Helen experienced a great deal of psychologically damaging neglect and emotional abuse. She was forced to grow up too quickly in order to provide care to her supposedly sick mother. She had a closeness to her mother growing up that came by necessity and it’s one that led to resentment once her mother’s betrayal was clear. Her feelings are fair and valid. While I did not grow up with a mother who faked illness, there were still experiences Helen described that I found relatable, especially when considering the emotional impact of such treatment.

Still, there was so much in the tone of this that bothered me. I never wish to invalidate one’s experiences or their attempts to process those experiences. I wish I had learned more about Munchausen’s through this, but it ultimately felt like an angry journal (which is totally fair to write) that I am sure proved cathartic for the author. It just wasn’t enjoyable for me.

I sympathize with the injuries Helen is left to work through.

I am immensely grateful to Thread Books for my audio review copy through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This was an interesting story and true account of the author’s mother afflicted with Munchausens syndrome. The dynamics of the family and how it effects her husband, daughter, relatives and friends.
I had little knowledge of this mental illness before reading and it was quite eye-opening. Choosing illness to get attention and having it take over her life . This was the life of Eleanor Page.
It seems doctors were of little to no help and the author had to live her life as a neglected child and then a caregiver. As an adult Eleanor felt her grandchildren took time and attention away from her. Her personality was either rational or an off-the-wall hypochondriac.
I felt bad for the daughter, who longed for a real mother and towards the end I was sad to read a year had gone by with no contact between the two women.
I highly recommend the story. The author does a wonderful job as narrator Thank you NetGalley and Bookoutre

A shocking and distressing story from a daughter torn between her love for her mother and wanting to protect her and her family from the cruel manipulation and abuse from the person you should be able to trust most in the world to care and protect you.

I found myself compelled to keep listening to this audiobook, such a heartbreaking story. I really recommend.

i am not usually one for nonfiction, but this book was so good. the writing was straightforward with a good balance between feelings and emotion to keep you engaged, and plot to keep the story moving. having a parent who also suffers from npd sometimes it was hard to read, but i definitely connected with the story. would 100% recommend. (4.9)

In this book Helen Naylor the author is brutal honest on how her mother affected her life. How her mother’s lies shaped the way they lived and their relationships with each other. It was the first book of this type I had listened too and it brought the subject of munchausens home to me. The fact the author also narrated this book was brilliant.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to listen to an advanced copy

I really liked the concept of this book and feel awful for Ms. Naylor and all that she went through. Unfortunately I was hoping for a little bit "more." drama. I did really appreciate how this memoir read almost like a piece of fiction. It was easy to read and follow.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Thread Books for an ARC of this audiobook in exchange for my honest feedback.

This book was hard to listen too, because I too, have had many experiences similar to Helens . After dealing with a narcissist mother, and a munchausen father I found this book to be helpful in my own healing but also heart-wrenching. I never understood how a person can lie for so many years and not feel one sliver of guilt. Yes this mum was severely narcissist and they lack empathy. However how does one get away with the lies for years and years. And I too had a sick parent who unknowingly took my childhood from me too. I saw some reviews saying the author was playing victim and also showed self pity., I don't feel this way., I feel that when you have a lifetime of mental abuse and manipulation it can really effect your physical and mental well being.. there was some parts that dragged on but overall it was interesting and heartbreaking..

Received an advance copy of the audio version of My Mother, Munchausen's and Me written and narrated by Helen Naylor.

The story is a memoir of Helen's life and how her mother's illness impacted her as a child and beyond. She shares portions of her mother's diary that she has recieved after her mother's death.

The story is a honest and often sad how the issues Helen's parents had impacted her.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ALC in exchange for an honest review. This book was just okay on audio. Narrative non-fiction is tricky on audio, and I think that this misses the mark. The story is captivating but gets off topic a lot which is frustrating. i enjoyed parts of it and others not so much. 2/5 stars.

I found this to be a highly enjoyable and well written memoir. Told through the eyes of the daughter but also with insight from her mother's daily journal entries.

Helen knew she did not have a normal childhood but she thought she still had a good one considering her parent's disabling illnesses. But decades later learning that her mother had been faking her conditions and could have been a normal mom makes her rethink how she was raised.

The audiobook was read by the author and I think she did an outstanding job. Even better than professional audio readers. Highly recommend the audiobook.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thread Books for an advanced audiobook for review.

I was super excited about this book from the title alone. I love being a voyeur into someone's personality disorder, the more obscure the better. Unfortunately, this book didn't rise to the level of excitement that I was hoping for. At no point was I dying to know what her mother was going to do next. This is a memoir of Helen, a woman whose mother was constantly ill and taking to her bed and seemed to revel in any attention her fragility garnered. I didn't understand really the significance of the excerpts from her mother's diaries, until the end of the book where Helen explains each entry. We hear about Helen's life from childhood to adulthood and it was just too burdened with small details that made it seem to drag on. Perhaps my issue was with the Helen herself, she put up with much more than I would have under the banner of "being a good daughter" and "she's my mom" especially when pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place.
I listened to the audio version of this book and the author narrated her own memoir and I thought did a very good job.

Many thanks to #NetGalley and ThreadBooks for allowing me to review an advanced copy of #MyMotherMunchausensandMe.

