Now

by Lauren Bacall

"CANDID AND HONEST...A philosophical looking-backward and forward--an inquiry into the question 'Is that all there is?' "
--Liz Smith
New York Newsday
"FRANK AND AMUSING...[AND] BRIMMING WITH CONFESSIONS...Part career memoir and part meditation on what it's like to be a single woman of lingering glamour, enduring vitality and advancing age...The book has the Bacall voice behind it. Her writing echoes her deep, sardonic, no-nonsense timbre and jazzy tempo....Bacall is at her best when talking about friends she has loved and watched die. Bernstein, she says, was more than a little seductive; Huston, more than a little remote; Olivier, a survivor to the end."
--Chicago Sun-Times
"HER PROSE IS SPARE AND HONEST....A kaleidoscope of thoughts and ideas on loneliness, aging, and above all, surviving...There are also poignant reminiscences of the golden years of Hollywood and many of its leading creators."
--The Washington Post Book World
"SHE REMINDS US OF SOME FAMILIAR TRUTHS WORTH ATTENDING TO. . . .What she's writing about, Ms. Bacall explains, is 'life' and indeed her musings about getting older, about intimations of mortality, about living solo, about letting go of one's children will resonate with women who, like her, are of a certain age."
--The New York Times Book Review
"ENGROSSING. . .POIGNANT."
--People

Genres: Biography, Memoir, Nonfiction, Film, Autobiography, Biography Memoir, Historical

288 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published September 27, 1994

About the author

Betty Joan Perske, better known as Lauren Bacall, was a Golden Globe– and Tony Award–winning, as well as Academy Award–nominated, American film and stage actress and model. Known for her husky voice and sultry looks, she became a fashion icon in the 1940s and has continued acting to the present day.

She is perhaps best known for being a film noir leading lady in films such as The Big Sleep (1946) and Dark Passage (1947), as well as a comedienne, as seen in 1953's How to Marry a Millionaire. Bacall also enjoyed success starring in the Broadway musicals Applause in 1970 and Woman of the Year in 1981.

Reviews

[Izzie Flynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love her so. Any one who claims this is just a book of name shaming and that its dull, is completely out of their element.

What a wonderful woman Betty was, right till the end. I loved By myself and i loved Now.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Revelations

Lauren Bacall wrote more than one autobiography and NOW was her last written in 2012, just two years before her death at the age of 89. Although the book talks about her friends, her family and a beloved pet, her acting career and even her lavish homes, the theme that dominates the book is loneliness and regret. Not in a maudlin sense, but a no nonsense woman who has seen and done everything and and still looks back and sees her mistakes and feels the longstanding emptiness that her career hasn’t been able to fill.

I believe that Lauren Bacall was the woman she played on the screen. She was a strong woman who would not be told her place and she enjoyed working and did her best by her family at the same time. After her children were grown I think she believed that she didn’t have a close enough relationship with them, but then she felt that she didn’t have a close enough relationship with her own mother. Ms Bacall’s father was absent and she ended up raising her children without a father.

This was written in more of a train of thought style of writing, as I’m sure because Ms Bacall wasn’t the type of woman to have a ghost writer do any of her work. It has segments, but she covers the same subject matter in different ways in different segments. I admired Ms. Bacall and I enjoyed her book, but I admit it made me a little sad.

[John Yelverton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating read about one of the least well know but most enduring figures in all of Hollywood.

[Lady Devreux · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always liked her, and this book has confirmed why I have liked her:
She was a real person, and she writes in a style that the average person would compose in, if they were sitting down and telling a story to a friend. Granted, this style may offend some, but it is definitely her opinion on life and the events in her life.

