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    The Princess Diarist: A Sort of Memoir...
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    The Princess Diarist: A Sort of Memoir...
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    The Princess Diarist: A Sort of Memoir...
    Audiobook5 hours

    The Princess Diarist: A Sort of Memoir...

    Published by Random House UK Audio

    Narrated by Billie Lourd

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    When Carrie Fisher recently discovered the journals she kept during the filming of the first Star Wars movie, she was astonished to see what they had preserved-plaintive love poems, unbridled musings with youthful naiveté, and a vulnerability that she barely recognized.

    Today, her fame as an author, actress, and pop-culture icon is indisputable, but in 1977, Carrie Fisher was just a (sort-of) regular teenager.

    With these excerpts from her handwritten notebooks, The Princess Diarist is Fisher's intimate and revealing recollection of what happened on one of the most famous film sets of all time-and what developed behind the scenes. And today, as she reprises her most iconic role for the latest Star Wars trilogy, Fisher also ponders the joys and insanity of celebrity, and the absurdity of a life spawned by Hollywood royalty, only to be surpassed by her own outer-space royalty.

    Laugh-out-loud hilarious and endlessly quotable, The Princess Diarist brims with the candour and introspection of a diary while offering shrewd insight into the type of stardom that few will ever experience.

    A Random House UK audio production.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRandom House UK Audio
    Release dateNov 24, 2016
    ISBN9781473541825
    Unavailable
    The Princess Diarist: A Sort of Memoir...

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    Reviews for The Princess Diarist

    3.5/5

    563 ratings70 reviews

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    • 3/5
      The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher is an interesting book about her time during the Star War movies mostly. It was very cool since it was about celebrities everyone knows and loves but the rest was copies of her diary and just ramblings of a young teen. Interesting and good but not what I expected. I got this book from the library.
    • 4/5
      In 1977 when Star Wars IV: A New Hope came out my husband and I were in our mid-twenties. We loved the movie but not as much as the youth we were working with. The teens bragged about how many times they had seen the movie. The movie was more than a hit, it transformed culture. Fast forward ten or more years, and our son was sick and restless. I brought out the Star Wars trilogy VCR tapes to entertain him. After viewing the first movie, he told me, "Thank you."The movie is a touchstone for so many who remember when they first saw it as vividly as recalling where we were on 9-11 or the day President Kennedy was shot.Princess Leia was a different kind of heroine, the kind I had found lacking when I was growing up in the 1950s. In my make-believe play I was always a cowboy because the cowgirls were weak and needed to be rescued. I resented it when Leia was turned into a sex object, barely dressed in that uncomfortable metal bikini.Later, we were into Joseph Campbell and loved how the story of Luke Skywalker was a secular manifestation of the eternal hero myth.We were fans of all the Harrison Ford movies-- from Indiana Jones to Witness. But I never idolized Mark Harmon or Harrison Ford or Carrie Fisher like many did, or do. Over the years I read about Carrie's books and saw her in a few movies and heard about her personal battles. I'm not really a Hollywood bio book fan, so I did not pay much attention to The Princess Diarist until I read such glowing reviews.I had requested The Princess Diarist through NetGalley before Carrie's death, based on the reviews I had read. Just last week I was notified that I was granted access to the book.I always give a new book a glance. Sometimes, I keep reading, hooked. This was one of those times. I read the book in a few sittings."...if I didn't write about it someone else would." from The Princess DiaristEarlier this year on my blog I shared memories of my teen years, drawing from the diaries I kept beginning at age 13. Carrie started writing at age 12, about the time I did. I found myself relating to the Carrie. At age nineteen, she was self-deprecating, uncertain, wanting to appear wordily yet wanting to be loved. How secure could a teenager be when the first thing she is told is to lose ten pounds before filming!The memoir begins with Carrie retelling her back story, getting the role, and how her affair with Harrison Ford began. Her writing is direct with a touch of humor, and an objectivity made possible by the passing of time. Carrie admits she went into filming hoping to have an affair; there was one boyfriend in her past. Harrison was fifteen years older, and married, and not on her radar although he struck her as the iconic Hollywood star. He made her nervous and left her feeling awkward. The next section is from the diary she kept during the filming of Star Wars: IV. The diary excerpts offer insight into her nineteen-year-old mind. It is quite heartbreaking and poignant, consisting of poems and thoughts reflecting hard lessons about love. She chose to be with Harrison, but chastised herself for choosing obsession and over emotional investment. There was no future with Harrison, their relationship without real meaning.Teenage Carrie had great self-awareness about her choices but lacked an ability for self-determination. She has little confidence and feels worthless. She is playing at being someone she is not, and is unable to demand what she needs from the relationship. Harrison has strong boundaries, revealing little; the strong, silent type. Writing keeps Carrie together. When filming on location came to an end, Harrison returned to his family.Forty years on, Carrie can reflect on her "very long one-night stand" and their one-sided love affair objectively. It's all in the past, she remarks, "and who gives a shit?"The memoir next shifts to how the Princess Leia role took over Carrie's life and how she coped with the fame and demands it brought: being accessible to fans and signing autographs, listening to the stories of worship, making money off the fans, the endless Comic-Con conventions. Carrie grows old, but Princess Leia does not, and a young fan complained, "I want the other Leia, not the old one." But fans also shared stories that warmed her heart and made her feel good.I loved the story of people asking her, "Well, you wanted to be in show business," so accept the negative side of fame. That lack of empathy riled me. I was asked a similar question once. I complained about the frequent moves and lack of self-determination that came with my husband being in the pastoral ministry. "You married a minister. You knew what you were getting into," the lady told me. "I was nineteen and had no idea about itineracy," I retorted.We make decisions at age nineteen feeling very grown up and worldly, and then realize how little we understand about the world, or about ourselves. Carrie didn't set out to become a famous Hollywood actress. And she was not prepared.Last of all, Carrie ruminates, sobbing, on her iconic role. What would she be if not Princess Leia? "Just me."Find Carrie Fisher's website here.I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
    • 3/5
      I have wanted to read this for awhile now. I was so excited when it first came out. I was really hoping for a behind the scenes look at the making of Star Wars. I got a little of that, but not enough. I wanted more. Seeing Harrison Ford through Carrie's eyes made me like him less. I have always liked the characters he plays, but reading about the man was not so great.

