“I’m Glad My Mom Died,” by Jennette McCurdy breaks all boundaries of a typical memoir while portraying McCurdy’s journey as a child star.

The novel was released in August 2022, revealing harsh criticisms and depictions of Nickelodeon producer Dan Schneider and McCurdy’s mother, describing the abuse they put her through before she quit acting.

McCurdy describes Schneider as being lured to young girls, which made her feel uncomfortable in her own body. In the novel she depicts him as being controlling and the type of person that can tear you down and humiliate you.

On the other hand, she values her mom’s input and constantly wants to please her, not realizing until years later that her mother’s treatment is actually abuse.

McCurdy’s novel brings the reader along with her through the world of television. With her mother by her side, she faces constant criticism leading her to be glad her mom died.

“It took a long time to get to a place where I could identify that I was, and am, glad that she died,” McCurdy said in her novel.

As a young girl, McCurdy’s mother controlled her life. She forced McCurdy into dance classes and auditions for various TV shows due to her own unfulfilled dreams, tearing down her daughter through hateful comments about her body and looks.

McCurdy’s mom believed that the younger her daughter looked, the more roles she could play. 

Her mother began encouraging anorexia from a young age, causing McCurdy to still sit in a booster seat at 14 years old due to her small stature.

After years of playing background roles, McCurdy booked the role of Sam in the popular Nickelodeon show, “iCarly.” 

While working on the show, producer Dan Schneider took a sexual interest in McCurdy. She said he demanded to see her in a bikini and took a special interest in supervising her on-screen kiss scenes.

McCurdy describes this moment as a turning point in her brain when she was just a young girl.

She hoped she could escape the suffering she was forced to endure, and bulimia was her answer. No more food meant no more growing up.

“I’m terrified of being looked at as a sexual being. It’s disgusting. I’m not that,” McCurdy writes. “I’m a child.”

Her mother controlled her entire life: who she dated, what she ate and what she believed in. McCurdy had no say in her own life and realized later that she had been exploited.

“She wanted this. And I wanted her to have it. I wanted her to be happy. But now that I have it, I realize that she’s happy and I’m not. Her happiness came at the cost of mine. I feel robbed and exploited,” McCurdy said in her novel.

While Hollywood provided McCurdy with many opportunities, there was no sense of privacy. In the novel McCurdy explained she had nothing for herself. She was forced to share her diary, email and entire income with her mother.

McCurdy’s journey through fame showcases the underbelly of Hollywood — the dirty and not-so-glamorous side.

The novel’s haunting tone and McCurdy’s emotional writing will leave any reader in shock and craving the next page.

Years after the passing of her mother, McCurdy was able to accept her abuse and recover from her decade-long battle with eating disorders while exploring her own interests in writing.

“Through writing, I feel power for maybe the first time in my life. I don’t have to say somebody else’s words. I can write my own,” McCurdy said in her novel.