The Lonely Life

An Autobiography

By: Bette Davis

Narrated by: Suzanne Toren

Originally published in 1962, The Lonely Life is legendary silver screen actress Bette Davis's lively and riveting account of her life, loves, and marriages--now in ebook for the first time, and updated with an afterword she wrote just before her death.

As Davis says in the opening lines of her classic memoir: "I have always been driven by some distant music--a battle hymn, no doubt--for I have been at war from the beginning. I rode into the field with sword gleaming and standard flying. I was going to conquer the world." A bold, unapologetic book by a unique and formidable woman, The Lonely Life details the first fifty-plus years of Davis's life--her Yankee childhood, her rise to stardom in Hollywood, the birth of her beloved children, and the uncompromising choices she made along the way to succeed. The book was updated with new material in the 1980s, bringing the story up to the end of Davis's life--all the heartbreak, all the drama, and all the love she experienced at every stage of her extraordinary life.

The Lonely Life proves conclusively that the legendary image of Bette Davis is not a fable but a marvelous reality.

So glad I took the time to listen to this book!

It was a wonderful book, I had no idea her life was so interesting! Totally enjoyed it!

Bette Davis was a legend who defined a star

This is well worth a listen in our age of instant celebrities passing briefly as stars. Davis really was a star and even three decades after her passing remind a role model for a real star. She came to fame at a time stars were all men and actresses little more than decorations. She changed all that personally refusing to play whatever junk the studio cast her in. She fought not only for good roles but for the right to demand great roles and the best scripts, directors, co stars and promotion. She left us great movies and later in her career first rate tv. She was tough on stuffed shirt studio bosses but a friend to audience and she never forgot to thank her fans. She did not have an easy life and that included a parade of husbands who could not or would not stand with her. She won two Oscars, Emmys and just about every honor the industry and culture had to offer. This audio book is an update of her earlier autobiography and like everything she did rings with truth, heart and her amazing strength. At a time so called stars are created on digital and social with the lasting power of toilet tissue it warms the heart and excites the mind to remember the power and class of a star with staying power. Like the character she played in All About Eve she really was a class act well worth remembering.

Loved it from start to finish

The narrator’s take on Bette Davis’s mannerisms and speech added a great deal to the enjoyment of this book.

Love Bette Davis

Wonderful book, love the reader. Loved learning so much about her life and how she became who she was.

Very Good!

This is a very good book and the story is by Bette herself. Suzanne Toren who also narrated "This N That" did fabulous. In my opinion this book was a more in-depth, detailed version of "This N That". Worth a listen.