What do you think?
Rate this book
Bouncing Back: I've Survived Everything... and I Mean Everything...and You Can Too!
A fiercely honest and moving story of how Joan Rivers, one of comedy's greatest stars, survived the worst that life could throw at her, how she hit bottom and then made it back to the top.
"There are many self-help books by Ph.D's, but I hold a different an I.B.T.I.A. — I've Been Through It All. This degree comes not on parchment but on gauze, and it entitles me to tell you that there is a way to get through any misfortune." — From Bouncing Back Survival stratagems from Joan Rivers
"There are many self-help books by Ph.D's, but I hold a different an I.B.T.I.A. — I've Been Through It All. This degree comes not on parchment but on gauze, and it entitles me to tell you that there is a way to get through any misfortune." — From Bouncing Back Survival stratagems from Joan Rivers
Mass Market Paperback
First published February 1, 1997
46 people are currently reading
451 people want to read
About the author
Joan Rivers
39 books130 followersJoan Rivers (born Joan Sandra Molinsky) was an American comedian, actress, talk show host, businesswoman, and celebrity. She was known for her brash manner and loud, raspy voice with a heavy metropolitan New York accent. Rivers was the National Chairwoman of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and is a board member of God's Love We Deliver. Like the ground-breaking Phyllis Diller, Rivers' act relied heavily on poking fun at herself. A typical Rivers joke about her unattractiveness: "I used to stand by the side of the road with a sign: 'Last girl before freeway.'"
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
May 18, 2013
I will be perfectly honest, I picked up this book without reading what it was really about. I assumed that since it is written by Joan Rivers it will be funny. I love her sense of humor, I get her jokes. I was looking forward to laughing at more of her famous one-liners.
Needless to say, this book is not about Joan being the "funny Joan". Written in the aftermath of her husband's suicide and after her business went belly up and she lost all of her job opportunities, one would expect this book to be the most depressing ever. It was a sad book, but at the same time it was a book about hope, about seeing the light at the end of a tunnel, about grief and love, about the power we have within us. I wish I had read this book back in 2009, when I lost my only sibling and my father. But even now, years after they are gone, I still found a lot of comfort in reading Joan's journey. As she says it herself, "I don't have a Ph.D., but I hold a different degree: I.B.T.I.A. - I've Been Through It All".
Needless to say, this book is not about Joan being the "funny Joan". Written in the aftermath of her husband's suicide and after her business went belly up and she lost all of her job opportunities, one would expect this book to be the most depressing ever. It was a sad book, but at the same time it was a book about hope, about seeing the light at the end of a tunnel, about grief and love, about the power we have within us. I wish I had read this book back in 2009, when I lost my only sibling and my father. But even now, years after they are gone, I still found a lot of comfort in reading Joan's journey. As she says it herself, "I don't have a Ph.D., but I hold a different degree: I.B.T.I.A. - I've Been Through It All".
July 2, 2022
why was this so moving shsjsj was not expecting the sincerity
November 2, 2019
A different side to Joan Rivers than what I'd expected. Yes, there are jokes, but this is more of a biography/self-help book than comedic memoir. Offers great advice for dealing with adversity, but the book could have been tightened up with one more round of editing, in my opinion.
And the last line regarding Princess Diana sent chills down my spine.
And the last line regarding Princess Diana sent chills down my spine.
June 23, 2025
Miss you Joan ♥️
I miss you so Joan but thank you for your pearls of wisdom that have helped me more than you will ever know!
I hope to meet you in Heaven one day because I will know to find you there 👼🏻.
Love 💕,
Candy 🍭
I miss you so Joan but thank you for your pearls of wisdom that have helped me more than you will ever know!
I hope to meet you in Heaven one day because I will know to find you there 👼🏻.
Love 💕,
Candy 🍭
September 18, 2017
It was better than I thought it would be. She actually had some good ideas about how to move forward after a big loss.
November 6, 2017
Excellent book; and it is very inspirational. I recommend the audio book, since Joan herself reads it. Many stories and quotes from people who have faced adversity.
August 31, 2018
Interesting with some good nuggets! Joan was definitely a unique and strong woman.
