One of the few instances that I would read a woman’s biography. Not because I have some ingrained prejudice against women - far from it. It is just that, as a rule, I find it much harder to identify myself with the notions, the trappings, and overall outlook of the female species. I can hardly be blamed since I am - you guessed it - a man. Be that as it may, “Crazy is my Superpower” is an enormously enjoyable biography about an awesome individual that made it against all odds. What a person - what a woman. Well, and what a book! ( )

Funny, honest, raw, engaging and undeniably riveting, this is a truly great read, for those familiar with AJ, like I am, and even those with little to no knowledge of her. Really open, AJ Lee lays her soul naked on a table for all to see. Bravely tremendous. ( )

Among my secret love of true crime stories, I also have a secret love for wrestler biographies. They are often filled with some of the funniest and/or heartbreaking stories you will ever read. Several, including Crazy is My Superpower by AJ Mendez Brooks, are about overcoming a difficult life to chase a childhood dream. They are inspirational and heartwarming.

Most of the world would know AJ Brooks as AJ Lee who was a WWE superstar. She was part of the main shows and many of the main storylines in wrestling. Some may also know her as CM Punk's wife aka Phil Brooks.

AJ though tells a very interesting and funny story about growing up poor. She writes about having to move on a regular basis because her family couldn't afford rent. Her family even had to sleep in a car for a period because they had tapped their other family members enough that no one was willing to help any longer.

She also tells her story through the eyes of a tom boy who loves video games, comics, and other nerdy activities, but is forced into a role and a persona that didn't represent her.

The meat of her origin story though comes with her relationship with her mother once AJ and her siblings leave the house. While her mother and father fought often, she wouldn't realize the extent of her mother's mental illness until they all left the house. Her mother would tear her own hair out and have a constant need to be in contact with the children. AJ talks about living with her mother during this time and the heartbreak it caused her to see her mother like this.

The back half of the book is about her wrestling life and what it was like being a tomboy in the midst of model like women wrestlers and in a career dominated by men. She wasn't the typical size or build for a wrestler, so she tells of her struggle just being accepted. It is her chapter/s on being a female in a male's world that I found the most interesting. At one point her bosses say to her, "people like you, but they just don't want to f**k you." She also writes about what it was like with fan interaction and male fans who feel they knew her and therefore can do what they want to her. She writes about getting felt up by a dad while posing for a picture with the father's child, for example. Her chapters on being a woman in the wrestling were pretty powerful.

The great thing about the book is it is naturally funny. It doesn't go to the well too often for jokes and it reads as if AJ were telling her story right to you. It is filled with self depreciating humor, deep honesty, and some very cool stories. I would even recommend it to the non-wrestling fan.

I gave this one 4 stars. ( )

"Bipolar disorder is the villain of this story. It has been a source of pain, but it has also been a fountain of strength. So save the pity. I am not a victim to mental illness. I am the hero of this story and I do not need to be saved."

Crazy is my Superpower by AJ Mendez rocked my world. For those not familiar with her, she is the former WWE Women's Champion AJ Lee who was instrumental in kicking down doors for women and who had a reputation for being unapologetically herself and showing women that they don't need to fold to societal expectations to be accepted. Today she is an advocate for mental health, promotes treatment and uses her voice to fiercely dispel myths and stigmas about mental health disorders.

I read this one because I knew I wanted to talk about mental health in the Puerto Rican community for #prheritagemonthtour. AJ shares her story of growing up in immense poverty in NJ and the abuse and neglect she faced from her teenage parents. At an early age, she learned to be self reliant and not care what anyone else thought of her. It has been her survival strategy throughout her life. Reading about her childhood broke me so many tears and I cried at so many points.

What I loved about AJ's story is that sheds light about mental illness in Puerto Rican culture. At an early age, her father instilled the idea that mental illness is a sign of weakness in a person. This was AJ's mantra since she was a little girl and reminds me of the messaging that so many boricua women get. They have to swallow their emotions and just power through life because they're expected to be strong always. She also talks about how the stigma attached to seeking help, prevented her mother from getting help until her symptoms had spiraled out of control and she almost died. She cites the denial, lack of education about mental health and stigma robbed her mother and their family of having a more fulfilled life.

I saw so much of myself in AJ when she talked about the anxieties that Puerto Rican girls face from being oversexualized and shamed within their own families, the overwhelming burden of having to take on financial responsibilities due to poverty and the codependency

What was beautiful about AJ's story is that she leaves for forgiveness and hope. She reminds us that people aren't the problem, the intolerance and the disease are what rob people of their ability to seek out help without shame. AJ refrains the narrative and in her own life focuses on the strengths she found within her mental illness and stays true to herself and who she is at her core. She never let's the mental illness define her. Instead she reminds people that it is just a part of who she is. I also appreciated how AJ leaves room for nuanced conversations about the complexities of being a women, having a mental illness and how misogyny comes into play in the workplace and in other areas of life. She talks about how women are always called the B- word or crazy if they reject men's inappropriate behavior and how this further leads to mental illness being stigmatized and made fun of.