      Overall, the book was not as good as I was hoping. I liked it, but I can't say I loved it.
    • 3/5
      It was lovely to hear Carrie Fisher's voice again. She's sweet and funny - I enjoyed the on set stories about Star Wars. However, most of the stories were about her teenage affair with Harrison Ford - important to her, but teenage obsession can run on, especially in the pages from her diary of the time (that part was narrated by her daughter, which I thought was a nice touch)
    • 3/5
      I was struck by how much this book focuses on her affair with Harrison Ford versus the broader experience of filming Star Wars as a whole. I knew the topic would come up, obviously, but I wasn’t necessarily prepared for how central that topic would be to the book. I also wasn’t prepared for how poorly Harrison would come across in Fisher’s telling. Honestly, I’m aware that he’s probably not the nicest person in real life, but her portrayal of him reads so much like a person who wants to believe that their friend is a nice person when in fact…he’s kind of an asshole. If she had interspersed the diary entries of 1976 Carrie with current day Carrie’s reflections it could have been a much stronger work with a better sense of what she’s learned and how the experience changed her. Instead, the diary entries are presented as one chunk midway through the book and frankly, an angsty teenager isn’t the most interesting of narrators. Those two flaws combined to make this work shallower than I expected given some of her other work.
    • 3/5
      An object lesson about how self-contentedness is more damaging to the self centered than the bystanders. At 19, the show business raised Carrie Fisher was oblivious to what her background might mean to her co-star and is totally caught up in what-does-he-think-of-me, without seemingly bothering to enter any relevant data. The diary portion is pure fugue based on emotions of insecurity, allowing not a breath for any possibility of insecurity in others. Lots of clever word/idea plays, and a feeling that as much as Carrie Fisher was, there was material for more.
    • 4/5
      If you read this looking for witticisms about George Lucas and remembering being in the dumpster set, this isn't the right book (though there is a short bit where they were deciding what weird hairstyle Leia would wear, with the cinnamon buns being one of the less egregious versions).

