Choosing Glee: 10 Rules to Finding Inspiration, Happiness, and the Real You

I am a huge fan of Jenna Ushkowitz, and have been since Glee premiered. Watching her in and reading interviews and seeing her in behind the scenes footage, and following her on twitter, I have always found her to be an extremely inspirational person. Without going into too much detail, she is the first Celebrity I have ever connected with and felt like I actually got something out of being a fan of hers. Her constant positivity is infectious and she has always reminded me that you don't have to focus on the bad things in life, you can choose to see the positive side of it, something that I forgot a long time ago.Due to all of that, I was so excited for this book, and considered it my bible before I even read it. After it finally came out though, and I did read it, I was blown away, it was so much more than I was even expecting, and I was expecting A LOT out of it. The way she practices what she preaches and uses, sometimes extremely personal, stories from her own life as examples is inspiring and so brave of her to do. It's given me even more respect for her than I already had. I always felt like I had a pretty good idea about her life, how she grew up and landed her part on Glee from interviews she's done over the years, and thought maybe those bits would be a bit repetitive to me, but she covers the spectrum of her life in so much more detail through all those stories than I was expecting and it was so eye opening. Her style of writing feels like she's talking TO you and not AT you, which makes it so much easier to take everything in and the way she breaks it down into little steps instead of feeling like you'd be changing your whole life made me walk away from this book with the feeling that I could actually do anything.As a bonus, there are SO many pictures, I would say 95% of which Glee fans have never seen, and little words of wisdom from her friends and castmates that give this book such a sweet and personal touch. There were a few moments in it that really hit a note with me, and made me cry, but I definitely consider that a good thing, and the rest of the time I was smiling, it's such a feel good book, and really opened up my mind more than it already was. I don't think you need to be a hard core, or even a Glee fan, period, to appreciate the advice she has to give.

“[…] each of these goals takes an enormous amount of dedication and drive. Life gets in the way. Things happen to distract or deter you. That’s when you have to ask yourself, ‘How bad do I want it?’ Anticipate the obstacles. Deal with the setbacks. If one path doesn’t get you there, then try another. Just don’t ever lose sight of what you really want.”* * *I absolutely adored this book. When I read it, I felt as though Jenna was right next to me in the room actually talking to me and only me. I wanted to highlight a quote or cut out an inspirational note from each and every page of this book and stick them on my wall. Everything she had to say was so inspirational. But it was more than that: it was honest and real. She openly shared her experiences that led her to change her attitude or adjust something in her life. She didn’t write a book where she chose to falsely preach, and then leave you wondering whether or not she actually followed her own advice. It is clear that her inspiration comes from inside her and is something she has constantly worked on throughout her life. Her belief in herself makes me believe in her, and even more importantly, makes me believe in MYSELF. It is clear when reading this book that she wants to provide strength and support to the reader – that she believes in us, too! I fully plan on keeping this book with me at all times, long after I finish reading it – just to keep me strong and use as inspiration whenever I may need some. I would highly recommend this to anyone out there who needs a nudge to help find his/her inner strength, who enjoys watching Glee, who is a fan of Jenna Ushkowtiz, or for anyone who just wants to read something positive and inspiring.* * *“There have been many times in my life when I have been very confused. Have patience. Look for things that make you happy and smile every day. There is a passion and fire in each one of us, and you will figure it out. If you search hard enough, your calling will eventually find you. Until then, keep your eyes and your mind open—and be prepared to take a few leaps and fall on your butt.”

I am all about "Glee". So pre-ordering Jenna Ushkowitz's new book "Choosing Glee" was only natural. I have to say this book is just beautiful. The pictures of Jenna and/or the Glee gang is worth the purchase price alone. Jenna's offers up some fun background stories about her life and some Glee adventures. The book is about how Jenna stays positive and focuses on reaching her goals and being true to herself. Its presented in a fun, entertaining, and positive way. I do think the book could appeal to the younger audience as well as to the adult market. Most of her principles explained in the book can apply to both age groups. The only negative is that I think that the advice given could have been more detailed and maybe provided some further explanation. The chapter self evaluations were cute and practical and I really loved some of the quotes provided. The portion about Chris Colfer was especially poignant and beautiful. Darren Criss offered up a memorable quote and I loved Jenna's uplifting songlists. She also quotes a song that I find very meaningful to my life personally "Chasing Pavements" by Adele. Overall this book itself is quite a joy and I am committed to following anything else Jenna may release.

I am currently reading this book and I am totally Loving it, I totally Love how it's a Mix between a Memoir and a Scrapbook and I totally Love all the Tips from all her Friends/Family and Glee Cast Mates.

I almost finished reading it and I really didn't know Jenna had to go through all that. It is such an inspring book, maybe the best i've ever read so far. She's done an amazing job and i'm really glad that i got to read it. She found a way to make the book look interesting and i don't remember a second that i got bored reading it. Buy it, read it and remember the advices Jenna wrote if you ever doubt yourself. I feel more confident now. Thank you, Jenna for making me believe myself.

I bought this book for my daughter who is a self-confessed 'Gleek'. Needless to say she absolutely loves it, poor thing.

Great book, amazing to see what she's been through. She's honestly a great role model, and it's such a good book.

A great book that shows the lengths that Jenna went to to end up where she is. A must have for any Glee fan!