Miles to go by Miley Cyrus & Hilary Liftin- Review by Carlyn

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I first I wanted to read this book when it first came out in 2009 but never got around to it. I found it in a thrift shop a couple of weeks ago for four dollars and decided to read it. I like reading autobiographies because I get a glimpse of a person’s life which is a bit more intimate than reading an interview.  Miley has definitely changed from being America’s Sweetheart to a twerking wild child. I wanted to know more about Miley’s rise to fame and how she grew up.

Miley Cyrus in her Hannah Montana days 

Miley’s book was written with the help of Hilary Liftin and it reads like Miley is talking to you. It starts off when she was about twelve and wanting to perform in front of a crowd. Miley has always been interested in singing, dancing and acting. She was an energetic child who was physically active and talkative.  I can see that Miley still has that energy in her new outrageous persona.

Miley Cyrus in 2011

Miley did competitive cheer leading as a child but gave it up to pursue acting. It was hard for her because she went to many auditions and missed out on cheer leading. When she would get rejected it made her regret missing cheer leading events. Miley was bullied through middle school to a point where she had no friends and didn't want to go to school. Miley saw acting as a way out and was glad when she finally got the role of Hannah Montana.

“Cheerleading was my safe haven, the one place where I knew I had friends I could trust to the ends of the earth. Or at least to catch me when I was flying through the air, which was a little more likely than reaching the ends of the earth, anyway. But at school I had no such safety net. And things were getting worse.

I still have no idea how the Anti-Miley Club got a janitor’s key to the school bathroom, but one day I was on my way to science class and they shoved me in and locked it. I was trapped. I banged on the door until my fists hurt. Nobody came. I tried to open the window, but it was stuck. It dawned on me that everyone was already in class.”  (Cyrus & Liftin, 2009 p. 26).

The book goes onto to describe Miley filming the Hannah Montana series, the movie, her music and how she was about to star in The Last Song. The book also describes her hang ups, relationships and thoughts about everything that was happening to her. I respect the fact that Miley includes in the autobiography how she let people down when she was too focused on her hang ups and had to be told to get over it. It would be easy to gloss over things and be perfect but she admits the mistakes she made. Another nice side of her is her deep love for her family, God and making the most out of life.   

“My parents named me Destiny Hope because they believed that my destiny was to bring hope to people.” ( Cyrus & Lifton, 2009, p. 257).

I learnt stuff I didn't know about her before such as how Emily Osment and Miley didn't have a close friendship but were cordial enough towards each other. I also learnt that a song that I liked called Bottom of the Ocean was written about a failed relationship and the death of her goldfish Lyric and Melody.

I found Miley Cyrus to be a delightful girl. She’s warm hearted, funny, enthusiastic and energetic. I think she still that way except she’s more outlandish.  I don’t know what happened when she suddenly decided to be overtly sexual and a bit crude. I guess she’s exploring that side of her and I wonder how long that will last. In the book, she does say that she often talks before thinking and she has a weird sense of humour and likes to goof off. I think that is evident in her latest music videos.

Miley Cyrus 2014

I think Miley Cyrus is a talented young woman. I love how she sings. I'm not a die hard Miley fan but I follow her career. I look forward to seeing her life unfold and where it leads. The book is named Miles to Go because Miley acknowledges that her autobiography is just a snap shot of her life up to being sixteen years old. She knows that there are still miles to go and she’ll grow and change.