      The Princess Diarist are musings over and excerpts from diary entries written during the filming of the first Star Wars film (though back then, it was the ONLY Star Wars). The big bombshell that made the rounds during book promotion last fall was that Carrie Fisher & Harrison Ford had a 3 month affair during filming, though the book is circumspect on specifics. Carrison is the heart of subject, though, and the diaries reveal a young woman on the cusp of adulthood grappling with feelings on relationships, love, and self-deprecation.

      The section after the (undated) diary entries are a bit of a postscript on it, 40 years later noting that the entries reflect how she saw Harrison then, not necessarily now, and then a chapter on post-SW fame and the "lapdance" of appearances, signings, etc.

      Fisher's writing is wry, with several unfortunately poignant jokes on the uptick in fame when celebrities pass. A quick read, but enjoyable. If you ever wrote angsty, sometimes overwrought journals rife with poetry as an adolescent, this will resonate with you.
    • 4/5
      Great book. Love Carrie Fishers sense of humor. Poignant in parts. Carrie was definitely a unique individual.
    • 4/5
      More fun from Carrie Fisher about about her life and Star Wars.
    • 4/5
      Reading this book was bittersweet, as I got the feeling that Carrie Fisher would have been a delight to speak with at a hypothetical dinner table, but since writing this she has passed on, and in some parts a reader might feel the loss. Though the book seems to be marketed as a telling of her relationship with Harrison Ford, plus diary entries, it feels more like her life as someone who was never really outside the celebrity industry, so to speak. The relationship was part of that.While the substance of the book felt quite light to me, Fisher's narrative is a delight to read with her quirky humour and observations. Even towards the end her comments could catch me by surprise. I'm not a Star Wars junkie beyond a couple Lego sets and toy ships, but still enjoyed reading the book. I don't think one needs to really be a Star Wars fan at all to understand Fisher's book.
    • 3/5
      Listened to the audio book which began and ended with the incomparable voice of Carrie Fisher. The middle part was read by her daughter. I found the first section the best. Ended with the Harrison Ford dalliance during the making of Star Wars. The book was written based on the diaries that Carrie had started around the time of the filming of Star Wars. She was a high school dropout in the biggest role of her life, thrown to the wolves of the movie industry, strutting her stuff. Only Carrie could tell the story. The part read by Billie, her daughter, was a continuation of the story by reading the diaries and I missed Carrie's voice so much I couldn't concentrate on the story, except to note that it was very depressing. Carrie's voice picks up again for the last third. Thank you for sharing your life with us, Carrie. RIP.
    • 4/5
      I wish I'd read this while Carrie Fisher was still alive. Her death cast a bittersweet pall over the entire book. To be honest, I was less thrilled with the actual diary parts, having just gone through my own 19 year old musings in journal form, I just didn't need to do it twice. But Fisher's humor and view of the world was interesting to me, and how Leia shaped her life.
    • 4/5
      Best for: Carrie Fisher fans, Star Wars fans, memoir fans.

      In a nutshell: Carrie Fisher tells stories of her time before and during the filming of the first Star Wars film, and looks at what it has all meant to her.

      Line that sticks with me: “I act like someone in a bomb shelter trying to raise everyone’s spirits.” (p153)

      Why I chose it: I was in a bookstore the day after Ms. Fisher died, and this was the last copy of any of her books left. I knew I wanted to start reading her writing, but then decided to start at the beginning and save this for last.

      Review: Mission sort of accomplished. After reading two of Ms. Fisher’s four novels, I started the third and decided that her fiction just isn’t my favorite. But I enjoyed her two previous works of non-fiction, so still went forward with this one. And I’m so glad I did.

