Men Have Called Her Crazy is Anna Marie Tendler’s account of the time she spent in the psychiatric facility she checked herself into in 2021 and the ways she had to adjust to life after coming out of treatment. She provides the reader with a stunningly vulnerable account of the things she experienced while being treated there including the things she learned about herself, stories about time spent with the other women she met, and her treatment sessions. Although I would say Anna’s mental health is the primary focus of this book she also discusses in alternating chapters the men who have mistreated her throughout her life.

Doesnt this sound so so good? Ok well let’s talk about why I didn’t like it. There’s no way to say this that doesn’t sound insensitive but… I was bored. For most of this book I was bored. To put it bluntly, Anna’s writing style does not make the experience of going through mental health treatment interesting to read about. Lots of people have written about that experience. Some have done it in ways that have had me glued to the page. Some, like Anna,… have not. And when it comes down to it I think I just don’t like Anna’s writing style. When she described her time at the treatment centre it felt a bit like she was running through a list. “This happened.” “Then this happened.” “Then this happened.” “This is what this woman was like” “This is what this form of treatment was like.” I often don’t mind that kind of writing but for a topic this deep and intimate I want the writing to be better than that. I want to it feel far more personal and less distant. Anna shared extremely personal information about her past, her trauma, and her mental health issues in this book, and I am in awe of the bravery and strength it must have taken for her to do that. But in spite of the vulnerable content in the book I always felt far removed from her because of her writing style… but honestly I think that’s only part of the issue. I think that in terms of personal taste I simply don’t get along with her writing style. And there’s nothing she nor I can do about that.

Now… I know that what I’m about to say is controversial. A major part of this book is that Anna tells us about the men who have wronged her in chronological order, from her teens to the time that the book is published. It’s almost half of the book’s content. And I just personally think… to write a book with an extensive list of the men who have wronged you and only vaguely allude to the fact that you’ve had a divorce leaves a very obvious gaping hole in your story. I’m not saying this as someone who wants juicy celebrity gossip. I would say this even if I didn’t know who her ex husband is. In terms of storytelling it’s very strange to skip over the person who was most likely the most impactful man in her life to wrong her in some way. She even writes about the first man she dated after her divorce and how he wronged her, so it’s obvious to the reader she REALLY goes out of her way to not write about her ex husband. Like I said, she gives us a LENGTHY list of the men who have been in her life. But if I didn’t know who her ex husband is and I picked up this book I would still be like “Um… Hold on… We’re talking about your exes right? So we’ll talk about the first guy you dated after your divorce but we’re skipping an entire HUSBAND? WHAT HAPPENED TO THE HUSBAND? DID I IMAGINE THAT YOU SAID YOU HAD A HUSBAND FOR YEARS?” I would be so so confused. Maybe she and her ex have some sort of agreement to not talk about each other. As far as I know of them has come right out and spilled any dramatic details on their divorce. Maybe that’s the reason for this huge gap in the story. But I just want to point out that it makes the story feel incomplete. It’s a book that heavily, HEAVILY focuses on how men have hurt her. But she very noticeably skips over a man who definitely hurt her. It’s very awkward as a reader, and I imagine that it would be even more awkward for a reader who doesn’t know who her ex husband is and why she might be excluding information about him.

Personally my favorite part of the book was reading about Anna’s IVF story. I always appreciate any story where a woman is making decisions about whether or not she wants children and how she plans to have those children if she chooses to. I love stories about motherhood. And at the end of this book Anna gives us a tiny little story about her own potential motherhood. And that’s the only part of the book that I enjoyed.

Please don’t stone me for saying this: I don’t recommend this book. I think you can do without it.

Thank you to @netgalley and @simonbooks for the arc!

All the st​ars. I really didn't want this book to end. It feels hard to find the words to describe the relatability. I felt very seen and therefore very loved within the pages, and sometimes it feels strange to have so much in common with someone you've never met but it also feels like relief. Being a woman in this world leaves a lot to be desired, especially because of men, but there are moments that spark intense love, and I loved those moments in the book about Petunia, her group of friends that I'm personally envious of, making bracelets and picking stones with words of wisdom; I literally have the word soul tattooed on me because I picked that stone with my eyes closed three times in a row. There's something about other women who just know, like down to eating McDonalds! Ha.