[Nancy Loe · Rating 1 out of 5]

Whiny, self-indulgent. She should have stopped with By Myself, which was really fascinating. I'm especially all cut up about the trials she faced getting her country house in the Hamptons decorated. :P

[Catherine Hines · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book perhaps more than it warranted because it was written when Bacall was 70. I liked reading her take on growing old, on having adult children, on the inevitable losses.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was second book I read by Lauren Bacall first one was By myself this was also very good her and Bogie love never died even though he did

[David Highton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Billed as an update not a sequel to her autobiography, this book is ordered thematically not chronologically - pretty revealing about her inner life, I found it a little sad

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wasn't s biography in the strictest sense, it rambled all over the place. But the anecdotes about the famous were delightful. I felt it was a lot of little stories that she hadn't been able to incude in her autobiography.

[Helen Robare · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a bit disappointed in this book. Because I read her first book "By Myself" more than once, I happily paid for this book. Unfortunately, this one did not even come close to the first book in quality. This book seemed erratic with the author jumping from one subject to another willy nilly. This was more like a brief glimpse into her life after Bogie whereas the first book stayed on track and took circumstances in chronological order. This book gave very brief glimpses into the life of Lauren Bacall. I can't say I hated this book or even disliked it but it was not anywhere as good as her first autobiography. I did learn some things I didn't know about some of the Hollywood jet-setters so that was a plus. I could understand her worship of Bogie but I found the part about her worship of Lawrence Olivier to be a bit (okay a lot) overboard. In fact, if I ever read this book again I will skip that part entirely. I've read too many books about "Vivien and Larry" so I know his care of his wife was NOT as gushingly heroic as Ms. Bacall made it out to be! But I am glad that I read it though I think I should have just gone to the library for it instead.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have had the book for awhile. Really enjoyed hearing about how she felt and what happened in the years between 40 and 60. I always thought she was an interesting person and this book brings that out.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rating.

[Mizloo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Way more insightful and candid than most Hollywood bios. Very engaging

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

#97 of 120 books pledged to read during 2019

[Shirley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great follow up to her autobiography- full of perspectives and hope. I saw her in Sweet Bird of Yourh in her 70s and was awed by her presence!

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little dull in the middle but the beginning and end of the book was written.

[Noelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

BETTY COME BACK

[Jen Marin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how it's written as if you're hanging out with a friend and they're telling you stories about their life.

[Georgeann Knier · Rating 3 out of 5]

The end of dreams

A little bit more self serving than sharing. Had the feeling that the author wanted us to feel sorry for her at times

[Alayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a memoir as such, but taking different topics and expounding on what they meant to Bacall. Plenty of photos at the relevant places in the book as well. Very enjoyable.

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A slim easy to read volume, interesting in parts but repetitive in others. One for fans only.

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprisingly Interesting & Honest

I love biographies and have always loved Ms.Bacall. I chose to read this before her first book because it was available on Kindle. I am glad I did. It was almost written as if the reader was having a conversation with her. Not a 'hollywood' tell all book. A book about a woman musing about life's questions.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

A follow-up to By Myself: what happened in the twenty or so years after Lauren Bacall wrote her first autobiography. Still interesting, but By Myself is definitely the better of the two.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

there's something really boring about the way Lauren Bacall writes or approaches a story: she's not too into the details enough for me. the best part of this book was learning about her obsession with working, self-willed gardening, self-willed house restoration. amen, self will.

[Vikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Now is Lauren Bacall's autobiography. She told her story honestly in the form of random thinking. There was no chronological order to it. She talked of her old famous friends, many of whom I did not know. She said that Vivian Leigh had a mental illness.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Topical reflectons on her life (1994) -- subjects include "Work," "Children," "The House," "Friendship and Loss." Interesting enough to make me want to read her autobiography. Clearly she still is very much Bogart's wife.

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sort of liked this. It's written about some of her personal memories of owning a house, how she's chosen to live independently, her relationships with her children, and of course Bogie. Not an autobiography and not really a memoir.

[Sandollar3 · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book updates Lauren Becall's life from her first book, "By Myself".

[Cws]

92B

[Carla Martz · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was interesting, but I liked the first book much better.