The Meaning of Mariah Carey

In "Wayward Child", Carey recounts being left alone, moving 13 times, and never feeling safe growing up. She details being exploited by her sister, Alison, fearing her brother Morgan, and feeling neglected by her mother, Patricia. It also discusses early experiences with racism and struggles with self-identity and self-worth.[7] During "Sing. Sing.", she recalls feeling trapped inside the mansion she lived in with her husband Tommy Mottola and being isolated from her fans. It also reveals what caused her to separate from and later divorce him and how she grew creatively as an artist.[8] "All That Glitters" details the events of Glitter (2001) and its accompanying soundtrack during which Carey felt betrayed by her family, "hunted" by tabloids, and scared of Mottola.[9] While attending therapy afterwards, "Emancipation" explains how she remains affected by trauma but grateful for her relationships with God and children Moroccan and Monroe.[10]

Alongside the plot, the inspirations and meanings of many of Carey's songs are explained and are often accompanied by excerpts from them.[11][12] Songs with lyrics interspersed between prose include "All in Your Mind" and "Alone in Love" from Mariah Carey (1990),[13][14] "Make It Happen" from Emotions (1991),[15] "Anytime You Need a Friend" and "Everything Fades Away" from Music Box,[16][17] "Hermit" from Someone's Ugly Daughter (1995),[18] "Looking In" and the remixes of "Fantasy" and "Always Be My Baby" from Daydream (1995),[19][20][21] "Honey", "My All", and "The Roof (Back in Time)" from Butterfly (1997),[22][23][24] "Can't Take That Away (Mariah's Theme)" from Rainbow (1999),[25] "Loverboy (Remix)" from Glitter (2001),[26] "Subtle Invitation" from Charmbracelet (2002),[27] "It's Like That" and "Fly Like a Bird" from The Emancipation of Mimi (2005),[28][29] "Bye Bye" and "I Wish You Well" from E=MC² (2008),[30][31] "Candy Bling" from Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel (2009),[32] and "Faded" from Me. I Am Mariah... The Elusive Chanteuse (2014).[33]

Chapters occasionally begin or end with lyrics from Carey's songs as epigraphs.[11] Parts of "Hero" from Music Box,[34] "All I Want for Christmas Is You" from Merry Christmas (1994),[35] "I Am Free" from Daydream,[36] "Close My Eyes" and "Outside" from Butterfly,[37][38] "Sunflowers for Alfred Roy" from Charmbracelet,[39] "Side Effects" and "Love Story" from E=MC²,[40][41] and "The Art of Letting Go" from Me. I Am Mariah... The Elusive Chanteuse open chapters,[42] while Rainbow's "Crybaby" and "Petals",[43][44] and Charmbracelet's "Through the Rain" and "My Saving Grace" close chapters.[45][46] Verses from the Bible are also incorporated in the memoir.[47][48][49]

Media outlets noted that men associated with her such as Eminem,[4][50][51] former boyfriend Luis Miguel,[50] former fiancé James Packer,[51][52][53] and ex-husband Nick Cannon are absent or only receive brief mentions.[12][50][53] While she writes about an incident involving Jennifer Lopez, Carey does not name her.[51][52] Whitney Houston is not written about until 1998,[50][54] and her role as a judge on American Idol and feud with Nicki Minaj is unrecognized.[54] She explained: "If somebody or something didn't pertain to the actual meaning of Mariah Carey, as is the title, then they aren't in the book."[4]

The Meaning of Mariah Carey debuted at number one on the weekly New York Times Best Seller list for both Hardcover Nonfiction and Combined Print & E-book Nonfiction.[72] On Publishers Weekly charts, the memoir entered at number three on Hardcover Frontlist Nonfiction and number six overall.[73][74] According to NPD BookScan, the memoir sold 62,557 units in its first three weeks of release in the United States.[75] In Canada, the book debuted at number three on both The Globe and Mail's Hardcover Non Fiction and the Toronto Star's Original Non-Fiction national bestseller lists.[76][77] It entered at number seven on The Sunday Times' General Hardbacks chart, selling about 6,940 copies in the United Kingdom.[78]

Based on 11 reviews, aggregation website Book Marks reported a "rave" response to the memoir.[79] A writer for ABC News described reactions to it as an "outpouring of appreciation".[53] The book was one of 20 nominees in the Best Memoir & Autobiography category at the 2020 Goodreads Choice Awards and appeared on numerous year-end lists.[80] The Atlantic included the memoir as one of the top 15 books of 2020,[81] the Financial Times selected it as one of the top three pop music books,[82] The Times listed it as one of the top eight music books,[83] Pitchfork picked it as one of the top 15 music books,[84] NME named it one of the top 20 music books,[85] and Rolling Stone/Kirkus Reviews listed it as one of the top 21 music books.[86] The San Diego Union-Tribune named The Meaning of Mariah Carey one of the top four celebrity memoirs of the year,[87] The Guardian chose it as one of the five best celebrity memoirs,[88] the Irish Independent included it as one of the top eight celebrity memoirs and biographies,[89] and Variety named it one of the top 10 celebrity memoirs.[90] It was also highlighted by The Globe and Mail as one of the three best music memoirs/autobiographies of 2020.[91]

The book received comparisons to other works. Writing for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Adriana Ramirez considered it "an important contribution to the genre of celebrity memoir". As it explains Carey's musical creative process in addition to expected life stories, she felt it stood out from a typical memoir.[61] In the Los Angeles Times, Rich Juzwiak deemed it "an exceptional entry in the genre". He thought the "vivid anecdotes that unfold with tension and poignancy [are] not typically seen in celebrity writing".[92] British critics were disappointed it contained less gossip than Elton John's Me,[55][93] while Kirkus Reviews remarked this made it "refreshingly candid".[62]

Reviewers thought the book's effectiveness declined as it went on. According to Entertainment Weekly's Mary Sollosi, the first section is the best and everything post-1990 lost clarity because it lacked context.[59] Jon Caramanica of The New York Times considered the memoir "less revealing the later into Carey’s life it moves". He felt the exclusion of her bipolar diagnosis detracted from clarity that would have been useful during "All That Glitters" and that the latter chapters are rushed. Writing for The Guardian, Alex Macpherson thought nothing was divulged after 2005.[56]