This book was okay. I guess I'm just not in tune with all of the nuances of screwed-up families to be of much good with this one.

Every few days, I will browse through the Netgalley selection of free books to see what is available. When I saw this one, I was intrigued as it was about Anthony’s dad (a radio actor) and his stepfather (a businessman) and the very different lives they led with him. He also had stepbrothers, stepsisters, and a stepmom.

I really enjoyed this book and the multitude of stories he told of growing up in two very different lifestyles. No wonder why he became a judge!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a free e-copy of this book.

I was drawn to Anthony Mohr's memoir for two reasons: I enjoy a Hollywood memoir, and I know the every-other-weekend experience. Mohr's memoir is different from many other stories told by the children of actors because Mohr's father spent much of his career on the fringes. While stories of fame and success are interesting to be sure, I liked Mohr's insight into the kind of world where an actor is asked for his autograph at the unemployment office. And while Mohr's step father had a great deal of self-made wealth, they were still a relatively typical upper-middle-class family. Mohr writes of his childhood spent between the struggles of his father and many career successes of his step father, but also balancing the influences of two very different men. Even though I have little in common with Mohr; age, gender, career, geography, etc - I find his story incredibly relatable and engaging, especially the pieces that were more about day to day life. Day to day life punctuated by experiences very unique to a Hollywood kid, like riding in a parade of other actor families, being on TV as a child, growing up with famous folks coming in and out of the house. This memoir was such a unique balance of the exceptional and the ordinary, and all of it was well written and well captured. I hope Mohr will publish future books, perhaps about the period of time between his teen years and later years.

Also, it would be nice if Mohr said more about the throwaway line in the book that Orson Welles was his father's mentor. Record scratch moment - tell me that story!