A dramatic separation of the parents when a child is really young is enough to make any childhood dysfunctional. Add in the fact that those parents are famous, that her father was largely absent, that she grew up surrounded by celebrities, and that fame and stardom came at a young age for Carrie, it seems almost inevitable that she would become an alcoholic.

I mean, obviously there must be a lot more to it than that, but that's the simple premise Carrie puts before us. That's all the explanation we really get. There is no introspection, there is no description of her thoughts or feelings as she descended into a large pit of alcohol. We're given the facts stated above, and we are told that Carrie is an alcoholic. Accept it, and move on.

It's not that she doesn't have some good stories - she does - but she doesn't really tell them. She just tells us that the story exists. She just says that one morning there was a dead, naked Republican in her bed. There's got to be a lot of background that led up to that, but she glosses over it. There must have been a lot of fallout from that, but beyond an obvious statement, we don't get to see it.

I was disappointed in her failure to let the reader in - I mean, why write a memoir about your life if you don't plan to reveal anything? BUT having said that (kind of redundantly I notice as I reread the above), Carrie Fisher is still exceedingly entertaining. She's funny, quirky and self-deprecating. I did laugh several times. I would love to see her show. But I'm guessing she doesn't put much in her show that's not in this book.