A Mother's Gift

by Britney Spears, Lynne Spears

Holly Faye Lovell sure can sing. Everyone in Biscay, Mississippi, knows that. And when at fourteen she becomes the youngest student ever to win a scholarship to the prestigious Haverty School of Music, her dream of pursuing a singing career is on its way. But for the first time in her life, Holly must leave behind her mother, Wanda. Although they don’t have much in the way of money, there’s always been plenty of love . . . and there’s always been Wanda’s birthmark, an ugly red scar on the side of her face that makes people who don’t know her turn away. Now that Holly's off with her posh new friends and new life, she’s ashamed to find herself embarrassed by her mom and their humble background. And Wanda finds herself wanting to reveal a long-hidden secret . . . a secret that could destroy their bond forever.

A portion of the proceeds from this book will go to The Britney Spears Foundation.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Music, Chick Lit, Teen, Romance, The United States Of America

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer, dancer, songwriter, actress and author. She has sold over 83 million records worldwide according to Zomba Label Group. The RIAA ranks her as the eighth best-selling female artist in American music history, having sold 32 million albums in the U.S. Her success as a recording artist has allowed her to work in other media; she has acted in film and television, has written two books, and has been contracted to endorse several products, including her own perfume line.

Spears released her debut album ...Baby One More Time in 1999, propelling her to international stardom. It spawned the Billboard topping single "…Baby One More Time". She released her second studio album Oops!… I Did It Again in 2000 with continued success. A third album Britney was released in 2001, followed by the release of her fourth album In the Zone in 2003. The album's breakout single "Toxic" won Spears her first Grammy Award. After the release of a remix album/greatest hits collection, she released her fifth album Blackout in 2007.

As a result of her fame, Spears's personal life has received much media attention. This only escalated after her marriage to Kevin Federline in 2004. She gave birth to her first child, Sean Preston, in 2005 and to her second child, Jayden James, in 2006. The couple's divorce in November of the same year was highly publicized, followed by an ongoing custody battle over their sons.

Reviews

[J.m. Darhower · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm being very generous with my stars, because I'm still holding out hope for Britney Spears & Justin Timberlake to come to their senses and get married and make popstar babies while Nsync has a reunion tour. But alas, the book was highly 'meh'. I only finished it because my best friend said "betcha won't finish it".

I should mention I read it years ago. I'm admitting to my former teeny bopper ways.

[Aisha Manus · Rating 3 out of 5]

I came in with low expectations. It started well but then it seemed to lose direction, then felt rushed at end. Extremely quick read.

[Mery · Rating 4 out of 5]

ceritanya tentang gadis berumur 14 tahun bernama Holly, dia tinggal hanya bersama ibu nya Wanda.

Holly bercita-cita ingin menjadi penyanyi, kemudian dia mendapatkan beasiswa di sekolah seni, dengan kehidupannya yang baru, teman yang baru, Holly merasa minder dengan ibu nya, Wanda mempunyai cacat di wajah, cacat itu akibat kebakaran.
Holly malu jika teman2nya mengetahui ibunya adalah seorang yang cacat.

di akhir cerita diceritakan bahwa Wanda bukanlah ibu kandung Holly, dan cacat yang di dapat Wanda di wajahnya karena beberapa tahun yang lalu ada sebuah kebarakarn di mana terdapat seorang ibu dan bayi nya, sang ibu meninggal, dan sang bayi berhasil diselamatkan oleh seorang wanita yang dengan nekat masuk ke kobaran api sehingga kobaran api tersebut meninggalkan bekas di wajahnya.



sudah lama bacanya, bukunya juga gak tahu kemanain, di toko buku sudah g ada :(
ceritanya sih biasa aja, tapi salut ama tokoh Wanda yang berkorban demi Holly, bahkan Wanda tidak menikah sampai Holly besar.

[Jo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Muy fan de Britney seré pero no le podría recomendar este libro ni a mi peor archienemigo xD.Mala trama,personajes planos,sólo Ditz me simpatizaba. Holly era una estúpida niña engreída y se avergonzaba de su madre y de ser becada #DaHell.
Los saltos de tiempo son totalmente injustificados y se notaba que sólo querían terminar pero no sabían que contar mientras tanto.Además el final es tan cliché .-.
Un libro malo y que leí sin expectativas pero aún así sentí que mi cerebro se fundía mientras lo leía.

