Me : Stories of My Life [Paperback]

Katharine Hepburn (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 29, 1996

Admired and beloved by movie audiences for over sixty years, four-time Academy Award-winner Katharine Hepburn is an American classic. Now Miss Hepburn breaks her long-kept silence about her private life in this absorbing and provocative memoir.

A NEW YORK TIMES Notable Book of the Year

A Book-of-the-Month-Club Main Selection


From the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Beloved actress Hepburn's episodic autobiography spent 24 weeks on PW 's hardcover bestseller list and was a BOMC main selection in cloth.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

YA-- Katherine Hepburn is, at 84, still the positive, feisty, upper-class lady she portrayed in The Philadelphia Story . Her autobiography, clearly not ghostwritten, tells some stories of her life but not all--she comes from a class that didn't let it all hang out. Her 27-year affair with Spencer Tracy is discussed with fond memories (the years together were to her ``absolute bliss'')--the idea that it was scandalous at the time doesn't seem to cross her mind, and she is surprised to find that Tracy's wife thought the affair was only a rumor. She seems to remember almost everyone fondly--her wonderful parents; her loving, supportive husband, whom she admits she treated badly; the numerous beaus, directors, and fellow actors with whom she worked. More than 160 black-and-white photos lend credibility to her enduring beauty, but it's the somewhat breathless, positive prose that makes Hepburn come alive as herself or as she wishes to be seen--an uncomplaining, stalwart, lucky, admired, and ``classy'' lady. --Diana C. Hirsch, Prince George's County Memorial Library System, MD
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (September 29, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345410092
• ISBN-13: 978-0345410092
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #73,096 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( H ) > Hepburn, Katherine

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Memoir by an Excellent Lady, July 31, 2003

By 

James A. White (Cookeville, TN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Me : Stories of My Life (Paperback)

I'd had this book sitting on the shelf for several years, and (sadly) had never read it. Then, Kate the Great died, and I was looking for some means of remembering her fondly. Me eyes fell on "Me," and the connectio was perfect.

Me is clearly not ghostwritten like so many other autobiographies. Kate is rather jumpy in places and uses a lot of fragments. Sometimes it's hard to follow, especially at the beginning, but after a few chapters, it's like talking with an old friend--the abrupy subjects changes enhance, not detract, from the book.

If you're looking for insight on her movies, this isn't the book for you. She gives snippets of several of them, but only goes indepth when it really matters to her overall career (such as A Bill of Divorcement and The Philadelphia Story). She spends a lot of the book on her childhood, college years, and early Broadway stage experiences. She talks a lot about her leading men: Cary Grant, John Wayne, Henry Fonda. She mentions Spencer Tracy throughout the book, but only goes in-depth toward the end when she leaves the house they had shared together for years.
While this isn't a juicy exposee of her life, it's really more enjoyable because it isn't tabloid fare. It's high-brow, down-to-earth, and, above all, classy, the exact memoir you would expect from Katharine Hepburn.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Candid and personal, April 5, 2005

By 

Starfire (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Me : Stories of My Life (Paperback)

Ms. Hepburn writes in a casual tone that draws the reader into her unique life and presents herself in the most open way possible. Being an actress, she writes surprisingly well. Her recent death has made her life all the more poignant. Her stinging rhetoric that wons the hearts of America shines through her writing and convinces the reader that he or she is merely sitting in Kate's living room, having tea and a nice chat. Of course, there are some sentimental moments that are truly touching. Her last letter to Spencer Tracy moved me to tears.

This books provides deep insight into Ms. Hepburn the person, but she only briefly touches on her historical career. If you're looking for a chronology of her work, choose a different biography. "ME" lets the reader get to know Katharine the Human Being.

As distant and unapproachable as Katharine Hepburn may seem, her autobiography gives an aura of almost frailty and dependence. Certainly, Hepburn was one of the most independent role models modern women could hope for, but her life through her own eyes was a hard journey, something she couldn't've accomplished very easily.

On the whole, an excellent page-turner that kept me up 'till past 3 in the morning. Highly recommended for anyone fascinated with Hepburn's persona.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Forthright and honest, October 4, 2005

By 

Nina M. Osier (Randolph, ME USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Me : Stories of My Life (Paperback)

"Kit! Kathy is in the top of the hemlock!
"Yes, I know. Don't scare her. She doesn't know that it's dangerous."

That exchange between a concerned neighbor and a small girl's mother offers a telling glimpse into the childhood Katharine Hepburn's parents gave her. Being adventurous - physically as well as intellectually - was simply expected.

No one should pick this book up expecting a conventionally structured, conventionally worded autobiography. Miss Hepburn tells her life's stories as if her readers were sitting down for a visit. She moves through her long life in approximately linear fashion, but she never sticks to a timeline when doing that would keep her thoughts from flowing freely. She's frank without being vulgar, and she describes her own behavior - including those times when it was less than admirable - in forthright, honest terms.

An interesting look into the mind and heart of one very interesting person.