Read Yes
Length 288
Quick Review This is one of those nostalgia filled, feel-good memoirs. If you’re a fan of old Hollywood, it’s a must read. Kathryn Sermak has a beautiful insight into the later years of the icon, Bette Davis.
Miss D & Me by Kathryn Sermak called my name the moment I realized it existed. In my late teens, I fell in love with old Hollywood movies. Rosemary Clooney, Marilyn Monroe, Katharine Hepburn, Ingrid Bergman, Barbara Stanwyck, Ginger Rogers, Vivien Leigh, and, of course, Bette Davis captured my attention. These were strong women; poised women; intelligent women; underestimated women. They were fascinating.
Bette Davis is an icon. She has been for generations. Kathryn Sermak was a young woman with almost zero knowledge of who Miss Davis was when she took on the role of Girl Friday. In the beginning, Sermak had no depth in the needs or wants of Miss Davis, but with time, effort, patience, and a lot of hard work, Sermak learned a great deal from an icon beloved by the world.
Sermak documents her years with Bette Davis in Miss D & Me as an assistant and a close confidante. The two women were on opposite spectrums of age and experience, but they made a bond that lasted. Sermak lived with Miss Davis through all the hardships of her last years including cancer, a stroke, her daughter’s betrayal, a broken hip, and more.
I absolutely loved reading Miss D & Me because it feels like you’re entering a very private area of Miss Davis’ life. You get to see the gracious woman she was along with the pain she hid from her fans. She had a beautiful and kind soul. I felt drawn to her survivor’s spirit.
The most interesting part of Miss D & Me is in the very last few pages. Sermak talks about her last days with Miss Davis. At the time, Sermak was in a relationship listening to Miss Davis give advice on what women shouldn’t settle for and what they should expect from their partners. I couldn’t have agreed with Miss Davis more.
Miss D & Me solidifies Bette Davis’ role as an icon and a star; a term she very much earned through a lifetime of work.
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Memorable Quotes
“Only if she was perfect would she feel worthy of their love.”
“Walking away from a project she considered beneath her always put her in a good frame of mind.”
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Title: Miss D & Me
Author: Kathryn Sermak
Co-Author: Danelle Morton
Publisher: Hachette Books
Copyright: 2017
ISBN: 9780316507868
