Melissa Explains It All: Tales from My Abnormally Normal Life Hardcover – October 29, 2013

I bought it to replace a copy I'd left at my old house.

The little Rice Krispies Girl from Sayville Long Island, began her career at age four in a Splashy commercial and just never stopped. Now in Her fourth decade and third television series of her own, Melissa is an actress, a writer, a producer, a businesswomen and most of all a mom of three. This superstar is so well grounded and 'girl-next-door, she 'Explains It All' from day one. Miss. Hart is a member of the Circle Repertory Company, has an extensive T.V. and filmography background and has shared those stages with world class actors like Meryl Streep, Edward Woodward, Drew Barrymore, and has the page long list of awards to go with them, including the coveted Lifetime Achievement Award. Gifted with tons of talent and the Hart work ethic, Melissa is not above any chore, the frantic life of stardom or the everyday life of neighborhood mom. She even blissfully devotes a chapter to the things she never really learned to do for herself. She describes in wonderful detail at thirteen, her independent life living and commuting between New York and her job in Florida, her loneliness during seventy hour work weeks, her hots for boys and the pressures of always being expected to "pull it off" in one or two takes as seventy five directors, producers, writers, technicians, cameramen, wardrobe designers, dressers, stylists, tutors, grips and guest stars waited and stared patiently as Melissa would flawlessly blast away with her multipage monologues so everyone could wrap for the day. Coping with different schools, her parents divorce, underage inability to even drive herself to visit her friends over at Disney, she made the most of friendships at Universal with the top brass and the blue collar workers alike. Her candid description of her 'Clarissa years', her carefully managed sex-drugs and rock 'n roll years as a young adult, her LA mansion and her interpersonal relationships with those who would become lifelong best friends and even a husband is revealed in straight talk and stunning honesty. The oldest of eventually six, Melissa (named after the Allman Brothers song), Joan (third generation maternal family name), Catherine (chosen by herself as her eighth grade confirmation name), Hart, reveals all the good, bad, scary and triumphant days from four to pushing forty. You will feel as though you have become personal friends with Melissa, a relationship she treasures, with all those who are friends and fans alike. Happily, Melissa has been married once, and to her beloved "hunk" and rock star Mark Wilkerson since 2003. Congratulations, the best of blessings and luck, we love you, little kid from Sayville.

As a lifelong Melissa Joan Hart fan, I had to read her book. I still remember Clarissa and Sam, I had to spend my Friday nights with Sabrina and the rest of the TGIF gang, and I never miss Melissa & Joey. MJH is fun to follow on Twitter and Instagram with adorable pictures of her kids and fun behind-the-scenes looks at M&J. Her book, Melissa Explains It All, was an incredibly fun read. It is funny, full of juicy gossip, and very "Hart"-felt (pardon the pun).Hart talks in depth about her normal upbringing in a large, middle-class family. Acting was her hobby that just happened to blossom and be fun and profitable. She devotes an entire chapter to both Clarissa Explains It All and Sabrina, describing her first horrendous on-screen kiss with James Van der Blah (Beek, poor guy lol) and her hallucinogenic use of shrooms with some of the Sabrina cast. Her references to drug and alcohol use were very surprising considering she has a great reputation, especially compared with other celebs like Tara Reid and Britney Spears. However, it was clearly a phase associated with being young, rich, and successful in the 90s, and one she grew out of. Hart is extremely honest in this book, even when the truth is less than flattering. She almost started a fight with Oscar de la Hoya, for goodness sake. She's also honest about other people, such as Jerry O'Connell being a teenage man-whore and Drew Barrymore being a childhood brat.Hart comes off as very down to Earth, especially when it comes to parenting. She talks about her shortcomings in cooking, potty-training, and being a disciplinarian. She once burnt water, which is hilarious. She's not one of those celebs that advocates vegan, organic, local, gluten-free, etc etc parenting styles. She's the kind of mom you might see down the block wrangling 3 kids for soccer practice. She talks about people telling her she "looks like Sabrina."Melissa Explains It All is honest, funny, sarcastic, and surprisingly down-to-earth. If you like Melissa Joan Hart or grew up in the 90s, you will definitely enjoy this book.

Loved Melissa's book. Kind of a peak inside her diary. So very many things I admire about her after reading her life (so far) story. Melissa is just a few years older than my two daughters, so I had a special connection with her story. Cannot imagine the pressure of being a child star--see most recently Justin Bieber; etc. There are things in her life that I would hope the younger set among us can avoid, and better decisions they can make along their way. I would hope that by reading this they would not feel compelled to go there simply because she did and came through it all okay. That's why I would be careful about allowing the younger, more immature ones to read it until they're ready. But they can also see that you can overcome difficult things in your life, and you can have a normal life, even when it is a bit, um, "abnormal." Thanks, Melissa, for sharing your story. And congrats and continued prayers and blessings for you and your family as you continue to live a fulfilling, "normal" life.

I got to say I was reading this book with a smile on my face. It is so great to read about someone I grew up watching on to come through the movie/famous/broke business, and not just survive but thrive and have a great life with much more to come.I am about the same age as Melissa Joan Hart, and remember sky coming out and one of the new channels was Nickelodeon. Of course the Clarissa Explains it All was a show that stood out to me. The thing that really attracted me to that show was what I liked about reading this book. An intelligent girl, who breaks to 4th wall to talk to fans through the tv as well as through the book.Unfortunately as many stories I hear or successful stints in the movie business, most of them do not last the longterm and end badly. I am really happy to see a true success story. Melissa has had trials and tribulations, but thanks to a great foundation of support from family, friend and even coworkers she has weathered them and created lifelong friendship/relationships.

I have grown up with Mellisa Joan Hart from Clarissa to Sabrina. So was excited when I saw this book.I was expecting more on what it was like to be on set for those programmes in her early years, although she covers bits of it I was left wanting to read more of that time in her life.Also the paperback did not have any photos in and usually biographies shows a lot of new pics that are not already in the public domain.It was still an enjoyable read to learn more about her life

Melissa Joan Hart is my childhood idol, I must of watched every Sabrina episode 20 times and I have only just realised Melissa wrote a book! I really enjoyed reading about Melissa’s life, I found it so interesting how real she is, she talks about her struggles about balancing life as a working mother and it was nice to read that she is just like all the rest of us (winging it).

I finished Malissa Explains It All within two days. She writes in a whimsical and an amusing way to the reader. While reading the book I felt she was talking to me directly. I am huge fan of Malissa, she is part of my childhood growing up in the 90’s. Malissa tells a truthful account of her life and her ups and downs, I am inspired and I have learnt a lot about success and her hard work.

Having been a fan of Melissa Joan Hart since her Clarissa Days all the way up to her current endeavours it was a fascinating read to see what it was like for her behind the cameras and the glitz and glam that you see in the media. Really loved the rawness of this and that she definitely didn't hold anything back and from reading it it's easy to see. If you've ever loved Melissa or any of her work then I highly recommend this book!