Rating: 
Summary: "You'll fall in love with her..."
Review: One of the best autobiographies/memoirs I've ever come across. And, I'm not saying that because I am a great Bogart/Bacall fan, but because Betty (Ms. Bacall's real name) can write--this is one great book!
It's not a drag out all the dirty laundry type of book--it's a straightforward look back at her life as a Jewish girl from Brooklyn who came from a broken home, fiercely loved by her mother and her extended family. Far from being a stage mother, Betty's mother, Natalie, helped her daughter get the things she wanted, by hard work and sacrifice.
After a short modeling career, Betty was discovered by director Howard Hawks' wife, Slim, and Betty was under personal contract. She was slated to star in "To Have and Have Not," and there met the man she'd later marry--Humphrey Bogart. Her years with him are best described by Betty, and it's so sad that Bogie died too soon--I think they would have been a couple that grew old together.
After Bogie's death, her life and career were in a state of flux for some time--an affair with Sinatra, her short-lived marriage to Jason Robards, and her decision to go it alone. She finds success on Broadway, and a rebirth happens--she's back in the spotlight, where she so rightfully belongs.
I recommend this book highly, along with her sequel: "Lauren Bacall: Now." A classy dame, and as Bogie once said: "She's a real Joe. You'll fall in love with her like everyone else."
Rating:
Summary: A book that is as classy as the lady herself!!
Review: One of the best books I have ever read. A great love story for the romantic in all of us. It goes behind the scenes of hollywood, to reveal a relationship that started out on the sly; with a love that would last a lifetime. Very sad, yet a love we all wish we could find. I couldn't put it down. Bacall is a true heroine, a person easy to relate to. Her descriptions and writing flows nicely, and its like your chatting with a friend, rather then reading about a famous actress. It caught my attention right from the start, when hearing about her struggle to make it big!
Rating: 
Summary: A look into a legend's life
Review: She was the husky-voiced rising star, and he was the grizzled veteran. While "Laurel Bacall: By Myself" covers much of Bacall's life, the centerpiece of it is her marriage to Humphrey Bogart. Here Bacall reflects back on her eventful life, relationship and how things are for her since.Teenage Betty Bacall first saw Humphrey Bogart in "Casablanca," and decidedly did not think he was sexy. But she started to think otherwise when she became a rising model-turned-starlet in Hollywood, a nervous budding It-girl. She met and befriended Bogart, then trapped in an alcoholic, abusive marriage with a woman he didn't love. Their friendship quickly become a hidden love affair, despite their age difference. After his divorce from third wife Mayo, the two of them married and had two children, until Bogart's untimely death of cancer. Bacall chronicles her sorrow at his loss, and her life "by herself." Bacall does a good job with this biography. She writes her own life story as a smart but insecure woman who isn't afraid to reveal her embarrassments and flaws. She comes across as a lot stronger than she believes herself to be, though she falters quite a bit in middle-age. At times Bacall may frustrate readers by being somewhat clueless about her own relationships and marriages (drinking and marital discord). "By Myself" is not exceptionally written, however; the style is quite plain and lacks quite a few details. Bacall compensates somewhat with her dry, self-deprecating wit and forthrightness. There's a bit of lingering displeasure with some people like her ex-husband and Bogart's ex-wife Mayo, but Bacall keeps any negative feelings strictly reined in, and her discreet. Don't expect lots of dirt and dish -- Bacall clearly isn't interested in talking about glitz and tawdry little affairs people around her were having. Nor does she name-drop a lot -- after all, why would Lauren Bacall have to? Rather she's interested in the solid, serious romance she and Bogie had, and the day-to-day life of acting, and her family with her adoring, very supportive mother and her children. This is "old Hollywood" as people like to remember it. For fans of real love and romance, not to mention old Hollywood, this is a must-read.
