REVIEWS
Mother, Men & Me
ZIPPORA KARZ
Dawn Smith-Theodore shares her amazing-heart wrenching story of disordered eating, romantic relationships, familial dysfunctions and secrets, specifically mother daughter, that color her path to finding her calling as dancer-teacher, flight attendant, and therapist. From the first page I was riveted as she shares this extraordinary life with tenderness and perspective. It is unconventional, complicated, nuanced and full of devotion and love. This book weaves the complexities of mother-daughter and family dynamics that affect the child deeply with an eating disorder being an outcome. I laughed, I cried, I was left speechless. I love this woman and I loved this book!
ZIPPORA KARZ, FORMER SOLOIST NYC BALLET, REPETITEUR GEORGE BALANCHINE TRUST, AUTHOR THE SUGARLESS PLUM, BALLERINA DREAMS
CAROLYN COSTIN
Dawn is a therapist, a dancer, and dance teacher who takes readers into the life journey of a kid growing up in the world of dance with a mother, a dance teacher herself, who both doted on Dawn and yet also controlled her and kept crucial things from her until she was forced to tell the shocking truth. Dawn's story is about dealing with one's circumstances and the pain of life while also grabbing the joys that living offers. Dawn is a dedicated, passionate, humble, generous human who sees the good in the world despite the sad, painful or uncomfortable lessons that it brings. This is what she brings to her story and to you the reader who will surely find not only something to relate to but some take home messages from Dawn's journey.
CAROLYN COSTIN MA, MED, MFT, DIRECTOR OF THE CAROLYN COSTIN INSTITUTE, FOUNDER OF MONTE NIDO TREATMENT CENTER, THERAPIST, RENOWNED EATING DISORDER EXPERT, ACTIVIST, AND AUTHOR OF "8 KEYS TO RECOVERY”, "THE EATING DISORDER SOURCEBOOK", AND "YOUR DIETING DAUGHTER"
DR. JOHANNA O'FLAHERTY
I found myself completely immersed in the author's story, fecling every triumph and setback as if they were my own. "Mother, Men, and Me" is a powerful testament to the strength of the human spirit and the resilience of the human heart. It is a book that will make you reflect on your own journey, appreciate the complexities of relationships, and inspire you to embrace your true self. I highly recommend this captivating memoir to anyone seeking an emotional, thought-provoking, and ultimately uplifting read.
DR. JOHANNA O'FLAHERTY, PHD, LADAC, CEAP, AUTHOR, PSYCHOLOGIST, CRISIS RESPONSE MANAGER
For The Love Of The Page
5/5 - Mother, Men and Me: A Memoir of Anxiety, Anorexia and Affairs by Dawn Smith-Theodore
Always hoping for an ordinary childhood, readers quickly learn that author Dawn Smith‑Theodore never had one. From the opening pages, we’re swept into stakeouts with Dawn, her mother, and whichever friend her mother could recruit, watching the man who once lived in their home — an ex who stayed for more than a decade before disappearing with her mother’s dance studio secretary and client files. These late‑night vigils, threaded with Dawn’s longing for her mother’s attention, set the tone for a memoir defined by extraordinary relationships and the men threaded throughout them.
Smith‑Theodore’s mother is a force of nature, and her relationship with men is nothing short of fascinating. She believed in O.J. Simpson’s innocence and wrote to him in jail; she shared a birthday with Charles Manson; and her bedtime stories were pulled from real‑world horrors rather than childhood fantasies. Dawn’s world was shaped by this woman’s intensity, her convictions, and her penchant for rescuing others — often at the expense of her own stability.
Their bond was profound, bordering on inseparable. Dawn’s severe separation anxiety made school a daily battle, and nearly every memory she recounts includes her mother in some form. She was Dawn’s hero, her constant, her gravitational center. Yet that closeness came with complications, especially as a revolving cast of men — Brock, Brice, and others — moved through their lives. These men bought cars, carried Dawn when she fell asleep, swapped plane seats to sit beside her mother, and occasionally acted as stand‑ins for her father. Despite his physical presence in the home, Dawn’s father often felt like a footnote in her story.
“Mother, Men and Me” unfolds as a mosaic of vivid, deeply personal stories that reveal the contours of Dawn’s childhood and adulthood. Her mother’s vivacious spirit, her need to rescue, and her ever‑shifting relationships created a childhood that was anything but dull. Yet amid the chaos, Dawn sought control wherever she could find it — ultimately through her body and food. Her battle with anorexia threads throughout this memoir, the inner voices growing louder until she finally gains distance from her mother’s daily influence.
Despite the complications, the love between mother and daughter is undeniable. Dawn’s life – her dance career, her work in recovery, her time in the air, her drive to help others – reflects both her mother’s exacting standards and her own determination to prove herself worthy. Their tangled, tender, and often tumultuous relationship is laid bare with honesty and grace.
An accomplished woman with a remarkable story, Smith‑Theodore delivers a memoir that is introspective, engaging, and unflinchingly candid. “Mother, Men and Me” is a testament to resilience, identity, and the complicated love that shapes us – a compelling read from a woman who has lived many lives and tells them with precision and heart.