This book is not about her ex-husband, and I really enjoyed that. It's about her. It's about other formative relationships in her younger years alternating with her stay at a psychiatric facility and afterwards. It's heartbreaking, funny, shocking, maddening, and frankly very largely beautiful. I loved going on this journey with her, whispering in my head SAME, thinking about those my life has collided with and the lessons I've learned, and truly relating to her womanhood, motherhood, and what that means moving forward. I recommend this to everyone. It touched my heart and it's a very important read. ✨🖤

Out August 13th!

Men Have Called Her Crazy focuses on Anna Marie Tendler’s time spent at a psychiatric hospital with chapters intertwined with pivotal moments in her life involving men. Like many other reviews have emphasized, this is not the tell-all book some may be hoping for. (It’s actually much better.)

I devoured this book in two days; it was so captivating and well written. I felt seen by Tendler’s experiences and thought processes. I saved several pages for future reference and reminders to myself. One of the best books I’ve read in 2024, no contest.

Men Have Called Her Crazy is raw and open, reminiscent of I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy and Know My Name by Chanel Miller. Trigger warnings include self-harm, suicidal ideations, disordered eating.

Thank you @simonandschuster for this NetGalley ARC of Men Have Called Her Crazy by @annamtendler

This felt like sitting on the couch late at night, talking with your friend in the firelight and falling easily from laughter to indignation to tears and back. It felt like a conversation we’ve all had before, when the exhaustion has set in and the words flow easily.

It was angry and sharp and disjointed, but also whip-smart and funny and earnest. I found myself wiping tears away with the back of my hand and then surprising myself with a bark-laugh at the kind of glinting humor those living with mental illness become all too familiar with.

It felt real. And isn’t that what we want in a memoir?

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

We begin in the middle - with an early 2021 self-admit to an inpatient hospital program. Anna is exhausted but also determined to complete the short program and return to the solitude of her home and her french bulldog Petunia.

Within those two weeks, she becomes fast friends with her fellow patients - their wide age ranges not mattering in the all-women house - and makes large but stumbling steps toward progress. She is evaluated by doctors and cares for plants and witnesses the healing of those around her; and while she does so, she reflects.

Alternating between her time in the program and the fragments and years of her life that shaped her life, the book follows her journey from optimistic and willfully peculiar teenager to bruised and yet hopeful adult, with all the rises and falls in the middle.

Unraveling her story from the men that accompanied, lead, or abandoned her throughout their own is a process that allows Tendler to grieve, rage, and ultimately accept that she has made it to somewhere steady both because of and, more often, in spite of them.

Vivid, genuine, and raw, Tendler’s sharing of her journey shows her (and us) that not only is she capable of facing tragedy without turning on herself, but she’s also strong enough to ask for help when she needs it. And they can call her whatever they want, but they can’t take that from her.

this was one of my most highly anticipated 2024 releases. big fan of anna’s art, especially the lampshades, so cool to learn more about her.

the book has two central arcs, her time in hospital in early 2021 and her relationships with men throughout her life. if you’re looking for a tell all (or even description) of her marriage with john, this is not the book for you- he is hardly mentioned. i think that’s a little odd given the way the book is structured and it being her most significant relationship in terms of length but the book stands well without it. i really appreciated the way she wrote about her time in hospital and the transparency in which she discussed her diagnoses. the way she describes herself from others perspectives really lined up with the writing style i’d say. potentially interesting to those in the field of psychology.

thanks simon & schuster and netgalley for the eArc!

This was an extremely captivating memoir. When this book was announced, I will admit I had certain expectations for what it would be about. However I was pleased with the direction it took.

