'Wildflower' by Drew Barrymore

I've always had a bit of a thing about Drew. To be honest, I'm not really sure why. And if I ever happen to mention that I 'love Drew Barrymore', whoever I'm talking to tends to query my devotion.

She's apparently not an obvious choice. She's a huge name, she's been in some classic films which many of you would probably have loved when you were younger- 'E.T' (obviously), 'Never Been Kissed', 'Charlie's Angels', '50 First Dates'- and she's best friends with Cameron Diaz. But I don't think that's why I like her.

I think it's because she isn't such an obvious idol that I really admire her. She's clearly talented (not Oscar-type talented but, as I said, she makes a good rom-com- produces them too- 'He's Just Not That Into You' anyone?) She's clearly beautiful but she's, arguably, not drop dead gorgeous in an 'acceptable to the media' way. She tends to play the best friend of the lead. Or the 'quirky' choice of love interest. There's something a little different about her. The same way I love Kate Winslet, I would adore the opportunity to go for a coffee with her, have a chat, a bit of cake. She seems like that kind of person.

Like many people, I'm also intrigued by her childhood, what she went through at such a young age and how she managed to grow from there. She seems like such a strong, wholesome, loving and level headed person- remarkable seeing as she "had [her] first drink at age nine, began smoking marijuana at 10, and at 12 took up cocaine ", a line from the back of her 1990 autobiography 'Little Lost Girl'. Published at 15, Drew Barrymore had already spent a year in an 'institution' (as she often refers to it) and emancipated herself from her mother (I've tried to track down a copy of this book to read but it's currently going for over £60 on Amazon- anyone who has a copy buried on their bookshelf, do share!)

Drew Barrymore is evidently strong and hugely successful. Now 40, she is an actress, a producer, a photographer, beauty company co-founder, the creator of her own wine label and a mother to two young daughters. So when her book 'Wildflower' came out, I put it on my Christmas list.

Rather than a memoir or a traditional autobiography, 'Wildflower' is similar to Lena Dunham's 'Not That Kind of Girl' in that it is a collection of stories or recollections- the back cover of the hardback reads "We all have stories to tell. These are mine". Out of chronology, the book is designed for you to dip in and out of, yet I essentially read it in one sitting.

Other reviews of the book have declared it too guarded and bland. It doesn't have enough 'truth' in it. In other words it's 'not juicy enough'. As humans, we all want to know the private, dirty details of other peoples' lives; we have Instagram and read blogs; we slow down as we drive past car crashes; we binge watch murder shows on Netflix. I'm still interested in Drew Barrymore's difficult childhood but she clearly thought this book wasn't the place for those details. And why should it be? 25 years on, she obviously wanted to write about many of the other little moments in her life and that's fine by me.

You know those friends you may have had for years who know everything that's happened in your life? Every detail. When you speak to them, you may throw a sentence or two into conversation which references the 'big things', the 'tough things' you've had to 'get through', because the conversation calls for it. And to that friend, this isn't a big deal. They know immediately what you're talking about and they nod and the conversation continues. There is a level of intimacy there with old old friends. And Drew Barrymore's book writes to you just like that. In stories such as 'My Beautiful Laundrette' or 'The Royal Hawaiian', 'Bird of Paradise' or 'Seagull', she drops in details about her childhood because they are relevant and needed. But they are not really the main focus of the narrative. They aren't designed to make you go 'oh my god she did what at what age?!' There's a level of acceptance of her past and it feels like she's really letting you into it by leaving the grisly details out.


The book as a whole is uplifting. At times it is funny (after a naked Playboy shoot when she was around nineteen, Steven Spielberg, her godfather, sent her a quilt as a gift with a note telling her to 'cover up') Often, it is touching. At times some tales do feel a little like 'fillers' and verge on the mundane. And Drew Barrymore really overuses the exclamation marks to the point of being irritating. But there is a tenderness and a heart to the book. One of my favourite stories in there is 'Flossy', a narrative all about her dogs Flossy, Vivien and Templeton and how they were essentially her world for seventeen years. There's a real vulnerability in some of the stories and she is relatable in so many ways.

It is a very easy, very quick read. It won't win any prizes for literary merit. But it leaves you with a little insight into who Drew Barrymore has become, 33 or so years after 'E.T', the film which started it all.