Year of Yes (Rhimes) - Book Reviews

Book Reviews
Rhimes's style is comfortingly congenial, like spending a lazy afternoon chatting with an old friend. Even though the author comes across as more of a no-nonsense hard charger than a hand-holder, she slows down and takes our hand in hers anyway. She makes her battles our own by daring to be as honest as possible. As anyone who has watched her shows already knows, Rhimes is a natural storyteller. The tiniest epiphanies feel like revelations in her hands, yet she pulls it off without ever losing herself in a haze of sentimentality or cliches.... Folksy first-person books aren't usually so edgy or so hilariously self-effacing. But somehow, through her esoteric cadence and her delightfully self-indulgent digressions, Rhimes brings the full force of her personality to every page.
Heather Havrilesky - New York Times Book Review


Can help motivate even the most determined homebody to get out and try something new in the New Year.
Chicago Tribune


Instead of writing passionate narratives for her TV characters, Rhimes adopted their pluck and bold attitudes and attacked life with a new sense of purpose.... Who knew that such a small word could have such a life-changing impact? By saying "yes," she learned to dance it out and stand in the sun. Dr. Cristina Yang would be so proud.
Associated Press


[A]s fun to read as Rhimes' TV series are to watch. Her authorial voice is fresh and strong.
Los Angeles Times


If you enjoy the rapid-fire dialogue of her characters, reading this book will feel like home. Rhimes opens up, and inspires, discussing her personal experiences as a sister, daughter, mother, friend and boss tempered with biting insights on societal expectations of women…[a] blend of biography and badassery.
Ebony


A book that is fun, dishy and inspirational all at the same time…a powerful book, a great gift for a friend or yourself, whether you’re a fan of the Shondaland lineup or not.
Mother Load/New York Times.com


Shamelessly entertaining…an antic, funny and surprisingly funky portrait of what it’s like to be one of the most fascinating forces in contemporary network television.
Buffalo News (Editor's Choice Review)


This memoir/call to arms from the one-woman force behind Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, and How to Get Away With Murder is basically a New Year’s resolution between two covers. Wherever you’re going, bring it with you.
Bloomberg Businessweek


Rhimes is, unsurprisingly, a fantastic memoirist: Her writing is conversational and witty and lyrical, inflected with the supple human breathiness you might expect from a person who spends her days writing dialogue. It features lots of great punchlines.... It features occasional, chatty, second-person asides.... [It] is also in many ways a side-door self-help book…[with] pieces of advice that concern not just Rhimes’s readers, but everyone.... Year of Yes is a book about the shifts taking place in Hollywood right now,and in the world right now, in the guise of a friendly memoir. It is, like Shondaland itself, making a statement. It is insisting that it is time for the people who used to be invisible to come forward and be seen.
Atlantic.com


Brilliant…a peek into Rhimes' wise, funny, surprisingly candid brain, which contains opinions on everything from accepting compliments and balancing show-running with single motherhood to, yes, the recent weight loss that's been (unfairly) making the most headlines. By the end of journey in The Year of Yes, you'll feel like you've gained a new best friend.
Women & Hollywood/ Indiewire.com


You’ll want to standup and cheer when she takes control, remakes her life, and learns to love herself.
Buzzfeed.com


(Starred review.) [A] powerful memoir and self-help book.... [Rhimes] shares some of the key beliefs and events behind this transformation, all with good humor and vivid prose. Rhimes comes across as inspiring and real.
Publishers Weekly


A sincere and inspiring account of saying yes to life…Rhimes tells us all about it in the speedy, smart style of her much-loved TV shows.... Following her may not land you on the cover of a magazine, but you'll be glad you did.
Kirkus Reviews