The True Adventures of a Hollywood Nanny - You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again

For those of you questioning how realistic this book is: I'm going to make my husband read it so he will understand what I lived through when I was an au pair in another country decades ago. Same stuff. The mother of the family I lived with spent exactly ten minutes a day with her four year old. When the children were sick at night they came to me, even when I was new to them. They'd learned long ago not to bother to go to their parents. The previous child's nurse had been fired because the youngest had gotten too attached to her. The kids talked about her all the time and were clearly grieving her. But no contact was allowed, of course.

I remember sitting in my room all weekend, when I was off duty, because if I opened my door I'd be asked to take care of the kids. I can't describe how awful it feels to have to leave where you live in order to relax on your time off. Where do you go? There really is no place like home, but the four walls seem awfully close after a day or two staring at them.

I couldn't believe when I read Hansen's account of what happened when she gave her notice. To quote Yogi Berra: "It was deja vu all over again" for me. I was given two hours to get out of the house when I refused to extend my notice from two weeks to six. I was so miserable there, I was lyrically happy to be thrown out, despite the fact I was then jobless and homeless in a foreign country.

Oh yeah, this is totally true stuff. This really *is* how many upper class people live, treat their children and their "help."

By the way, they believe with all their hearts they are doing you a favor by letting you work for them, live in their house and do whatever they want. I was told constantly how nice they were to let me eat at the same table with them. And yes, it was just as awkward as Suzanne's Dinners with Judy. I am quite sure the Ovitz' felt they had been extremely generous to Suzy.

I've only given the book three stars because it's kind of a flyweight topic, really, and not terribly well written. Not poorly written either, just kind of middle of the road.

The author is not a particularly insightful teenager as she shares her perspective of the families she works for. Sadly, the life lessons she learns are all about criticism of other's foibles and little about her own growth and maturity. During the course of her adventures, she acquires more scorn for others than insightful understanding of them. Her examples of poor judgement by her employers are too simplisticly told and blatantly egregious to be credible. One suspects there is another side of each story which would have been nice to hear before passing judgment. While her naive voice may be "refreshing" as her publisher claims, the writing is not particulary articulate or artful. Without the celebrity names, this book would simply not have sold. Since Suzanne so decries the exploitation of nannies by their famous employers, one would hope that she would have developed the scruples not to sink to vengeful exploitation of their celebrity. This leads the reader to find her an unsympathetic narrator, one it is difficult to like or admire. To add insult to injury, she does not even impress us as a particulary talented childcare professional. Where is the joy and magic of teaching and encouraging her young charges? The best judges of her character are perhaps Amanda and Joshua, the children she tends for the Ovitz family. Plain and simple, intuitively they do not like her. Out of the mouths of babes...

This fascinating book is much more than just the story of a 19-year-old nanny in Hollywood--it's an indictment of the upper class movie star elites who claim to be great parents but actually ignore their kids. And the book isn't just for young female readers. It's a must for anyone who loves a behind-the-scenes look at celebrity lifestyles.

The first shock is that the author actually names names. She, in a very kind way, slams agent Michael Ovitz, just as everyone who has written about him condemns him. But she has seen it from inside his house and shows what a terrible person he really is.

The second surprise is how well written the book is. This woman had no college education when she started her work at the Ovitz home (fresh out of a four-month nanny school!) and she has managed to pull together an incredibly thoughtful, well-written book that is structured to keep it interesting to the reader.

The thing I like the most about the book is the quotes from celebrities at the start of each chapter--most of them from superstar moms who claim to be able to have their careers and take care of children. The author is clearly pointing out the hypocrisy of women in Hollywood. She reveals the truth--that almost every one of them has a large staff that take care of the children and the parents rarely interact with the kids. Maybe that's why we see so many stars and their kids in candid shots in the tabloid magazines--they are careful to parade the kids in public occasionally to make sure people think these superstars are supermoms.

The only negative thing about the book is that the author is incredibly naive in the choices she makes--and she doesn't do a lot of introspection here. She should admit to her bad choices and explain how they led to her turning her life around and eventually becoming a college-educated nurse. She also makes the mistake in the book's intro of claiming that her two "favorite supporters of motherhood" are Maria Shriver and Oprah Winfrey! Is she serious? Shriver is a person who grew up rich, married rich and certainly hasn't done it on her own. And Oprah has no experience as an adult mother--why would anyone listen to advice from a woman who has never raised kids? So there are a few sections of the book where the reader will wonder if the author has a clue.

Otherwise a great book to take along on a vacation or read on the plane.

If you thought the Nanny Diaries were scathing, well check out this true story. Author Suzanne Hansen holds nothing back while telling her story of a short lived career as a nanny to the stars.

The majority of the book features her working for notorious Michael Ovitz. Turns out that the guy is as much of a jerk as rumor has it. On one occasion he calls to check in while on vacation the first thing he asks Suzy is, "How is my art?" much to her shock and disappointment. When Suzanne finds herself unable to continue in the given environment, she gives a months notice. After being pressured to stay, she sticks to her guns and says she will stay for 4 weeks until they find help and then she is gone.

The following day Judy Ovitz tells her to pack up and leave before Michael gets home. She does as she is told, and Michael informs her that she "Will never nanny in this town again". Suzy soon finds out that he does indeed plan to take time out of his busy schedule to sabotage her career for leaving them high and dry.

What follows are her struggles to regain her footing in the city of lights. She winds up working for two other famous families throughout the course of the novel, and learns some valuable life lessons in the process.

Personally I send Suzanne a high five for standing up to her boss and telling him no. He deserves his outrageous behavior to be detailed at length in this tell all novel.

After I finished 'You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again', I wondered if the true purpose of this book was to give a raspberry (or the finger) to her first employer (Michael Ovitz) and have the last word. Although it was, at times, clever and witty, I found Suzanne Hansen to be a bit self-promoting, and she was definitely still resentful of the Ovitzes, even though it has been many years. I have no doubt the Ovitzes were condescending and indifferent, but it seemed there was nothing they did that went unmentioned by Suzanne Hansen as proof of their implacability (especially concerning the wife, Judy). Her love of their children was her excuse for not quitting, but this caused her to end up resenting the children as well as the parents. She painted many people in an unflattering light in this book, including her ex-boyfriend and some of the other domestic help at her various places of nannying, and even though she gave kudos to Debra Winger for actually raising her child without a nanny and Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman for being decent human beings, she always had to have at least one negative anecdotal story about them so that even nice people don't seem too nice in Hollywood. The book seemed a bit disorganized at first, and because her nannying days were in the '80s, it really felt dated. Suzanne Hansen was sometimes irreverent and self-deprecating, and that made for some hilarious moments, so it wasn't terrible, but it wasn't fantastic either. I found 'You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again' to be entertaining and a bit fun, but for light-hearted reading, there are some better choices out there.

Written in a simple style, I was very pleased with this book. I enjoyed seeing the families through her eyes and it was very believeable. Nannies are certainly overused, underpaid and unappreciated. I was uncomfortable about knowing exactly who the children and families were and wish the author had masked them with info but not their specific names. That seems tacky. But I did appreciate her naiive, honest perspective of the families she served. She really seemed to care about the children and what happened to them and that is refreshing. I would have hired her. Lucky for her she had some great experiences after her poor ones. I really enjoyed this book.

Suzanne Hansen: You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again, Three Rivers Press, Copyright 2005, 289 pages.
You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again is an autobiographical sketch written by Suzanne Hanson and is a great read for all curious people. Its theme is the true adventures of a Hollywood nanny. It shows the unknown life behind Hollywood celebrities with kids and there need for a nanny to keep their life balanced. You ride the roller coaster of a relationship that Suzy and her employers have, going up and down with every praise and tantrum. I think the book is great and can be enjoyed by many different people. From the mothers that can relate to the stressful situations to the interested teens like myself who want to know the truth behind celebrities that you see on TV.
The book starts out with a 19 year old teenager who is graduating and trying to find herself. She knew that she loves kids and from information from her guidance counselor, decides to enroll in the NNI, the Northwest Nanny's Institute. After going through many crazy interviews she gets a job with Judy and Michael Ovitz. Michael is one of the top music producers in the country. The book goes through many eventful stories of Suzy's two years with the family. The stories include setting off alarms, caring for kids who do not like her, and dealing with Judy who is realizing that she hasn't been the mother that her kids need. Suzy knows that she does not fit in in California and is missing her family and friends aback in Oregon. She goes extravagant vacations and lives a luxurious life but by the end knows that this job is not for her. The whole book is her ups and downs, while reading you can feel that you are almost lurking in the corner watching this whole story play out.
My opinion on the book was that it was good. I enjoyed the subject and that was the reason I choose it. I think there could have been more main highs and lows to affect the reader more. The book was easy to read and sounded like how Suzy talked. Nothing was over glamourized and it was the whole truth that some people don't want to know about their favorite celebrities. The book was interesting and I had no idea about some of the things that the nannies have to do for their employers. They work almost all the time and are put through crazy things just to keep these people happy. The author does a great job by making her point. She wanted to show the behind the scenes and the things that aren't heard on interviews with the rich and famous. The public doesn't know the truth but the book does that very well. The book's greatest strength was that it was comical. I found myself laughing out loud to some of Suzy's situations and jokes about her job. I do think that the book should have had bigger highs and lower lows to affect the reader in a greater way. All the situations were somewhere in the middle. I would recommend the book for a lot of people, anyone who is interested in learning the truth that they can't tell from seeing them on TV. They are real people and have lives that need the help from outside people like the nanny. Overall the book was enjoyable and is a great summer read.

This captivating memoir is a page turner. The author's voice, humor and genearosity of love for the children in this world we rarely see is an eye opener.

In one instance very sad and heart breaking; balanced out by there are some rich folks who are kind to their children. I've heard more than once child abuse in the homes of the rich is greater than in the homes of the poor.

Truth telling in a manner that is kind is compelling storytelling.

I picked up this book yesterday afternoon and started reading it.....took an overnight sleep break and couldn't wait to finish it this morning. It was very interesting and held my attention from the first page to the very last.....I wanted to read more! Usually it takes me at least 100 pages to get into a book, but this was the exception. I've always been interested in the "inside stories" of Hollywood and was happy to read about the goodness of Sally Field, Debra Winger and the Danny DeVito families. I had never heard of Michael and Judy Ovitz but they are surely people I would not want to know. Suzanne Hansen is a real down-to-earth person and has a writing style that is easy to read. She makes the story so interesting and I would love to read another book written by her.

I picked up this book yesterday afternoon and started reading it.....took an overnight sleep break and couldn't wait to finish it this morning. It was very interesting and held my attention from the first page to the very last.....I wanted to read more! Usually it takes me at least 100 pages to get into a book, but this was the exception. I've always been interested in the "inside stories" of Hollywood and was happy to read about the goodness of Sally Field, Debra Winger and the Danny DeVito families. I had never heard of Michael and Judy Ovitz but they are surely people I would not want to know. Suzanne Hansen is a real down-to-earth person and has a writing style that is easy to read. She makes the story so interesting and I would love to read another book written by her.

If you treat yourself to only one book during the calendar year, let this book be the one! It never drags, you're never skipping pages to get to the good part, because the entire book IS the good part. Just when you think you can't be shocked or surprised again, you are. I started reading it at 3:00 in the afternoon and promptly finished at 3:00 in the morning because I couldn't put it down. It's simply delicious.

Suzanne is a young Nanny from Oregon, SLAVING for the wealthiest family in Hollywood. Michael Ovitz is an agent to the stars and enjoys a percentage of every dollar that changes hands for movies, tv, etc. Judy is his wife/head mistress of the castle. Anybody who breaks her rules must suffer the consequences. These self absorbed tyrants managed to procreate and have children that they couldn't have cared less about. Michael calls home from out of town and his first question is, "How's my artwork?" Judy scolds the staff for buying a new iron, when they could have just patched the antiquated thing with a new cord! The oldest son regularly brags to the Nanny that he can get her FIRED anytime he wants. (I wanted to personally spank his ass) The wife has a monthly operating budget that competes with the World Bank, yet she reprimands the staff about the cost of an iron.

The book is entertaining and it does deliver celebrity gossip if your sole reason for buying it is to get some inside dirt. Mrs. Ovitz complains about Bill Murray's child and how she doesn't want him to bring the boy over to her house. She moans when she opens an anniversary present sent to her and Michael from their friends, the Eisners, because it's a pair of stuffed animals and the Eisners "have a lot more money than we do". It becomes impossible to determine who is more spoiled, the parents or the kids.

All the while, Suzanne gets phone calls from her well intended friend and fellow Nanny, who was lucky enough to land a job with the warm hearted Sally Field. She obviously hit the Nanny jackpot because Sally treats her like a member of the family.

The heartbreaker in this story is Baby Brandon, whom his mother shoves off on the Nanny 24/7 and the cook and the maid and anybody else who will take care of him. Some chapters are comparable to a thriller because you feel the anxiety and stress of Suzanne trying to race back to the house on time or hiding in her bedroom to avoid confrontation. The reader definitely experiences how the lush lifestyles of mega moguls doesn't necessarily include good parenting . . . or any parenting at all.

Everyone breathes a sigh of relief and enjoys the calm when Suzanne finally ends up under the roof of reasonable people like Debra Winger and the jolly couple of Rhea Perlman and Danny DeVito.

Still, your heart melts when she reveals that despite having found a better job, she misses Brandon. You cheer her on as she sneaks a visit with him in the park, thanks to the kindness of his new caregiver. If you have kids, you'll laugh and cry and understand everything. If you don't have kids, you might end up hearing your baby bell go off.

I was exhausted, but it was fun and I was sad to see the story come to an end. I wish there was a sequel. One where Judy and Michael lose everything and are forced to live in a trailer.

I was strolling through Target one day and happened to come across "The Hollywood Nanny". Being a former nanny I absolutely had to pick it up. I read it in 2 days, it was that good! The author had me in tears from laughing so hard.

Personally, I enjoyed the secret inside peek in the lives of the celebrities. I know, it's sick, but so fun!!

I know every nanny can relate to some of the experiences that Suzanne went through (although I can't say I can relate to the chemical peel incident!)

This book was non-stop interesting and fun. It also got me thinking and reexamining my life. I decided to resume a career as a nanny.

I gave the book to a friend, who is also a mom to an 18 month old. She's not exactly a "reader" and ended up finishing it so you know it had to be good!!

I had previously read the Nanny Diaries so when I saw this book on the shelf at the store and though lets see what this book is all about. Being a former Nanny myself I related several of own experiences to hers. I think her account was not over exaggerated by any means.

The writing and her thought process seemed quite naive at times, it was a quick and fun read overall.

Young Suzy left her small hometown in Oregon to attend nanny school, then headed to Hollywood to become a nanny to the stars. She quickly was hired by mega agent Michael Ovitz and his wife, moved into their estate and took over caring for their baby and two other young children.

The job had its perks, like meeting famous movie stars and getting free Lakers tickets and trips to Hawaii with the family. But it also involved a lot of hard work. Hansen's complaints seem strange, partly criticizing her employers for being less-than-wonderful parents, partly criticizing them for overworking and underpaying the staff.

When she quit, she claims they blackballed her. Although, she quickly landed cushy jobs for Debra Winger and Danny DeVito.

There is something unpleasant about reading this book that exposes the Ovitz family, kids and all. Were they so horrible that she needed to spill the beans about their personal lives? It wasn't even that fun to read it. They just didn't seem to deserve the gossip.

Hansen's writing makes it a quick read, and I thought it would be fun for the beach or an airplane. But ultimately, I felt uncomfortable with this book. It seemed like an over-the-top form of revenge. I hope she's glad she got all that off her chest.

I really enjoyed this book and was hooked from the start. Probably had to do with it was a hollywood story and I really enjoyed the Nanny Diaries and was looking for something along those lines. I was disapointed when the book ended!! I would definantly recommend to my friends.

The book was entertaining. Good book to read on a rainy Sunday! But....I had to side with the Ovitz'. Unfortunately, they hired a girl from some 'cheesy' Nanny agency in Oregon. She realized that she hated being a Nanny and made the critical error of not typing up a contract with details for the couple to sign. Suzy simply could not cut the mustard as a full time Nanny. And as the Royals in England are finding out, some servants soon become overwhelmed with envy and resentment as they watch how filthy rich people live! Mr. Ovitz was a childish, vindictive SOB but because she did NOT have a contract etc. he was able to play his games with her.

I've watched most of the Super Nanny and Nanny 911 episodes and it is CRITICAL that the Nanny FIRMLY point out to the couple what she believes does not work in the family and that they all agree on it and are on the same page. The family clearly did not respect the Nanny and she eventually snapped and lashed out at them but she clearly lost control of the whole situation.

I enjoyed absolutely every minute of this book. Suzi brings such joy, humor, and voice to her telling of the truth. She has such an amazing grasp of the English language and of storytelling, that each page brings another chance to enjoy seeing things through Suzi's eyes. Best of luck to her in everything.

I started reading this book in Target while my kids looked at videos and couldn't leave without buying it. I like this author's style...she puts you right in the mansion with her. I could really relate to her thoughts and experiences. A good read.

I honestly regret having even purchased this book. The author's view through which she views her employers and interactions while nannying is so skewed that it is almost painful to read. Throughout the book she commits errors in judgment and blames or criticizes her employers for these. (She doesn't pack a child's snowsuit and gets angry when confronted with this, wondering why they don't just buy another....she reveals personal information to a caller about her employer and gets angry for being confronted with her mistake, even though she acknowledges it was done very nicely). She accuses the mother of being insecure but it is her own insecurities that are so obvious in her writing and, unfortunately, they cause her to act with hostility. She betrays the trust of friends and her employers. And for what? It was an incredibly boring book. She appears much worse than her employers she is trying to attack. But, alas, she did profit from it which was obviously her intention. Again, sorry I contributed to her cause.

I really enjoyed this tale of hollywood life from someone that really knows what goes on in the homes of celebrities. I will never again read a People magazine story about a star mom that says she is just like "all the other moms" without wondering who is REALLY taking care of her children while she is on a movie or TV sets.

This book has been compared to The Nanny Diaries and I bought it because I loved The Nanny Diaries. Nanny Diaries is powerful despite the fact that it doesn't drop names. This book, You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again, is all about dropping names.

So let me save you the trouble: Suzanne worked for Michael Ovitz and hated it. She thinks they are too rich and too uptight. The rest is fluff.

Fluff like diary entries explaining how overworked she feels, how she misses her family, how she doesn't have any friends in Hollywood, blah, blah, blah. What a whiner.

She kept making the same mistakes and then blaming it on the people she worked for.Sometimes you have to live with your mistake.I felt like she wrote the book just to complain.If you like hearing people constantly complain then buy this book, if not then buy a Dan Brown book.He is an amazing author.