This audio version of the book, which I listened to all the way through despite having read some of the written version too, is extra special as it is read by the author and person who experienced the story herself. This makes the whole experience all the more engaging. Helen is a great reader.
There is no need for me to retell the storyline as that is done better by the professionals but it is not giving anything away to say that you will come into an increasingly emotional roller coaster ride as this book continues. I can well believe that this type of life actually happened, especially the early chapters. However I did get a bit fed up of the same sort of stories in repeat (I'm sure it was like that but ...) and feel that the book would have benifitted from editing to about 80% of its final length.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read and review as well as an audio copy for review.

I don't know where to begin with this book. The story is so compelling and sucks the reader right in. It sounds like fiction and reads like it, but incredibly it is non-fiction. Helen (the author and a fantastic narrator) tells us of growing up as the daughter of two disabled parents. As she grows and becomes more aware of her mother's behaviours and illnesses, Helen discovers that her mother actually likes being sick - she craves the attention. The entire book is gripping; and when you really think about it, terrifying. The toll that her mother's lies had on Helen are immeasurable. I can't even imagine the strength that Helen must posses to overcome her past. This book will stick with you long after you are finished.

Wow! This is a crazy story and with Munchausen's becoming a popular topic ever since the Gypsy Rose case I knew I had to read this book! I was not disappointed at how this book was written, my heart is full of sorrow for the author because of everything she went through!
The author starts off with when she was a child and the passive-aggressive side of her mother with her, and how she was basically left to fend for herself growing up because her mother needed her to sleep in the afternoon. Then when Helen overhears a conversation between her mother and one of her mother's friends about her father may die at any moment, her mother unknowingly gave her this complex that if her father was gone she would have to take care of her.
As time went on Helen did her best to do well in school and in her studies, nothing was worth praise or anything like that. It was all about Elinor's disease and what was going on with her.
As time progresses the author is often put on the spot because her mother was competing for her attention even over Helen's own children. When Elinor was meeting her grandchildren or even visiting if the visit did not cater to her or her diseases she would have an episode to where she would need help or something. This, of course, caused Helen to back off and take care of her family and when that happened Helen was starting to get accused of abandoning her mother in her time of need because she was an awful daughter.
This book was really interesting because it's kind of interesting when Elinor kept a diary for her whole life and with that Helen was able to get a glimpse of her mother's twisted mind and her own thoughts. Elinor pretended for over 30 years to have different chronic diseases to gain concern and the attention that she wanted, she wanted to be the center of attention at all times.
This novel is about a sorrowful, stolen childhood, mental illness, and what a toxic bond can do to a person.
I listened to the audiobook of this book and the author was the narrator and it was really nifty to hear the story from the author! I would definitely recommend this audiobook!
Thank you Netgalley and Thread Books for the opportunity to read and review this one!

The author narrates her own story, and this made it that much more interesting for me. You can hear the anguish in her voice as she recounts memories of growing up with her mother and in adulthood, trying to navigate her own family, while also caring for her mom. I don't want to say too much, but it is a sad story for all involved. I'm familiar with some of the same behaviors in a couple of my family members, so I sympathize with Helen. You want to help and be involved, but it can get so overwhelming. Mental health issues are a huge concern for so many. I hope this book and others like it will help others sharing similar experiences.

I found this audiobook to be quite interesting. The fact it was read by the author was more powerful than it would have been read by anyone else. It is an interesting fact that after telling your story over and over again, you manage to do it in a nonemotional way. Helen managed this well. It shows the need we have to try and find a relationship with our parents and we forgive them a lot to try and continue. Her mother sounds a very manipulative person and I found the bit about the conversation with a friend who was a therapist particularly good. I finished the book thinking I had missed the family secret!!

Recommend if you like thrillers… although this is a memoir, it reads like a thriller and honestly at some points is hard to remember the author had to experience it all.

This was a audiobook that kept me hooked all the way through. Helen as an adult looks back on her life as a child, teen and into adult years and how everything was centred around her mom. And when things weren’t about her, how she would act to get the attention back.

I found it really interesting that Helen’s mom kept journals detailing each day in a couple of lines. When sections were read during the book you could feel the detachment from situations and the excitement if a medical professional gave her attention.

This book publishes November 25th. Thank you to the author, Netgalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Sometimes hindsight is 20/20, and sometimes maybe hindsight allows us to make things appear how we want them to appear.

Emotional and honest, this memoir of Helen’s struggle dealing with her Mother’s illnesses, which were either made up completely or massively exaggerated was a fascinating read. I loved the openness of the author, Helen is as honest about her own faults as much as she is with those of her Mum’s, as she panders to her Mother’s needs it is easy to feel her frustration. There are quite light moments to this book too, some of Eleanor’s dramatic “episodes” are easy to giggle at.
I liked that this audiobook was narrated by the author, it made it easy to feel the emotions and frustrations.
This is a book I’d really recommend

I had high hopes for this book, the whole Munchausen diagnosis fascinates me but I found this was quite a slow read. I'm not sure whether the author narrating it was a good idea and at times it felt very emotional.

She clearly had been manipulated from an early age by her mother, long into adulthood.

I would have like this to have been more informative about the condition itself, at times I drifted off while I was listening to what at times felt like padding.

The author is a very brave lady however to write it and I commend her for that.

Thank you to Helen Naylor and NetGalley for allowing me to review it.