afraid to share the details of not only her actions and activities but her thoughts, dreams, and intense self-reflection as well.
It's no wonder she seems to be at peace with her life. She's had quite a ride and lived to speak of it while some who were rolling with her back in the day didn't make it this far.
I love the way she is not afraid to share the details of not only her actions and activities but her thoughts, dreams, and intense self-reflection as well.
It's no wonder she seems to be at peace with her life. She's had quite a ride and lived to speak of it while some who were rolling with her back in the day didn't make it this far.
Jun 05, 2010
Shannon
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I am just finishing reading this book. It is great! She tells it like it is from the problems she had growing up to the guys she dated(some who were famous) and the issues she has had making it in the field. I normally am not a big fan of autobiographies, but loved this.
Jul 18, 2011
Traceface
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pretty cool. not a literary masterpiece, but pam's story is an interesting one. the one thing I learned, if nothing else: Richard Pryor did so much cocaine it found it's way to his semen, which found it's way to pam's cervix, WHERE IT BUILT UP. o_0