[Em · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mothers gift is a beautiful novel written by the world famous pop-star Britney Spears and her mother Lynne Spears.
It was also produced into a made-for-television movie which I had watched years ago and thought it was absolutely beautiful!
It is a semi-autobiographical novel that is evident by the dreams and ambitions of it's lead character Holly Lovall and the compassion and encouragement of her mother Wanda Lovall (basically Britney and Lynne).
Holly is a young teenage girl whose dreams and ambitions include wanting to be a pop star. She lives in a small working town and without a father, they manage to scrape enough money to get by but haven't got the money Holly is needing to attend a prestigious music school. It hurts her mother to watch her daughters dreams slip through her fingers so she endeavours to find a way to make her daughter happy by getting her a scholarship. Holly is ecstatic but soon discovers that her new school is not everything she had pinned her hopes on. Holly is extremely gifted but not in the traditional composition style that her new school pride themselves on.
It was so sad watching holly's relationship with her mother faulter as she tried to become like her fellow peers but blood is thicker than water and holly is such a strong, brave and lovable girl maybe she could bring her own style to the school?
. . . . MAYBE!

I know there will be some people out there who will see Britney Spears name on the book and return it back to the shelf because i've read books by celebrities that havent been upto scratch but i promise you that this book is light-hearted but meaningful.
It's primary message in my opinion is not to change who you are for the expectation of others; just be you and that you are beautiful!
what more could you ask for!
brilliant read written by a celebrity and her mother in a beautiful collaboration.
ENJOY! :)
Emma
x

[Devon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Surprisingly enough, Britney Spears is a horrible writer. Mr.dk bought me this as a joke while I was studying for the Bar. He was sweet. This book was not.

[Elsa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Definitely the most insipid book I've ever read. It's flat, colorless and totally boring from the first page to the end. Glad that I didn't spend any cent for this book. But I wasted my time tho.

The idea of the book could actually be brilliant. However,it needs talent to manifest a billiant idea ino a wonderful reading material. And Britney obviously does not have that talent.

It's just flat. Reallllllyyyyyy flattttt

[Patrick · Rating 2 out of 5]

I obviously bought/read this as a joke taken too far. I think it was actually well-written however, for its demographic. The story is about a girl who dreams of going to a special arts school to be a singer or something, and the sacrifices her mother makes to help her daughter achieve her dream. I would recommend this to 9-year-old girls.

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet heart-warming story about a mother and a daughter's relationship.

[Camila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I may be a little biased because Britney is the queen of E V E R Y T H I N G but tbh, this wasn’t half bad.

I read this book back in 2000, when I was 13, and it I enjoyed it just as much as a reread and in my 30s.

Very quaint and YA. Made for a cozy and quick read this weekend. Adorbs! And the message of the book regarding family, love & faith made me smile.

👏🏻

[Goldfishing]

In geen 20 jaar aan dit boek gedacht, maar als kind gewapend met biebpas zeker vier keer gelezen

[Ifnur Hikmah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gue enggak tahu kalau buku ini pernah diterjemahin. Sebagai penggemar Britney sejak jaman Baby One More Time sampai Work Bitch, gue lumayan rajin ngumpulin pernak pernik Britney. Dan, gue kaget waktu salah satu toko bekas langganan gue jual ini buku, terjemahan. Tanpa pikir panjang gue langsung beli.

Buku ini bercerita tentan Holly Faye yang tinggal di kota kecil bareng ibunya, Wanda. Holly ini suka banget nyanyi dan pengin sekolah di Haverty School Of Music. Tapi keadaan keluarganya yang miskin bikin Holly yakin enggak akan mampu sekolah di sana. Tapi tanpa sepengetahuannya pacarnya mengirim demo rekamannya dan Holly dipanggil untuk tes. Setelah sedikit ada drama, Holly pun diterima dan pindah ke Haverty, berpisah dari ibunya.

Keadaan di Haverty yang penuh anak orang kaya membuat Holly malu akan masa lalunya. Dia yang miskin, ibunya dengan tanda lahir besar di wajah, dan asalnya yang dari kota kecil. Tapi Holly enggak tahu ada rahasia besar yang disimpan ibunya.

Buku ini remaja banget, ditulis berdua oleh Britney dan ibunya, Lynne. Gue banyak menemukan self insert di sini, kedekatan ibu dan anak, Holly yang sejak kecil sudah suka nyanyi which is Britney banget, berasal dari kota kecil which is Britney banget, dan Haverty gue rasa mirip dengan Mickey Mouse Club yang diikuti Britney.

Ceritanya sederhana, tapi di bagian akhir mampu menguras air mata. Dan sayangnya kenapa gue baru baca buku ini sekarang? Coba beberapa bulan lalu, pasti gue bisa jadiin buku ini riset ketika sedang nulis novel yang kebetulan juga mengangkat isu sekolah musik. But, whatever.