July 6, 2012
i don't expect many people will run right out and read this book (it was written in 1997) and while i find joan rivers very funny, i appreciate that her sense of humour is not for everyone. however, i was intruigued by this book, recollecting that her husband, edgar, committed suicide (after 22 years of marriage) shortly after fox cancelled her show "the late show starring joan rivers" in 1986. i was surprised to read about all her professional and financial difficulties as well. while she succeeded in winning an emmy for her tv talk show " the joan rivers show", she left it to write and star in a broadway play "sally marr...and her escorts". the play received a tony nomination, and she cancelled concert tours, stand-up bookings in las vegas, and sitcom roles, confident that the play would run for years. the play closed in five months due to financial constraints. there were long stretches of time where she couldn't get any bookings, including a 10 yr refusal from letterman and leno.
while she successfully marketed a jewelry line through qvc, she was urged by her advisors to go public. she agreed to sign away control and rights to regal communications for 16 millon dollars in stock. not long after, she was informed that the stocks' value was dropping, a 19 million dollar debt had surfaced, and regal had issued $37 million in bonds using her comany as collateral. she was told any profits and personal earnings from tv, movies, commercials, or books would be used against the debt.
i honestly can't imagine dealing with one or two of the setbacks she survived, and then to read about all her life stressors happening, sometimes one after another, sometimes at the same time, and trying to remain poised and collected while the spotlight intrudes on any sense of privacy.
as expected, the book has a lot of humor in it, and is very easy to brease through. she references simple coping mechanisms, many of them ones i'm sure everyone relates to, or uses often already. i found her remarkably open and honest about her husband's suicide and the subsequent estrangement with her daughter, melissa, afterwards. the book is peppered with lots of references to celebrities that she admires, and who also had funny bits of wisdom to impart. there were many times i smiled and laughed out loud while reading. she did a nice job with this.
while she successfully marketed a jewelry line through qvc, she was urged by her advisors to go public. she agreed to sign away control and rights to regal communications for 16 millon dollars in stock. not long after, she was informed that the stocks' value was dropping, a 19 million dollar debt had surfaced, and regal had issued $37 million in bonds using her comany as collateral. she was told any profits and personal earnings from tv, movies, commercials, or books would be used against the debt.
i honestly can't imagine dealing with one or two of the setbacks she survived, and then to read about all her life stressors happening, sometimes one after another, sometimes at the same time, and trying to remain poised and collected while the spotlight intrudes on any sense of privacy.
as expected, the book has a lot of humor in it, and is very easy to brease through. she references simple coping mechanisms, many of them ones i'm sure everyone relates to, or uses often already. i found her remarkably open and honest about her husband's suicide and the subsequent estrangement with her daughter, melissa, afterwards. the book is peppered with lots of references to celebrities that she admires, and who also had funny bits of wisdom to impart. there were many times i smiled and laughed out loud while reading. she did a nice job with this.
December 31, 2014
Not the best book by Joan Rivers however it's still a decent read if you're a fan
I purchased this book because recently I had lost my brother and I'm not one to pick up a self-help book however , I am a huge Joan Rivers band and I knew that she had done to south of books and I think you're that she is someone who is very funny and is been by . So maybe I would get something from this book , and maybe it would help . I'm sad to say I didn't . To me whenever at this book it seems to only reflect on what she went through and do things her way and not give many different suggestions on how to approach things such as death and the loss of a loved one . Purview is to laugh and make everything funny joke about things , and although that is a good tactic isn't when your morning your brother and you're in your early 20s and you're not a 50-year-old woman who lost your six-year-old husband . This book seems to me also that you have to be very self-righteous only do things for yourself and not for anybody else in mind while grieving and not help others . And I know Joan Rivers at this time when she wrote her book only had her and her daughter and her two sisters did not live nearby so therefore it was her and her daughter when she talks about her experiences with death. Also this book talks about going into bankruptcy add other things you can survive depression this and that other things that were on relatable . I love Joe I have all the bucks but this really was on relatable to the average person , the book is called bouncing back I've survived everything you can to but when she goes into every thing you know the subjects are very hard for the average person to relate to guess we get press yes we deal with certain things . However once this woman became famous she's had everything handed to her on Silverspoon and I don't think she knows what it's like to relate to the average person and not everything is a joke and that's what I found with this book
I purchased this book because recently I had lost my brother and I'm not one to pick up a self-help book however , I am a huge Joan Rivers band and I knew that she had done to south of books and I think you're that she is someone who is very funny and is been by . So maybe I would get something from this book , and maybe it would help . I'm sad to say I didn't . To me whenever at this book it seems to only reflect on what she went through and do things her way and not give many different suggestions on how to approach things such as death and the loss of a loved one . Purview is to laugh and make everything funny joke about things , and although that is a good tactic isn't when your morning your brother and you're in your early 20s and you're not a 50-year-old woman who lost your six-year-old husband . This book seems to me also that you have to be very self-righteous only do things for yourself and not for anybody else in mind while grieving and not help others . And I know Joan Rivers at this time when she wrote her book only had her and her daughter and her two sisters did not live nearby so therefore it was her and her daughter when she talks about her experiences with death. Also this book talks about going into bankruptcy add other things you can survive depression this and that other things that were on relatable . I love Joe I have all the bucks but this really was on relatable to the average person , the book is called bouncing back I've survived everything you can to but when she goes into every thing you know the subjects are very hard for the average person to relate to guess we get press yes we deal with certain things . However once this woman became famous she's had everything handed to her on Silverspoon and I don't think she knows what it's like to relate to the average person and not everything is a joke and that's what I found with this book
June 26, 2014
I got this from a free bin post garage sale. This is a quick read, more of a think positive kind of novel with Joan Rivers humor thrown in. I tell you this woman takes every opportunity to do whatever it takes to stay in the game. This makes her the perfect author for this kind of novel which in a lot of ways is autobiographical. She throws in plenty of examples from other women who are struggling to overcome setbacks and tragedy. The emphasis is on the success and Joan's mantra is "just don't ever give up" For Joan she heals herself by getting laughs and giving back.
