Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything: A Memoir
About this audiobook
*AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER*
Actor-dancer Alyson Stoner narrates their revelatory and incisive memoir—from family violence and betrayal, to eating disorders and religious trauma—may begin in Hollywood, but its chilling relatability will resonate with anyone navigating identity, privacy, purpose, and mental health in a digital age. This audiobook contains clips from the song "Stripped Bare," by the author, Alyson Stoner.
Raised on soundstages and studio lots from the age of six, shuffling between auditions for Disney Channel, Cheaper by the Dozen, or Missy Elliott music videos, Alyson Stoner experienced many of the defining moments of childhood inside the bizarre fishbowl of Hollywood. From working eighty hours a week at eight years old, to learning how to distinguish fan mail from kidnapping plots, to TV execs saying they weren’t “anorexic enough” to stop working and get help, Alyson struggled to find stability and sanity in a chaotic world.
In Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything, Alyson shares their powerful story for the first time, detailing a turbulent home life fractured by substance abuse, harrowing accounts from rehab, the messy process of discovering their sexuality in church, rebuilding a life after an early professional peak, and charting a path of self-discovery and advocacy. With striking introspection, Alyson connects the dots across the entertainment industry ecosystem, child development, and media culture, exposing the “toddler to trainwreck pipeline” of child stars and sparking timely conversations about success and society’s enchantment with fame.
Bold, entertaining, warm, and galvanizing all at once, Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything is more than a personal memoir: it’s a beacon for industry reform, a road map for breaking the bonds of generational trauma, and a testament to the freedom and strength that come from finally trusting your own voice and power.
A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin’s Press
Ratings and reviews
About the author
Alyson Stoner (they/them) is a multi-disciplinary entertainer, author, and the founder and CEO of Movement Genius, a mental health company providing therapist-led content to improve well-being. As the writer and host of the award-winning Dear Hollywood podcast, Stoner advocates for industry and policy reform centering the protection of children in traditional and digital media. With multiple certifications and fifteen years of group facilitation experience, they’ve led and contributed to programming for the United Nations, the World Health Organization, LGBTQIA+ centers, and leading universities.
During childhood, Stoner appeared in over 200 films, TV shows, and tours, including Camp Rock, Phineas & Ferb, Step Up, Cheaper by the Dozen, and iconic music videos with Missy Elliott and Eminem. Today, they’re focused on impact-driven and community-based initiatives, such as designing Artist Wellbeing Essentials, a robust digital toolkit including expert-led education and tools for performers to pursue their passions in a healthy and sustainable way.