This book is one I will think about for a long time because of how it changed me. It out to words so many things that so many Puerto Ricans have experienced and it unapologetically reminds us that it takes strength, bravery and fortitude and reframe our stories and make changes happen for our families and ourselves. If we are going to stop letting mental illness win, we have to start being the champions of treatment, educating others and helping our loved ones come to a place of healing. If highly recommend everyone read this one and pick up a copy for someone who may be struggling to seek out help. ( )

AJ Mendez, author of Crazy is my Superpower, wrote a memoir about her life and how her greatest weakness became the very means of her success, in her career and in her life. Always being told to “stop acting crazy,” there was a time she felt alone. But soon became the hero she always needed, she began to understand her demons and gain control over her life. Crazy is my Superpower by AJ Mendez is a book to read because it’s unflinchingly honest and gives us an insight about parental struggles, career choices and setbacks, and mental health.
Being raised by parents who are emotionally immature can have so many different effects on children, some that most people can’t relate to. Mendez, realizing something a child never should, states on page 24, “It was around this time I began to realize that my parents did not have their priorities straight.” This is not how a child should be feeling or thinking at age 12. Parents look after their kids, not the other way around. This quote makes me wonder if parents read this book, what did they think about this? If she ever has children, will she be fearful to make the same mistakes or feel empowered to give them a better life? It is hard for people who might be immature to hold or even get a job, but imagine also being a parent. And imagine holding a job in order in live and pay for things you don’t need but give your kid a childhood. AJ recalls a time, on page 82, when a distant relative gave her those things that give us a childhood by stating, “I was so appreciative to receive my first childhood baby doll at one of these dinners, over twenty years laters I haven’t had the heart to get rid of it.” She goes on, on page 100, telling how it made her feel by stating, “I was officially an adult. And that pissed me off. Because I never really got to be a kid.” By writing these in a very honest way with an insight of what she went though and how she felt years after as an adult.
Growing up taking care of your parents doesn’t leave a lot of room to take care of yourself. And being independent from such a young age makes it hard to depend on anyone. Mendez experiences this when as a senior in high school loses her money for school and gets help, as she states on page 96, “Though it physically pained me to have to rely on anyone, let alone strangers, for help, I couldn’t help but feel deeply moved.” There’s a difference between charity and friends helping out friends. AJ goes about explaining her choices and how taking care of her parents swayed her decisions, written on page 106, “ I felt so alone. I wasn’t experiencing life the way other freshmen were. I could no longer take jobs on student films or attend club meetings, let alone spend time parting with my roommate. I was too busy mom-ing my mom.” But the amazing thing is that despite everything she was able to make a career for herself and even jokes about it by saying, on page 10, “(If you really don’t know what professional wrestling is, why did you buy this book? Did you lose a bet? Do I look that intriguing on the cover?)” Having to grow up faster than most really affect a person’s personality and decisions, but she turned it into something good for her. With her career, she was able to become a hero to other kids that needed it.
Most people have little to no knowledge about mental health and sometimes don’t need it. But because most are not educated about it, they can’t recognize the signs of someone who needs help. Mendez was one who suffered because she didn’t know the signs explained on page 63, “One of my biggest regrets in life is not noticing she was being eaten alive before it was too late. We were uneducated and naive about mental illness.” And when we know nothing of it, we try to make excuses that seem to fit the mold. Mendez does this but realizes that it doesn’t work like that as she states on page 120, “I tried to rationalize her behavior by telling myself that everyone grieves in different ways, but something still felt dangerously off.” Her family was suffering but Mendez felt the burden. She needed to take control of her life, and she does by getting help. It’s hard to admit we need help and even hard to seek it out but AJ does just that. She shared her experience and states, on page 113, “Giving therapy a chance was one of the best decisions I have ever made.” It gives us an insight about mental illness and could help people who may be experiencing the same thing by sharing her story. Getting or even wanting help isn’t a bad thing. She is very honest about her feelings and tells that we don’t have to be alone. Even if it means becoming our own heroes.
With Mendez’s honesty, she tells the story of her life and provides an insight about many things people don’t realize actually happen. AJ found a way to turn her weakness into a strength and showed us that we could do the same. Crazy is my Superpower by AJ Mendez is a definitely book to read because it’s unflinchingly honest and gives us an insight about mental health, career choices and setbacks, and parental struggles.
MLA Citations
Brooks, A.J Mendez. Crazy Is My Superpower: How I Triumphed by Breaking Bones, Breaking Hearts, and Breaking the Rules. Three Rivers Press, 2018. ( )