I think almost the whole novel could be summed up with my favorite joke that even Joan repeats for different occasions in her novel is "If Daddy could see this (fill in the blank) he'd kill himself all over again."
I think almost the whole novel could be summed up with my favorite joke that even Joan repeats for different occasions in her novel is "If Daddy could see this (fill in the blank) he'd kill himself all over again."
February 28, 2016
3.5 STARS
Honestly, I was very surprised at what this book turned out to be. I went to the library last week and picked it up, heading for the checkout line. Whenever I see a book written by any comic or entertainer, I usually give it a try. I'm not a "self help" book kinda gal but this book was surprisingly very good in that sense. I had no idea that Joan had written a book, attempting to help others through just about any crisis or tragedy you can think of. She shared her failures and hard times, from her husbands suicide to rejections in show business. I took away quiet a few helpful tips from this and I'm glad I came across it. Bouncing Back is truly for anyone who has EVER gone through a rough patch. Aka: every human being on this earth.
Honestly, I was very surprised at what this book turned out to be. I went to the library last week and picked it up, heading for the checkout line. Whenever I see a book written by any comic or entertainer, I usually give it a try. I'm not a "self help" book kinda gal but this book was surprisingly very good in that sense. I had no idea that Joan had written a book, attempting to help others through just about any crisis or tragedy you can think of. She shared her failures and hard times, from her husbands suicide to rejections in show business. I took away quiet a few helpful tips from this and I'm glad I came across it. Bouncing Back is truly for anyone who has EVER gone through a rough patch. Aka: every human being on this earth.
June 5, 2016
QVC host, fashion critic, Broadway actress, standup comic, reality TV star... Now here's another credit to add to Joan Rivers' resume: Life coach. I can't say she excels at this particular role but I still admire her tenaciousness when encountering setbacks (a husband's suicide, a play that closed sooner than expected, a business deep in debt). Her philosophy -- get real then fake it till you make it -- is filled with contradictions and cliches but chances are if you attended one of her self-help seminars which served as the basis for this book, you'd come away with a few laughs and an useful tip or two.
June 10, 2012
I didn't have a very positive opinion of J. Rivers, due to her overly snarky, comedy and fashion comments. However...I really enjoyed this book, and it gave my butt a kick, when I needed it. I "borrowed" it from the suicide survivors support group. Her husband died, and she had a bunch of other crappy stuff happen, but look at her! 79 years old, this week, and still fighting to keep going.
The book contains surprising insight, and a number of quotes from other famous people, who had to survive and then thrive.
Thanks JOAN!
The book contains surprising insight, and a number of quotes from other famous people, who had to survive and then thrive.
Thanks JOAN!
June 28, 2015
Overall impression: Well written; relatable; shows the more serious side of Joan Rivers; comforting to those who need it.
To read full review, please click here
To read full review, please click here
April 7, 2013
It was just ok, maybe if I waited awhile to read it after I read her proceeding two books, Enter Talking and Still Talking - maybe I would have liked it a bit more - but some of it was repetative, but it was a quick and easy read.
May 18, 2016
Funny and informative.
October 27, 2011
Great story of resilience.
June 13, 2012
Brutally honest advice about moving past disaster. A more serious side of Joan Rivers, and certainly a more sympathetic one. Worth reading.
January 29, 2013
i love everything joanie writes!
September 6, 2014
Continues her life. I enjoyed reading her progression as I have read her books in order written.
November 19, 2014
A very fast read. Witty, enlightening and a lovely read. Joan has a remarkable voice that uplifts the spirit and spreads love to all.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews