She is one of those rare stars who is popular enough to be known only by her first name. She is today's bestselling female country music recording artist. Her songs have given voice to every woman's story. Now she tells the most moving story of all: her own. Reba McEntire is one of our most beloved and successful entertainers. Here, for the first time, in her own words - and with more than 140 personally selected family photos - she shares the memories that have shaped and inspired her life and her music. Reba writes with deep pride about the enduring values she learned growing up in the hardworking rodeo and ranching McEntire family in Chockie, Oklahoma. A third-generation rodeo brat, Reba was increasingly drawn toward singing. "This little red-headed girl started singing, and it just blew me away." That was a typical comment when teenage Reba McEntire first started performing. Hers was the hardest of career paths: night after night of VFW halls, honky-tonks, fair shows, and holes-in-the-wall where dances were more like fistfights set to music. But Reba's beautiful voice and fierce determination soared above it all to carry her toward the start of her musical career. Facing the country music establishment of the 1970s, Reba set out to challenge the "experts" who believed that female singers could never match the popularity of males. Now Reba reveals how she defied those "experts," following her heart and her gut to make "my kind of country music," honest, gutsy, full of feeling, and addressing the real human problems of people tough enough to suffer and survive. In doing so she touched millions of fans with her unequaled ability to bring to stirring life the emotional ups and downs of modern women. Reba fills her book, too, with special recollections as a granddaughter, daughter, sister, wife, and mother, revealing the hard-learned lessons, strong family bonds, love, pain, heartbreaking losses, and triumphant joys that have been so important in her life. With

The paperback publication of the country music star's autobiography coincides with the release of her new album. (Nov.)

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