I liked the format of this book (alternating chapters between Tendler’s time in a psychiatric hospital and stories of her coming of age/encounters with the various disappointing men in her life). Her mental health journey was quite heartbreaking in the beginning but was glad to see how it progressed towards the end. This reminded me of another famous memoir, Girl, Interrupted, due to similar mental health struggles as well as the challenges and successes with mental health professionals along the way. The chapters in the psychiatric hospital were my favorite. I was intrigued to learn about the people the author met along the way as much as I was interested in her own journey. Just a warning that this could be triggering for some readers, but may also be comforting for others going through the struggle and a peak into options to get their own care if necessary. Overall, this was a very powerful memoir and glad I had the opportunity to read this early. (Also, RIP Petunia, you will be missed dearly).

Thank you NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and Anna Marie Tendler for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars rounded up. Tendler is very self-aware and gives a truly transparent look into her life during her stay at a psychiatric hospital. She discusses parental relationships, her relationship to herself, romantic relationships, therapist-patient dynamics, relationship dynamics in general really. She is a gifted storyteller, and the format of the book was done really well in my opinion. I think that a lot of women will feel seen when they read this, in the ways that women have to exist and operate in the world. A lot of this resonated with me personally, and I am excited to see what others have to say about it upon it's release. Definitely do not miss this one.

this is such a raw and emotional memoir. I only know Tendler through her social media and by way of whom she was married to but my eyes are open now. I relate to her in so many ways and seeing that she has the strength to get help, is giving me the courage to start talking to doctors again. I could reread this day after day. I especially resonate with her anxiety revolving petunia — i had identical feelings with my dog too

I stayed up until 4am finishing this book, something I haven’t done since I was a kid. I read constantly and there have been countless books I’ve loved as an adult, but none that I genuinely could not put down in the way I couldn’t put this book down. I related so deeply to Anna in so many ways throughout this book, and I think that seeing so many explicit similarities between her experiences and feelings and my own was almost addictive.

Beyond my personal experience of Men Have Called Her Crazy though, this book was gorgeously written and so well-paced. If you’re picking it up because you want sordid details about the end of her marriage to John Mulaney, you won’t get that. In fact, I think he’s mentioned a grand total of three times and never by name or in detail. Tendler’s memoir is about her own life, her experience with mental health, and the parts of her life that led her to where she was in 2021 and where she is now.

The memoir ‘Men Have Called Her Crazy’ is about Anna who had to stay in a psychiatric hospital for an evolution. The reason for that due to self-harm and suicidal ideation. Also, the memoir tells about her past, including her parents' separation and her relationships. Anna going through her mental health relates me in some form of way.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for giving me an opportunity to read this memoir and do a review.

I enjoyed this book and related to many of Anna’s experiences. I was disappointed that she chose to exclude any information about her former marriage to a public figure. I thought the purpose of the book was to examine the ways men affected and shaped her life; I imagine her ex-husband affected her life significantly. I was underwhelmed with the writing style. Overall, this book held my interest and I wanted to find out what happened.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this Advanced Reader’s Copy of Men Have Called Her Crazy by Anna Marie Tendler due to be published August 13, 2024.
Anna Marie Tendler suffered from anxiety, depression, and self-harm. She checked herself into a psychiatric hospital and went to numerous therapy sessions and met some wonderful friends.
Anna recalls her hospital experience as well as moments in her life that led her to where she was – many failed relationships with men, divorced parents, etc.
Men Have Called Her Crazy related Anna’s feelings about men and women in the 21st century in an honest, wonderful way. I enjoyed her stories about her past and had to realize several times while reading that this was a memoir and not a novel. I enjoyed this book immensely since I had never hears of Anna Tendler before – a very interesting and informative book and look into her life.
#NetGalley #AnnaMarieTendler #Simon&Schuster #MenHaveCalledHerCrazy

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC! This was a hard read. Anna’s tone itself leans more conversational, which was appreciated and provided an interesting dynamic with the darker subject matter. Even though I was incredibly captivated by Anna’s words, I found that I had to spread the reading out over multiples days, where I’m usually a “read it all in one go” kind of person. If you are going into this hoping for tea on The Divorce, you won’t find it here - and rightfully so. Anna’s experiences throughout her life, from her childhood stories to her recount of her time being inpatient at a mental health facility are written so rawly and vulnerably. I’m a big fan of this memoir, and of Anna Marie Tendler. TW for anxiety, IVF, men being horrible, and death of a pet, among other things. RIP Petunia <3

