I was in Target searching for a new book to read when “The Woman in Me” by Britney Spears jumped at me.

I thought to myself, “Britney Spears wrote a book?” I grabbed the book and began reading the back cover. A short excerpt from the prologue was rich with imagery as I felt myself slowly traveling to her neighbor’s house in Louisiana with the warm rocks against my skin. Finishing the paragraph, I thought, “Britney Spears wrote a book.”

“The Woman in Me” is a beautiful narrative about Spears starting her career on the screen when she was just 11 years old. Readers are taken through Spears’ navigating through auditions, music videos, nagging press, a hidden abortion, pregnancy, divorce and later her conservatorship.

She begins her story in her childhood home in Kentwood, Louisiana.

“I would lie down on these rocks and look up at the sky, feeling the warmth from below and above, thinking: I can make my own way in life. I can make my dreams come true,” Spears stated.

The imagery she uses throughout the autobiography makes every aspect of her life so clear and allows us to picture exactly where she is at.

Spears takes readers through her early beginnings, when she was raised by an alcoholic father in a state of poverty. Frustrated at her mother for picking fights and keeping her up at night with the arguing, she explains that music and dancing are her escape.

Through her journey, she shares the universal truth that music and dancing can be both a source of entertainment and a therapeutic outlet, offering an escape from the complexities of life.

“With everyone’s eyes on me, I became something else, someone who could command a room,” Spears says. “In white tights, belting out a song, I felt like anything was possible.”

The book continues by taking readers through some of her first auditions and what led her to become the biggest pop star of her time.

Spears takes readers through the ups and downs of being put in the spotlight at a young age. Readers get a detailed glance at what women in the entertainment industry go through on a daily basis: being second-guessed, not listened to, unrepresented and taken advantage of.

“Only while performing was I truly invincible. Standing in a Manhattan conference room in front of a woman who could make my dreams come true, at least one thing was completely within my control,” Spears says.

Navigating her love life and creating a boundary between her relationships and fame was something that Spears struggled with. What she thought was the love of her life and the father of her two children, ended up being a “claim for fame” and made it difficult for Spears to trust people.

“I used to trust people, but after the breakup with Justin [Timberlake] and then my divorce, I never really did trust people again,” Spears says.

After losing her children in the divorce with their father, Kevin Federline, Spears finds herself going crazy without her kids. She does anything and everything she can just to be able to see them.

Spears, amidst the challenging phases of her life, consistently demonstrates a deep and unwavering love for her children throughout the book. Whether in the public eye or navigating personal battles, Spears’ enduring love for her children becomes a testament to the impact parenthood has on her life, serving as a source of inspiration for others facing their own challenges.

With the immense pressure and all eyes on her, Spears finds herself more alone than ever. The entire world was watching her every move as she felt controlled and isolated. Spears ends up shaving her head, getting tattoos and gets herself in many legal incidents with the paparazzi, all in an effort to show the world that she does not care about what anyone has to say about her.

After the incidents were posted on multiple news sites like TMZ, CBS, and People Magazine being labeled as a “psychotic breakdown,” her parents decided that enough was enough and put her under conservatorship, claiming she was unable to take care of herself or her finances. On top of that, her mother, Lynne Spears, wrote “Through the Storm: A Real Story of Fame and Family in a Tabloid World,” a book about the inside story of the Spears family, and her sister, Jamie Lynn Spears wrote “Things I Should Have Said,” a book about growing up in the shadows of her famous sister.

Spears takes us through her feelings of being “thrown away” by her family and exploited by her mother and sister. Desperate to prove to the world she was okay, she abides by everything her father, who had taken control of everything in her life, says, just so she could see her children.

After years of every aspect of her life being controlled by her father and going in and out of rehabilitation centers, Britney had enough of it. Her first time seeing the #FreeBritney movement made her feel moved by everyone advocating for her.

Fan theories were the start of the #FreeBritney movement, along with multiple failed attempts by Spears to remove her father as her conservator.

“If you stood up for me when I couldn’t stand up for myself: from the bottom of my heart, thank you,” Spears says.

After the conservatorship ended, Spears was met with feelings of grief, anger, sadness and betrayal as she was finally able to explore her identity as an adult for the first time in her life.

After reporting her father for conservatory abuse, her next step was regaining her life back. She spent more time with her children, traveled and grew stronger in her faith.

Throughout the book, Spears gives readers an insight into her mind during the most difficult journey to regaining her life back. Through the pages, Spears shows her unwavering spirit and determination to break free from the constraints that confined her for years. Her narrative sheds light on the challenges faced by women in the entertainment industry.

Witnessing her reclaiming authority over her personal and professional choices is a celebration of her individual freedom and symbol of resilience for others.

Britney’s journey is an inspiration, illustrating the strength it takes to overcome adversity and reclaim one’s own narrative. The public support for Britney shows a collective acknowledgment on the significance of self-determination, and her story serves as a topic for conversations about personal freedom and gender equality.

“It’s been a while since I felt truly present in my own life, in my own power, in my womanhood,” Spears says. “But I’m here now.”