Selain sederhana, ceritanya juga related banget sama kehidupan remaja. Remaja yang insecure ketika teman-temannya terlihat lebih padahal seharusnya dia sudah bersyukur dengan keadaannya. Namun sayangnya buku ini terlalu tipis padahal banyak kemungkinan drama bisa ditambah. But overall, I like it.

Jadi pengin baca buku Britney yang lain, Heart to Heart.

[Veryl Lee F7 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holly Faye Lovell sure can sing. Everyone in Biscay, Mississippi, knows that. And when at fourteen she becomes the youngest student ever to win a scholarship to the prestigious Haverty School of Music, her dream of pursuing a singing career is on its way. But for the first time in her life, Holly must leave behind her mother, Wanda. Although they don’t have much in the way of money, there’s always been plenty of love . . . and there’s always been Wanda’s birthmark, an ugly red scar on the side of her face that makes people who don’t know her turn away. Now that Holly's off with her posh new friends and new life, she’s ashamed to find herself embarrassed by her mom and their humble background. And Wanda finds herself wanting to reveal a long-hidden secret . . . a secret that could destroy their bond forever.

This story is basically about a mother's love and sacrifices for her daughter. Holly Faye Lovell and her mother have always been each other's favourite companion, and they were dependant on each other.Holly was an excellent singer. Everyone knows that. They thought that it would be such a waste if such good singing goes down the drain without being known to others. And so,it was planned that Holly will go to the pretigious Harvety School of Music.The school was located in the city, but they live in Biscay, Missisipi, a small village outside the city. Holly will be staying in the domitory, but Wandy had no money to buy clothes for Holly. She had to sew them.
On that long awaited day, a limousine arrived outside their house, waiting to fetch Holly to the school. But because of going to a rich school, for the first time Holly felt ashamed of her mum.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't sure I was going to like this book at first. One thing i've noticed is that it's very typical of musicians to do something where it has to do with a walk to fame. This book didn't really have that. It sort of does, but not really.
Holly Lovell and her mother Wanda live in a quaint little town called Biscay, Mississippi. There's talk of a tragedy, but not many of the townsfolk will talk about unless you ask twice. Even then they will give you tiny details. This turns out to have everything to do with the title of this book.
Now as I said this book doesn't really have the walk to fame aspect because despite the emphasis on Holly's walk, it is a side story when you really think about it (or should I say when you get to the end of the book).Holly auditions and is excepted into Haverty, a school for all types of artists. Mostly musicians because of a televised hour show called The Haverty Talent Hour where usually Juniors and Seniors are asked to perform.
Eventually you find out through Wanda's Diary entries that there is a secret that she must tell Holly and it is long overdo.And it has to do with the towns tragedy.
This book was surprisingly touching in so many ways. 5 stars because this is not something I had at all expected from Britney and her mother, but I guess I can see where all the inspiration came for this book, being that the Spears family is from the south. I highly suggest you give this book a chance.

[Bobbie Bomber · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book years ago when it was first released so I'm going to try and write a review from what I remember about it.

This was a book I really didn't think I was going to like to much since it was so different from my usual taste especially since it was written by Britney Spears(and her mother)who I have never been a fan of but I remember being very surprised on how much I did like it at the time.

Was it perfect no far from it the writing was okay for the most part but is was a very sweet and coming of age story about the relationship between a mother and her daughter and the sacrifices a mother would make for her daughter.

Holly Faye Lovell is a young girl from a small town in Mississippi who can sing better then anyone and gets accepted to a prestigious music school in the city. Her mother Wanda who she had always been closed to has what is believed to be birthmark on the side of her face that people who have never met the women tend to stare at, with Holly's new rich friends for the first time in her life Holly feels embarrassed and ashamed of her mother and the humble life style they live so she starts avoiding her once best friend/mother.

Finally her mother decides to share a secret she has been hiding for so long in the end when the secret is revealed the bond between mother and daughter is repaired and Holly learns to love and respect her mother even more.

[Lisa]

This book came out in 2001. I remember wanting to read it but being too embarrassed to ask for it. Now 12 years later, I found a very cheap copy on Amazon and crossed something of my bucket list*...reading a book "written" by Britney(and her mom).

It really did read like a book written by Britney Spears, especially 2001 Britney. 2001 Britney was still a mixture of amazingly energetic performances and a sickeningly sweet persona. I admit I thought she was pretty damn cool and remember watching interviews she'd do around that time where she'd talk about her close relationship with her mother, talk about how she made sure to stay "grounded" and said y'all...a lot. She basically milked the Southern girl persona.

