There Was a Little Girl The Real Story of My Mother and Me

Shields writes with considerable reflection; she's done the hard work of making sense of the contradictions in her mother, and now we get the benefit of her sharing what she's learned. Kirkus Reviews

Shields writes vividly and humorously about her mother's life growing up in Depression-era Newark; her days as a flirtatious coat-check girl and her short-lived marriage to Brooke's father, Frank Shields, who came from aristocratic stock . The book reads like a parent's heartfelt and exasperated lament but the irony here is that her mother is the one behaving like the problem child. The Independent (London)
 
A brutally frank recollection of Shields' career path, romances, marriages and entry into motherhood, but the basic thesis of the book is a deep examination of her intense relationship with her own mother, Teri Schmon Shields a woman who molded Brooke's life, both personal and professional, for decades. Chicago Sun-Times
 
An emotionally raw memoir. USA Today