What Falls Away: A Memoir (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "I was nine when my childhood ended..." (more)
Key Phrases: counsel fees, New York, Woody Allen, Frog Hollow (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

There aren't many lives more steeped in celebrity than Mia Farrow's. The daughter of actress Maureen O'Sullivan and writer-director John Farrow, she grew up in Beverly Hills as a member of "the first generation of movie stars' children." Starting at the tender age of 19 she was involved with a succession of famous men--Frank Sinatra, André Previn, and Woody Allen--and has spent many years as a major film star in her own right. The book is casually populated with dozens of high-profile friends ranging from Yul Brynner and Salvador Dali to Michael Caine and Vladimir Horowitz. Yet Farrow's memoir has an unexpectedly honest, soul-searching quality, detailing her troubled inner life, her spiritual longings and pursuits (including a famous stay at Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's ashram, where her fellow inmates included the Beatles), and her passionate attachment to children. The book unflinchingly recounts her version of the ugly, very public breakup with Allen, including--rather bizarrely--the state supreme court's custody ruling in her favor in its 27-page entirety. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

From Rosemary's Baby to all her babies: Mia in her own words.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (December 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553564668
• ISBN-13: 978-0553564662
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #698,968 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sincere without being Scathing, August 19, 2001

By	D. Rizzo (United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I read a whole lot. I like biographies especially, but I shied away from this one for a long time, not interested in the over-feted ex Mrs. Previn/ ex Mrs. Sinatra whose boyfriend seduced her own adult daughter and was suspected of molesting their own child. However, as a strong adoption proponent, a TV show on Mia and her many children finally convinced me to give this book a chance.

I really enjoyed it.

The talented Miss Farrow is an effective narrator, recounting her life without fanfare or hyperbole. She admits to her own weaknesses (you should read Eddie Fisher's autobiography for a non-example of THAT!), and she confesses that her movie-baby upbringing skewed her perspective of normalcy that most of us take for granted. She didn't even realize Frank Sinatra was a legend at the time of their marriage, for example.

She bubbles over trials (polio as a youngster, the death of her father, her divorces) with the attitude that negativity deserves no chance to crush the present. However, she spends more time on Allen; her account rings with absolute sincerity as she describes the ongoing perversions of his behavior with their daughter Dylan (and readily confesses her own "wrongness" for not stopping the inappropriateness long before she actually did, earning my respect). She even included, in an appendix, the court decision refusing Allen custody of the three children they shared and the reasons why.

Her anger does appear in defense of Dylan and especially upon discovery of Allen's affair with Soon-Yi, her daughter with Andre Previn. She describes without an iota of rancor or hatred scenes of him attempting to justify himself, but I could not help but want to smack him hard for the damage he foisted on innocent children. Yes, I think Mia should have been smarter in the first place about him. So does she. But he was wrong, evil.

Usually, after I read one biography, I read others about the same person (or about his or her loved ones, if they're famous and have their own books out) to try to avoid a skewed perspective of the truth... but in this case, it'll be quite a while before I would care to touch a Woody Allen ANYTHING, especially a book or film that would put money in his selfish, narcissistic, self-serving pocket.

Her adoption mania struck me as dysfunctional at first, but in context (Mia is, herself, one of seven children... and she always first consulted her present family before introducing a newcomer... many of whom were grown by the time new babies entered the scene), it's not as startling as I imagined. Again, she describes the evolution of her nuclear family without sensationalism, without a "glorify me because I'm so heroic" attitude, just with simple comment that children all deserve families to love them, even children that most "normal" families would find it difficult to love. She has the means, and she has the imperfect though always willing heart to back up her inclinations.

I would definitely recommend this book to read, although you may want to scope it out in a bookstore or library before buying it. It's not light fare.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully written, honest, a little self-serving, March 11, 1999

By A Customer

Ms. Farrow has had--and, I'm sure, continues to have--an amazing life, and she chronicles it fairly completely in this memoir. She writes very well, though at times a bit sententiously and over-dramatically. If what she writes about him is true (and the judge who presided over their custody battle apparently thought it was), then Woody Allen--a genius at making movies--is a true monster in other more important ways. She spells this out clearly and convincingly. However, to balance things out, she also has one significant flaw. Woody Allen--the active pedophile, possibly saved from conviction by Mia's desire to not drag her 7-year old daughter through another ugly court battle--is a failed human being. But what to make of Ms Farrow, who clearly spells out his ongoing cruelty to her children, but never seems to be able to say more to him than "Please don't"? She seems so terribly NEEDY, so helpless, so syrupy that at times in the book I wanted to shake her and shout "Grow up! You're an adult! Stop pleading! Fight back! There IS a life without Frank, or Andre, or Woody!" Each of her major relationships with the men in her life infatuation which moved quickly to marriage (or--with Allen--virtual marriage), a very dependent relationship, and fairly rapid loss of her partner's interest in her as a full human being. Her liaison with Allen was simply this pattern writ large, and her children paid what may be a terrible price for her helplessness and blindness, as she herself admits. But this admission does not, I think, fully-enough take her share of the responsibility for standing by placatingly as Allen almost destroyed her never encountered anyone who loves children as she does (clearly it's an obsession, but I suppose there are "positive obsessions") and wants to save ALL of them, especially those whom few others would want to take on. She tells her remarkable story with what appears to be great honesty and courage and a lovely prose style. I'm fascinated by her, and by my reaction to her, because at the same time that I'm very impatient with her, I also admire and respect her for her spiritual quality, her integrity, her capacity for friendship,. I know I'd really like to have her as a friend...and, it appears clear in her memoir, so too do most of the people who have met and worked with her

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Really Good Memoir With No Loose Ends, August 23, 2005

By	EPerry (Toronto) - See all my reviews

Ms. Farrow is not only a talented actress, she is also a surprisingly good writer. She takes us behind the scenes of "Old Hollywood" in her memoir WHAT FALLS AWAY, and shares some of the pains and joys of growing up in an atmosphere where the motto seemed to be "Show the World how well you're doing even if you don't have a dime!" Mia bravely talks about her own mistakes which are so much a part of living and growing up. Behind the tall gates, idols and icons become real people with ordinary struggles.

This is not your run-of-the-mill Hollywood memoir. This is an excellent book which happens to be well written. {It should be noted that Mia is also a well recognized humanitarian who has helped and/or adopted numerous children with various challenges.}