And this book reminds me a lot of the Britney from that time. There are some y'all's present in this book, the main character is very close to her mother, she's a girl who loves to sing pop music, she has a boyfriend who she actually describes as cute and nice and also says all she's done with her boyfriend is kiss and hold hands, which is "sexy".

I can't fault it too much really because it actually would be a decent book for the right age group, probably 13 years and under. The writing isn't great but it has some heart.

*I don't really have a bucket list.

[Merary · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though this book is well-written, A Mother's Gift had no plot and not a real conflict. And also, it is to sugar-coated. I like a sweet story once in a while, but this was too much!
I found Holly an example of a Mary-Sue. I don't like Mary Sues.
When her mother finally reveals that horrible secret that could "tear both apart", what does Holly do? . . . Nothing. Zap. Nada. She just forgives her mother (!!). Very predictable.
I give it 2 stars because it was well-written. That's it. Other than that, it was a bad book.

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was a kid, my childhood best friend was OBSESSED with Britney. Majorly. In fact, this is how this book ended up on my shelf. It's been sitting there for years before I finally decided I needed to pick it up and actually read it. It also helped that I decided to do the POPSUGAR 2016 Reading Challenge. One of the books has to be written by a celebrity.

And you know what? It actually wasn't that bad. I was expecting much worse. It was a nice, quick, feel good read about family love conquering all.

POPSUGAR 2016 Reading Challenge - A Book Written by a Celebrity

[Audrey Anindita]

nice book. i got the book as the prize of bookstore event and i loved it at a first sight. i like the plot, how a poor Missisipi girl who has amazing voice can study in one of the super famous-and also-expensive music school. she learned many things there and finally knew a secret that her mom kept for a long time. i just read it in bahasa, so i don't know how the original book tells. but it'd be fun to read it more than once :)

[Fanny R.J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember reading this book. I was around 15 and a great friend of mine recommended it to me. I remember crashing on this comfy chair in my room and reading it in a row, in an hour I think. I loved the book. I remember It made me think about many things, made my ask myself some questions about my future etc. I should probably read it again some time now that i'm older. Anyway, go for it, it's a good one. Not N.Sparks or P.Cornwell style obviously, but a great story for sure.

[Gimena Reche · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sí, he leído DE TODO. Esta es una novela que, supuestamente, escribió la artista junto a su madre. Es una novela juvenil entretenida, llevadera. Leerla es como sentarse a ver un Domingo una de esas películas en televisión que ya viste mil veces, pero lo terminas haciendo porque te sirve para pasar el tiempo. Esta novela es sólo eso. Puede ser que si son admiradores de la artista lo disfruten mucho más.

[~DIAMOND~ · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book brings back memories. I actually read this book at while waiting in Wal Mart. See how exciting Mississippi is ROFLMAO. Read it a couple months after we were married.

Not one I would recommend as a MUST read. It was okay. But nothing to write home about. I picked up out of pure curiosity because of who wrote it.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

For the record, I was a typical 13-year-old teeny-bopper when I read this.

And actually, for a 13-year-old, I remember thinking it was't half-bad. I don't recommend this to anyone, obviously. Unless you're just curious......


Oh yea...and I still own a copy... I don't part with books. No matter how ridiculous one may be.

[EmhWaldorf · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first thought which comes to your mind while seeing this book on the shelf of a vintage/second-hand book shop is always 'so Britney Spears can write a book?'

And then you find out that,some ways, yes she can.
Ok this book has a stupid plot and it's pretty obvious the way it ends, but it's a little book that you can easily read on a hot day on the beach. When you're about 13.

[Jenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book set me off guard when I first picked it off the shelf. It is writen by britney spears and her mother and you know how they turned out. Although suprisingly this was an excellent read. I would recommend this book for young teens.

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why yes, I do own this book. No, I'm not sure how that happened. And yes, I read it. I liked it for what it was. It could have been better, of course and the plot is cliche, but it was quick and fun at the time.

[Astrid Johanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the books I have read several times and it is moving every time I have read it.
It is about finding your roots and find your way. It is about how you find friends where you don't expect it.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book because it was free at my local library. I had no idea what to expect but it wasn't as bad as I had thought. Somewhat predictable but still brought tears to my eyes at the end. Definitely a book I'm going to pass down to my younger daughters to read.

[Austin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it a lot. The story was very sweet about a small town girl dreaming big. The book was very good, but the story didn't really go anywhere at some points, though I still enjoyed every chapter. It's a nice quick read so I say read it.

[Prisca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this when I was in high school, back then when I didn't know much about those tiring theories of writing etc etc. I remembered that I liked it so much, and the story stayed in my mind for a while.