      I am not a big Star Wars fan. The first time I saw it was with a guy named Brandon something. I was a freshman in high school, and he was a senior. He played an instrument in the school marching band - I want to say saxophone - and I was on the drill team, which meant I wore a cheerleader outfit but twirled two small flags instead of two large pom poms. He showed me the first film, in what I later learned was an attempted … seduction? No, that’s too dramatic. Dude wasn’t interested in getting into my pants - I think he was just looking for like a kiss or something. Didn’t work though. (Sorry Brandon! Hope you’re doing well!)

      So even though I’m not a big fan, I live in the world, and thus I’m familiar with the movies. I’ve grown to enjoy them, and have now seen all of the films save Episode II (which is actually the fifth one released, right?). I appreciate that Princess Leia has grown to become General Leia. And while I know that Ms. Fisher is not Princess Leia, I also know that much of her life has been consumed by the blurring of those identities.

      To me, however, Ms. Fisher is first and foremost Marie from When Harry Met Sally, so reading this book was a great way to learn more about her time as Leia, and what that meant. The middle section is literally pages from her diaries from the time shooting Episode IV, and some of it is delightful, some of it is sad, and some of it is filled with truly bad poetry. It’s fantastic to see someone lay all of that out there. Especially considering just a week ago my own mother called to tell me she’d found some horrible poetry of mine about a crush I had on a boy named Ryan. Oh god, I didn’t even let her finish reading it to me. She held the phone to the shredder as she put that mortifying bit of my history in; I can’t imagine sharing it with millions of people in a book.

