After Perfect: A Daughter's Memoir by Christina McDowell

"Waldorf Louis XIV bedroom" by George Boldt - The Waldorf-Astoria, New York. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Waldorf_Louis_XIV_bedroom.jpg#/media/File:Waldorf_Louis_XIV_bedroom.jpg

Christina McDowell  grew up in the lap of luxury as Christina Prousalis. Her family owned a private jet, stayed in the Presidential Suite at the Waldorf Astoria in New York and associated with famous people.  She had a happy childhood with her family, and her parents appeared to have the perfect marriage.  Then it all suddenly went wrong...

After her lawyer father was arrested for fraud, Christina's life descends into a life of near poverty, drinking and drugs.  She doesn't know whether she can trust her father, who still has big ideas and gives her expensive presents even though he is in jail.  Her mother gets a new boyfriend who Christina doesn't like.  She has to work in seedy nightclubs to earn money, and even her mother's accountant offers her a part in a porno movie! No one believes this when she tells them.

This is an extremely depressing and harrowing story, but Christina describes the situation well, and it's certainly worth reading. One has to hand it to the author for getting through her struggles and managing to make a new life for herself.

I received this free ebook from Net Galley in exchange for an honest reviews.

Article in The Guardian

Christina's Open Letter to The Makers of The Wolf of Wall Street