First published 2025
Brooke Shields examines what it means to be a woman facing the scrutiny of aging in public. Having lived her entire life under public observation as a child actor and model, she now encounters a different form of judgment as a woman in her late fifties. Shields argues that this life stage brings unexpected freedom and empowerment rather than decline. At fifty-nine, she reports feeling more confident and comfortable than she did during her famous Calvin Klein campaigns decades earlier. She challenges prevailing narratives about women and aging, insisting this era allows women to reclaim control and write their own stories. Shields combines personal anecdotes told with humor and honesty alongside research to examine the systematic factors behind age-related discrimination. She presents an optimistic view of midlife as a period of agency and possibility rather than retreat. The book aims to dismantle long-held myths about aging women and inspire a new understanding of the potential that comes with maturity.
Genres: gender-studies, feminism, autobiography, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: personal-journey, social-commentary
Period: 21st-Century
256 pages · Hardcover · Flatiron Books