      But I’m so glad Ms. Fisher did. I enjoyed this book as much as her other non-fiction works, and I think it was better edited than the rest. The story flowed, the chapters felt connected, there was something of a storyline as opposed to essays that didn’t seem to have a connection other than the storyteller. And while I am so sad that Ms. Fisher died when she did, this seems to be a perfect final bit for her to leave us with.
    • 2/5
      The book, like Gaul, is divided into three parts. The first part is in Carrie's own voice, talking about her early family life, the movie Shampoo, the iconic hairstyle she will forever be remembered for, and her affair with Harrison Ford. And then her affair with Harrison. Yes, and her affair with Harrison--very repetitous, and boring to anyone out of high school.The middle section is her actual diary, read by Billie Lourd (her daughter?). In many ways it is elegant adolescent writing. It definitely took me back to my life-angst when I was 19-20 years old. I can't say I enjoyed revisiting that time, but I did enjoy Carrie's play on words and rhyming schemes.The third part began with, hello!, talking about Harrison, but then she moved on to mainly speak of fans and autographs. Oh, and a sentence about Paul Simon.
    • 4/5
      Hilarious and heartwarming stories of her filming of the Star Wars series.....and Harrison Ford.....insightful and fun, and very charming. Recommend.
    • 5/5
      Sometimes, because of the tone Carrie Fisher uses when writing about herself, it's hard to remember that she became such an intense, incurable drug addict because of her issues with self-loathing and depression. I mean, she's so FUNNY and she has such a way of making fun of herself in a sweetly humorous way, not entirely self-deprecating, but somewhat. It wasn't until I was listening to this book, and about two-thirds of the way through, there's a switch from Carrie's reading to her daughter, Billie, reading her diary entries from when she was 19. Only at that point do I become truly, sadly empathetic for the lost girl who splashed into so many people's lives as the star of the Star Wars movies. This is a girl who was absolutely tortured by herself, who felt she deserved less than nothing, and yet wanted so much. Her poetry and prose are so beautifully written, so deeply thoughtful and wry. I loved it--I felt like there were parts of me that she was speaking of (or rather, my own 19-year-old self), rather than her. It was amazing, and I loved it. But I was also relieved when Carrie Fisher resumed the narration of the current book, reminding me that she's not only moved on and has finally kicked her addictions and depression, but she's actually not even with us anymore, because the book came out a month before she died, and I'm reading it several months later! I'm crushed all over again.....
    • 4/5
      An interesting look into the time in Carrie's life when she was just starting out, and the weird people and situations she endured. Some unexpected, some more expected, but enjoyable nonetheless.
    • 5/5
      (audio) This is Fisher's 2016 memoir of her time making Star Wars. It was prompted by her finding the diaries she kept during production. It was published shortly before her death.It is a no punches pulled, funny recollection of her life and beginnings of her career in the mid-70s, including revealing the details of her affair with Harrison Ford. Her daughter; Billy Lourd, read the diary pages, while Carrie narrated the modern day remembrances. A very poignant read, given her subsequent passing.Read by : Carrie Fisher/Billy Lourd9/10S: 1/29/18 - 2/1/18 (4 Days)
    • 3/5
      Carrie and her book were doomed from the beginning. We were never going to be friends. I had/have a serious crush on Harrison Ford, so anyone who got to snog him is going to make me seriously jealous. On top of that, Carrie's storytelling is filled with way too many exclamation points and meanderings down story lines that might have been but never were. Why go there? Sure there is some humor and she does a good job of capturing her teenage insecurities, but I wanted less of the romance and more on the makings of Star Wars. I found it oddly depressing and didn't even finish. Eh.
    • 4/5
      I am not usually one to read celebrity memoirs. Mostly because I don't want to find out something I don't know and which then ruins my love of a favorite movie or book or celebrity. I don't need to know the inside story that badly. And Star Wars! I was ten when I saw the first movie in the theater, and I have loved it every since then, and it is a love I share with my own children. It's precious to me - I don't want it damaged or tarnished. So, I had already decided that I would not be reading this book - not because I didn't trust Carrie Fisher, but because I wanted to protect the memories I already have with these movies. Sounds silly, right? That's fine, I am completely comfortable marching to the beat of my own drummer. But then Carrie Fisher died, and that was staggering because she was one of the youngest cast members of the original movies. And they were just making more of these movies, telling more of the story...how sad. Anyway, after a few of my trusted friends here had read and reviewed the book, I decided to give it a chance, and I am so glad that I did. Fisher narrates the book herself, and she is fabulous - her personality, sense of humor and snarky comments all come through so brilliantly. And she is so great with impersonations! Her daughter, Billy Lourd, narrates the actual diary entries, which are in the middle of the book and comprise maybe one third of the total book. The diary entries were not at all what I was expecting. I was thinking dated entries with brief summaries about the filming or anecdotes about the process of making the movies. Instead what we get are lovely candid insights into a nineteen year old who is making her first big movie. There is poetry and humor and self doubt. There is a laying bare of the heart. And it is a perfect fit to have the daughter read the entries of her mother's younger self. I like that Fisher bookended the diary entries in between her own narrative of looking back to those days and of playing such an iconic and beloved character that would follow her the rest of her life, which sadly was not long enough. Fisher is snarky and irreverent and laugh out loud funny, but she is also gracious. Highly recommended, and a side note for audiobook listeners who, like me, like to increase the speed - you can listen to Fisher at 1.25x speed perfectly, but go back to the 1x speed for Lourd and the diary entries.