Rating:
Summary: A look into a legend's life
Review: She was the husky-voiced rising star, and he was the grizzled veteran. While "Laurel Bacall: By Myself" covers much of Bacall's life, the centerpiece of it is her marriage to Humphrey Bogart. Here Bacall reflects back on her eventful life, relationship and how things are for her since. Teenage Betty Bacall first saw Humphrey Bogart in "Casablanca," and decidedly did not think he was sexy. But she started to think otherwise when she became a rising model-turned-starlet in Hollywood, a nervous budding It-girl. She met and befriended Bogart, then trapped in an alcoholic, abusive marriage with a woman he didn't love. Their friendship quickly become a hidden love affair, despite their age difference. After his divorce from third wife Mayo, the two of them married and had two children, until Bogart's untimely death of cancer. Bacall chronicles her sorrow at his loss, and her life "by herself." Bacall does a good job with this biography. She writes her own life story as a smart but insecure woman who isn't afraid to reveal her embarrassments and flaws. She comes across as a lot stronger than she believes herself to be, though she falters quite a bit in middle-age. At times Bacall may frustrate readers by being somewhat clueless about her own relationships and marriages (drinking and marital discord). "By Myself" is not exceptionally written, however; the style is quite plain and lacks quite a few details. Bacall compensates somewhat with her dry, self-deprecating wit and forthrightness. There's a bit of lingering displeasure with some people like her ex-husband and Bogart's ex-wife Mayo, but Bacall keeps any negative feelings strictly reined in, and her discreet. Don't expect lots of dirt and dish -- Bacall clearly isn't interested in talking about glitz and tawdry little affairs people around her were having. Nor does she name-drop a lot -- after all, why would Lauren Bacall have to? Rather she's interested in the solid, serious romance she and Bogie had, and the day-to-day life of acting, and her family with her adoring, very supportive mother and her children. This is "old Hollywood" as people like to remember it. For fans of real love and romance, not to mention old Hollywood, this is a must-read.
Rating:
Summary: You'll fall in love with her like everyone else....
Review: So said Bogie, and it's the truth. I didn't know much about Lauren before reading this book, but now I can't get enough. She is my first role model ever and she'll be yours too. This book affected me in so many ways, it is brillantly and beautifully written, so funny and yet so sad. After you finish this book, I suggest her next book "Now", which is sort of a sequel to "By Myself". Bacall will be your new favorite flavor, even after 50 years. Trust me.
Rating:
Summary: You'll fall in love with her like everyone else....
Review: So said Bogie, and it's the truth. I didn't know much about Lauren before reading this book, but now I can't get enough. She is my first role model ever and she'll be yours too. This book affected me in so many ways, it is brillantly and beautifully written, so funny and yet so sad. After you finish this book, I suggest her next book "Now", which is sort of a sequel to "By Myself". Bacall will be your new favorite flavor, even after 50 years. Trust me.
Rating:
Summary: Bogart and Bacall's Great Love Story From The Source Herself
Review: The biggest reason to read this autobiography is to learn about one of the greatest showbiz romances, between film stars Humphrey Bogart and Lauren (Betty) Bacall. It culminated in marriage, movies and children together, lasted 11 years, and only ended because of Bogart's death in his late 50s due to cancer. In and of itself, that is a wonderful story that any woman especially will adore. There are many other pleasures in this book though. Bacall recalls her growing up years with an extraordinary mother and close knit Jewish extended family that saw her through every milestone of her life, including her mother's showing up at a college campus to find Bacall's son when needed. She was a great beauty from the start and got her career going with modeling that ultimately branched off into acting. She also recounts her successes on the stage and her romances with Frank Sinatra (very odd) and Jason Robards, who she married and later divorced. She has two children by Bogart and one by Robards and touches on them as well.
Rating:
Summary: Bogart and Bacall's Great Love Story From The Source Herself
Review: The biggest reason to read this autobiography is to learn about one of the greatest showbiz romances, between film stars Humphrey Bogart and Lauren (Betty) Bacall. It culminated in marriage, movies and children together, lasted 11 years, and only ended because of Bogart's death in his late 50s due to cancer. In and of itself, that is a wonderful story that any woman especially will adore. There are many other pleasures in this book though. Bacall recalls her growing up years with an extraordinary mother and close knit Jewish extended family that saw her through every milestone of her life, including her mother's showing up at a college campus to find Bacall's son when needed. She was a great beauty from the start and got her career going with modeling that ultimately branched off into acting. She also recounts her successes on the stage and her romances with Frank Sinatra (very odd) and Jason Robards, who she married and later divorced. She has two children by Bogart and one by Robards and touches on them as well.
Rating:
Summary: Bacall is Wonderful
Review: This is the best autobiography I have ever read! It was such a page turner, from the begining of her career as a model, to her years with Bogie, to her stage WOW what a woman and what a book
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