Book Review: Rob Lowe

I first became curious about the book "Stories I Only Tell My Friends" when a patron in my same age group checked it out one day and told me she had heard that it was funny and really well written. When it came back in, I grabbed it and checked it out.

I was initially struck by how intelligently written it was. Lowe is honest without being arrogant, emotive without being sappy and weaves the story of his life so far with wit and wisdom and honesty. Even when discussing his almost too-pretty good looks in his youth, he is funny and honest. I always appreciate that over false modesty or serious self-deprecation.

My only real complaint is the frequent use of the f-bomb, both in quoting himself and his colleagues and friends. I begin to understand why Hollywood-ites think that word needs to drop from the lips of stars in every movie they make. It's because they all talk that way!

That aside, though, I found the book compelling and fascinating, as well as disturbing. The amount of alcohol being offered freely to minors on movie sets was appalling, and the lack of morality, physical and otherwise, made me feel sorry for Lowe and his friends. It's no wonder so many young stars crash their way into rehab. It's a life of debauchery: drugs, sex, alcohol and partying all the time.

Luckily, Lowe was intelligent enough to realize when he had hit the bottom and he put himself in rehab, which included therapy, and is now many years sober. His career has also recovered well, which is good to see. He's a good guy, with a pure heart. If you can stomach the language, this is a book worth giving a look. Especially if you were (or are) a Rob Lowe fan, obviously.

Oh, and I rather enjoyed the name-dropping in the book. It was kind of amusing to imagine this kid surrounded by current and future movie stars even before he made it big, and then the stories that followed were certainly entertaining.