    • 4/5
      I saw Star Wars when I was still in my teens and like many young lads, had a slight crush on Carrie Fisher, (along with Cheryl Ladd & Cheryl Tiegs). I recently seen the latest Star Wars film, Last Jedi, (Fisher's final film, before her death) and thought this would be a perfect time to visit this memoir.Fisher discovered her diary journals, that she kept during the filming of the original Star Wars film and decided to expand it into a book, about those innocent times. The big revelation is her affair with Harrison Ford, who was married at the time and fifteen years older than his young co-star.Fisher narrates the audio and this is the perfect way to enjoy this pleasant journey through her past.
    • 3/5
      34. The Princess Diarist (audio) by Carrie Fisher, read by the author and Billie Lourdpublished: 2016format: Overdrive digital audio, 5:13 (normally ~144 pages, but copies are ~270 pages)acquired: Librarylistened: Aug 10-17rating: 3Audio can make strange bedfellows with my other reading. This was a time-filler, an entertaining one, and, well... What's nice about this is Carrie reads it herself and you get sense of her personality both recently and then - when she was 19 and acting in some low budget space movie. What's interesting about it is that she talks about her odd affair with then-married Harrison Ford. And what's sad about it is that it was published in October 2016, in her voice, and she past away in December. Maybe there are other things sad about it too.
    • 4/5
      Around the time The Force Awakens began filming, Carrie Fisher wrote this book, reflecting on her four decades as Princess Leia. She'd found a few diaries she kept during production of the original Star Wars, and decided to spill the beans: she and Harrison Ford had had an affair. Interestingly, there isn't a whole lot to tell, and the other parts of the book are in fact far more interesting and entertaining. But I enjoyed it all, as usual. The only part that kind of dragged were the diaries themselves. Written by a 19-year-old, there's a lot of angst and introspection. The poetry isn't bad, but I'm not really a poetry person. Mostly it's kind of boring. The one thing I got out of it was an inkling of what a great writer she would become. Her wordplay is simply delightful. I admit I was a little sad listening to this, knowing there will never be any more. I guess my next step is to try out her fiction.A note on the audio: Fisher is fantastic. Oddly, there were parts where she sounded strikingly like David Sedaris. (This is not a bad thing. Just surprising.)
    • 3/5
      Definitely not what I expected. Parts of this book were very engaging, but others part reflect how the life of a child of a celebrity and the life of a celebrity is NOT what society has led us to believe it is in reality. I vacillated between feeling sorry for and back to thinking OMG how crazy as I read about her Carrie and her life.
    • 4/5
      Oh Carrie. I think you gave us so much more than life gave you. We miss you, and I hope that you're now able to be yourself, without the burdens that society's expectations and your own brain's whisperings placed on you. May the force be with you, always.
    • 5/5
      I wish I had read this before! It is hilarious and insightful. The late Carrie Fisher delivers in this book about her experiences being Princess Leia, the filming of the movies, her diaries, and her affair with Harrison Ford. She is not afraid to make fun of herself and the things she has done. She talks about being a celebrity and making fun of it. She looked inward at herself and shows how human she really was. I loved this book. Now, I must get the others and read them. I am going to miss her. Carrie Fisher, that is. Because as much as she is Princess Leia, she is first and foremost, Carrie Fisher.
    • 4/5
      A fun (for the reader, yes/no for Carrie Fisher) look back at Carrie Fisher's time on the set of Star Wars: A New Hope. Primarily her relationship with Harrison Ford (which takes up the bulk of the memoir). Some interesting dealings with post-Leia life, but sadly very little lead up to Episode 7 (The Force Awakens), and her reclaiming the role once more.

      Like I said, this was primarily a cathartic release for her, about being Leia and about her relationship with Harrison Ford (possibly a bit of bragging as well?). Another interesting look at Fisher's life and times, probably better than Shockaholic and Wishful Drinking, though the three make a very interesting conjoined trilogy.
    • 4/5
      This short memoir by Carrie Fisher was the perfect read for those who still can't quite believe the actress has passed away. Fun and funny, this was a great read for Star Wars fans and the audiobook has the added treat of being narrated by the author herself!
    • 3/5
      Almost exclusively focused on Fisher's affair with Harrison Ford. I wish we had gotten more into the experience of filming Star Wars.
    • 4/5
      Okay, I confess I like Carrie Fisher and always have. I like her "Postcards from the Edge" years ago. The jacket blurb will tell you about this book, but it is the same witty, sassy, irreverent, vulnerable writer writing about herself - then and now - and you need to read it, if only to understand why all that chemistry between Han and Leia was the Real Thing.What I liked most was her poetry, remarkably good for her age (19). Paul Simon missed a bet not putting it to music while they were married.