I started this book feeling pretty indifferent towards Tendler and finished it feeling deeply moved and connected to her. Men Have Called Her Crazy is well-written and propulsive as it bounces between Tendler's time spent in a mental health facility and reflections on her relationships. She's incredibly honest and raw about her mental health crises, feelings toward men/the patriarchy, her complicated relationship with her mother, and of course - Petunia! One important relationship she doesn't delve into, however, is her marriage. I found myself a little bothered that she barely mentioned what's arguably one's most impactful romantic relationship, but by the end of the book I felt differently. There's so much power in Tendler writing this book about herself, for herself, and not for the headlines and pull quotes about her ex.

When I say I read this book in one sitting, it's no hyperbole. The book traces Anna's experience through the lens of various relationships with men throughout her life, interspersed with Anna's inpatient stay at a recovery center in 2021. This book hit so close to home, and I know it'll resonate with readers around the world.

Thank you to Anna for writing this memoir. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. I can't wait for this to be out in the world!

Thank you., NetGalley and Simon&Schuster, for the opportunity to read Anna Marie Tendler's memoir in advance.

Anna's story glued me to my Kindle's screen for two days. When I was at work or driving, I'd find myself wishing I could be reading it instead.

This memoir is pure emotion. It doesn't need any preface on what to expect. The title alone sets the tone of Anna's story.

I thoroughly enjoyed her narrative style, it was casual without being flippant - detached but not cold. The interweaving of past and present throughout the memoir wasn't difficult to read or jarring in how the stories contrasted.

Readers of this memoir looking for gossip or scandal will be disappointed - I was not.

It's the best memoir I've read in a long, long time.

#MenHaveCalledHerCrazy #NetGalley

Thank you for the ARC. I've been anticipating this book as I love memoirs centered around mental health and, given her public divorce and comments, I knew her debut memoir would be candid and unapologetic - and it is. At times I found myself giving an audible YAS GIRL and others cringing over male behavior, and even her behavior towards men and the choices she made to leave or stay with them.

I don't want to say too much else about this book because I think it needs to read without giving too much away. What I will say is that if you're looking for a tell all on her relationship with Mulaney, you're not going to get it and the book is much better for it. She alludes to the divorce throughout the book as a catalyst for her hospitalization, but this is not a salacious tell all, it's a story about a woman's struggle with her mental health and the patriarchy.

A vulnerable and candid memoir. The chapter in particular that shined brightest to me was the one about Petunia - I sobbed, like blowing-my-nose-multiple-times sobbing. It felt like I could sense through the pages how important the experience of writing this book was to the author.

I loved this memoir. Anna speaks with so much vulnerability and honesty about her personal struggles with mental health and hospitalization, as well as the ways that her life has been affected by living under patriarchy.

This is not a traditional "celebrity memoir." There is really no gossip about famous people and the subject of her relationship/divorce with her now ex-husband is only mentioned throughout as necessary to explain where she was at in her own journey. She does not expand on that particular subject at all, so those looking for the tea may be disappointed.

However, I was not disappointed at all and really enjoyed hearing her point of view as a young woman who has, simply put, dealt with a lot. It was very relatable and comforting to see many of my deepest insecurities and frustrations reflected back at me in her words.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for providing this arc for me to review.

Rounding up from 3.5. This is a powerful and insightful memoir. The author is honest and vulnerable in sharing the details of her stay in an inpatient health facility as well as her work to manage her long-term recovery. The first half of the book is a strong five-star read. I could not put it down. The narrative alternates between her work in the facility and childhood/past relationships that have been part of her journey. Although the author comes to recognize that she associates volatility and dismissal and struggle as conditions of love, I'm not sure she ever fully connects the childhood trauma that (it seems) created these associations. The more distance she gains from the inpatient facility, the more she disagrees with their findings, instead critiquing the broader issues of patriarchy and misogyny. It seems so clear in the early relationship with Sam how these issues are connected in some complex way, but the author seems unwilling to unravel that particular thread. Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC and the opportunity to share my review.