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The Way I See It

a Look Back at My Life on Little House
glass_hurricane
May 10, 2013
If you're looking for amusing stories about the cast and crew of "Little House on the Prairie", well chosen anecdotes, and an endlessly entertaining voice, this is not the book for you. You're thinking of "Confessions of a Prairie Bitch: How I Survived Nellie Oleson and Learned to Love Being Hated" by Alison Arngrim. I decided to read Melissa Anderson's book after having finished "Confessions of a Prairie Bitch." Given Alison Arngrim's less-than-flattering account of Melissa Sue Anderson, I thought I'd check out the other camp. I am incredibly sorry I did. It's been a while since I could honestly call a book tedious, but "The Way I See It" hits the mark. Some call it "clearly written." I call it "completely lacking in imagination." This is the story of a girl who had a highly extraordinary childhood; a child actress who spent seven years on one of the most iconic television shows of the 1970s. I have to hand it to her - it takes a twisted kind of talent to make those kinds of experiences sound as mind-numbingly lacklustre as she does. Among the many crimes of boredom committed in the pages of this book: - Play-by-play episode recaps of Little House on the Prairie and some of Melissa's other projects, shockingly devoid of anecdotes or personal reflection. - Weirdly uncomfortable idolization of Michael Landon. Was the man even human? - Bizarrely chosen personal anecdotes that make no sense within the framework of the book. Melissa relates the harrowing tale (in script form, no less) of cruising along in a car with twin friends who in any 80s movie would have served as the personality-devoid henchmen of whatever clique leader was tormenting Molly Ringwald. The girls are singing along with milquetoast 70s pop and fail to see the lights or hear the siren of the police officer following them. They apologize. He writes them a ticket - a chilling conclusion to traumatic tale. I'm ashamed to admit that I read the story several times to see if perhaps I was missing something. - Self-flattering digs at other actors. "Although we were a year and a half apart, it could have been five. Melissa (Gilbert) was a clever kid. She knew what worked for her. I believe she was encouraged to act as young as she could, for as long as she could. She was very nice, but we couldn't have been more different." By the end of it, even I wanted to kick her! Don't waste your time. Get the entertaining book instead.