The Book Review: A celebrity memoir, well told

March 3, 2026

Christina Applegate stands outside in front of a door with her hand on the side of its frame, wearing a red long-sleeved dress.

John Shearer/Getty Images

	By Gregory Cowles

Dear readers,

Joumana will be back in your inboxes on Friday, very possibly ruing her return to New York City’s frigid temperatures. Until then, I get to bend your ear about the actress Christina Applegate’s new memoir, “You With the Sad Eyes.”

If I’m being honest, celebrity memoirs rarely hold more than idle anthropological interest for me. But Applegate has made a career out of upending expectations, elevating rote comic roles with warmth and intelligence in everything from the sitcom “Married … With Children” to the Netflix series “Dead to Me.” So my ears perked up when I heard that she had a memoir on the way.

This week my colleague Elisabeth Egan (who knows a thing or two about warmth and intelligence) interviewed Applegate about her career, her childhood experiences of sexual and physical abuse, her recent battles with multiple sclerosis and her memoir, which goes on sale today. Unsparing in its honesty, “You With the Sad Eyes” refuses to submit to self-pity over the darker episodes Applegate has faced, because, as she tells Egan, “I’ve lived a long life and I’m still here.” Even if celebrity memoirs aren’t your thing, I encourage you to read this interview.

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