Carrie and Me: A Mother-Daughter Love Story

Written by Carol Burnett

Narrated by Carol Burnett

The New York Times bestselling memoir from legendary comedienne Carol Burnett is a “loving, poignant” (People) tribute to her eldest daughter, Carrie Hamilton.

The daughter of one of television’s most recognizable and beloved stars, Carol Burnett, Carrie Hamilton won the hearts of everyone she met with her kindness, her quirky humor, and her unconventional approach to life. After overcoming her painful and public teenage struggle with drug addiction in a time when personal troubles were kept private, Carrie lived her adult life of sobriety to the fullest, achieving happiness and success as an actress, writer, musician, and director before losing a hard-fought battle with cancer at age thirty-eight. Now Carol Burnett shares her personal diary entries, photographs, and correspondence as she traces the journey she and Carrie took through some of life’s toughest challenges and sweetest miracles. Authentic, intimate, and full of love, Carrie and Me is a funny and moving memoir about mothering an extraordinary young woman through the struggles and triumphs of her life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Release date: Apr 9, 2013
• ISBN: 9781442358553

Carol Burnett

Carol Burnett is a highly acclaimed actress known for her roles on stage and screen, most notably The Carol Burnett Show. She has been honored with twelve People’s Choice Awards, eight Golden Globes, six Emmy Awards, The Kennedy Center Honors, and the Mark Twain Prize for Humor.

Reviews for Carrie and Me

[Kristin Eller · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This story is not one told by a celebrity but by a mother. Carol Burnett brings her daughter back to life, resurrecting her from deeply personal memories and making one feel as though they "know" her. It is as if her mother is reintroducing her to the world through the telling of her story. The bond between a mother and child is unparalleled by any other, and transcendent of space and time. Private struggles with your child are unique and also all too similar, in that, the pain felt when your child chooses a difficult path, the heartache and anxiety paralyze you, rendering the parent/parents helpless to stop it from happening. Being endowed with free will, human beings are the most destructive creations on the planet, not driven by pure instinct, but by a seemingly insatiable need to self-destruct. When a person chooses to correct their life and create a new path, redemption is born. The power we all possess to decide to change our path is, to say the least, a remarkable and precious gift, to be used at our choosing, and we can use it liberally. The only one that stands in our way is us, we are the only obstacle to our successes. This is a testament to the indomitable spirit of a mother and her child, a story of love and courage. Bravo ladies, you both should be proud of the story told here, a true masterpiece, woven together beautifully by two unforgettable women.

[lvstrongpuff · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I thought this book was great. I wish I had a mom like Carol. The love she feels for children is amazing. Her daughter had her ups and downs but she did an amazing job staying sober. I think this is a side of Carol most people rarely see.

[nx74defiant · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A sweet love letter to Carol's daughter Carrie. She includes their emails to one another. It includes Carrie's unfinished novel witch I didn't read.

[jenniferrobb · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is kind of an odd book. The beginning is Carol Burnett remembering the early life of her daughter Carrie Hamilton. It segues into the struggles with addiction that Carrie had (and later Carol had both her husband Joe and Carrie in rehab at the same time) and how Carrie eventually overcame those and how both became known for speaking on the issue at a time when it wasn't common to see celebrities doing so.

Carrie went on to have a successful acting and writing career. She was working on a manuscript called "Sunrise in Memphis" when she died. The manuscript is included.

I have to say that I had a hard time with Sunrise in Memphis (thought I did read it, unlike many other reviewers). I'm not sure if it was because it was unfinished (or unpolished) but I felt like I just didn't get it. Kate is supposed to be learning things along the journey, but I wasn't quite sure what she was learning at each point. The setting jumps around so much, it's hard to figure out what's going on (she's on a plane, then she's in a pickup truck; they're driving to Graceland, then she's at a club in LA with her friend etc.) Perhaps in a different format (film, stage play etc.) or in a polished form with better transitions it would have made more sense.

I struggled with reading about Carrie's death from cancer for personal reasons.

[emaurer-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The first part of this book is a memoir about Carol Burnett and her daughter Carrie; their life, Carrie's struggle with addiction, and Carrie's struggle with cancer. The second part of this book is Carrie Hamilton's unfinished book "Sunrise in Memphis". I liked Sunrise in Memphis, it was very visual. It seemed more like a movie script than a novel to me, but it was still in the rough stages. Carrie Hamilton seemed like a very interesting, friendly, and talented person and I am glad I read this book.

[bookchickdi · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Carol Burnett's last book, This Time Together, shared anecdotes about her successful TV and stage career. I was thrilled to meet this amazing entertainer at a book signing, and she was just as kind and friendly as she appears on TV.Ms. Burnett's latest book, Carrie and Me- A Mother Daughter Love Story is a much more personal book about her daughter Carrie, who first battled drug addiction and later cancer, which killed her at the age of thirty-eight.Carrie's bright personality shines though in this memoir. She was a unique lady, so talented and she fought hard to make it through the terrors of drug addiction. Burnett tells a story of the young Carrie, who after her first day of school said to her mother, "Boy, Mommy, am I glad THAT'S over with!" Burnett did not have the heart to tell her that it would be much more than one day.As a teenager, Carrie thought, like many teenage girls, that she was not pretty and shocked her mother when she asked her mom if she was ugly. Carrie's insecurity led to her drug use, which she hid from her parents. She was hanging around with a bad crowd, and by the time Carol and her husband discovered what was going on, Carrie was in trouble.They sent Carrie to rehab, and any parent reading this will identify with the conflicting feelings that Burnett expresses so well. She bargained with God to save her baby, first from drugs, and then from cancer.Carrie eventually makes it through, and ends up acting and writing like her mother. She was unique, from her pink-streaked hair to the tattoo of the bird of paradise on her shoulder. She was a regular on TV's Fame, and won an award at a Latino film festival for a movie she created, the first non-Latino to win.Carol and Carrie wrote a play together, The Hollywood Arms, about Carol's childhood, that they eventually took to Broadway. It was at this time that Carrie became ill with cancer, and instead of railing against the unfairness of it, of beating drug addiction only to deal with this, she dealt with it calmly.She became a warrior, using all of her positive thoughts to focus on beating cancer. I loved the scenes in her hospital room, surrounded by her family and friends, at peace with her life. She was a unique, special person.Carrie was working on a project before she got sick, and she had been sending her mother the pages to read and critique. That story comprises the last section of the book, and it is so beautiful, about a troubled young woman who meets a man who is more than he appears. It is prescient, like she knew what might be coming in her life.I'm ending this review with words that Carrie shared with Carol that describe her artistic philosophy."I think our legacy is really the lives we touch, the inspiration we give, altering someone's plan- if even for a moment- and getting them to think, rage, cry, laugh, argue, or walk around the block dazed. (I do that a lot after seeing powerful theater!)" After reading this moving book, I can safely say that anyone who reads it will be touched by Carrie's life story, as well as by a mother's love for her daughter. It would make a wonderful Mother's Day gift.