Books

Hayden Panettiere's ex Brian Hickerson is jumping into the actress' bitter family feud ... blasting Hayden's estranged mother after she publicly questioned Hayden opening up about her sexuality in her new memoir.

Brian sat down with TMZ's Charlie Neff and reacted to recent comments by Hayden's mom, Lesley Vogel ... the former momager cast doubt as to why Hayden was discussing being bisexual now, suggesting the timing had more to do with promoting her new book.

When Charlie asked Brian if he knew Hayden was attracted to women, he kept it simple -- "Yeah. Hayden is into beautiful people."

Hayden Panettiere's estranged mom has some harsh judgment about her daughter's upcoming memoir ... accusing the actress of giving her "20 years of trauma" -- and suggesting the whole thing's more about selling books than healing wounds.

Lesley Vogel unloaded over Hayden's tell-all, "This Is Me: A Reckoning," saying, "There is a personality 'style' which manifests as a need for control, entitlement and a lack of empathy. The major fear is that someone will see through the mask they present to the world and discover who they truthfully are."

Lesley told Page Six there’s no fixing the "condition" she was referring to ... claiming years of support and encouragement "will never be enough," and eventually she had no choice but to go no-contact.

Hayden Panettiere's ex Brian Hickerson says reading about his abusive relationship in her upcoming memoir was brutal ... but he also thinks alleged abusers need to hear stories like his the most.

Hickerson spoke with TMZ's Charlie Neff ahead of the release of Hayden's memoir, "This Is Me: A Reckoning" ... and admitted there was one particularly dark moment from their relationship he requested her to leave out of the book -- but it made the final cut anyway.

According to Brian, the passage details a drunken incident where he allegedly threatened to throw a phone at Hayden. He recalled telling her, "I'll give you 10 seconds to run as fast as you can before I throw it at you."

Hayden Panetteire's estranged mom says it was no real secret the actress was bisexual ... and she's questioning the timing of her daughter talking about her sexual preferences.

Hayden publicly came out as bisexual this week in an interview promoting her new memoir.

Her mother, Lesley Vogel, -- again, estranged -- ripped Hayden in an interview with The Daily Mail, saying ... "I do not believe it was being hidden, but there is no historic proof that this is the case."

Hayden Panettiere's finally letting the cat outta' the closet -- proudly revealing for the very first time ... she's bisexual!

The actress made the emotional confession while promoting her new memoir, "This Is Me: A Reckoning," dropping May 19 ... declaring in empowerment, "I'm comfortable to confidently say that, yes, I am bisexual. I said it!"

Hayden told Us Weekly the book dives into how she started dating women at a young age -- admitting she felt more drawn to them than men ... but back then, she says the pressure to stay perfect in Hollywood kept her quiet.

Matt Lauer's rape accuser Brooke Nevils sat down for her first TV interview since releasing a memoir where she resurfaces her allegations ... and it got emotional.

Brooke tearfully recalled her interactions with the former NBC anchor in an interview with CNN's Pamela Brown.

She alleges Matt anally raped her in his hotel room while they were working at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

Sherri Shepherd won't be sitting around and twiddling her thumbs now that she's taped the final live episode of her talk show "Sherri" ... she's weighing her career options -- including turning her show into a podcast.

We caught up with the star in New York City Thursday ... and we had to ask what she's got coming up after she's officially completed "Sherri," which has been cancelled after four seasons.

Shepherd says she's not sure if she would start producing a version of "Sherri" for YouTube or make a podcast ... since the market is saturated with millions of other listening options.

4:53 PM PT -- A rep for Gavin Newsom's political team tells TMZ ... "Governor Newsom did not do a "bulk buy" of $1.5M worth of books to boost sales. The book sales through his email list were individual sales done through a new, innovative approach that allows his list to receive copies of the book early. The campaign viewed the book offer as a major list-building and engagement opportunity – one of the largest of any campaign in the country."

The statement continues, "Supporters were invited to give whatever amount they could afford and still receive a copy of the book. The goal was participation and engagement, not fundraising. The campaign's list provided an opportunity for supporters to buy the book through a vendor consistently used by other authors. Each book was sold and sent out through the vendor, similar to buying from Amazon or Barnes and Noble. In total, more than 67,000 individual sales were made through the campaign's offers."

Want a copy of Gavin Newsom’s book? Turns out all it took was a donation -- and a PAC with deep pockets!

Here’s how it played out ... The New York Times reports Newsom’s political action committee shelled out more than $1.5M to scoop up copies of his memoir, "Young Man in a Hurry," and hand them out to supporters who chipped in -- any amount got you in the door.

And plenty of people took the bait. About 67,000 books were sent out through the donation deal -- accounting for roughly two-thirds of all print copies sold. Yeah … that bestseller run didn’t exactly happen the old-fashioned way.

Jennie Garth is opening up about a painful point in her life during her split from husband Dave Abrams ... she revealed she cut herself with glass while overcome with pain, and her daughter caught her in the act.

The "Beverly Hills, 90210" star writes about the low point in her life in her new memoir, "I Choose Me: Chasing Joy, Finding Purpose & Embracing Reinvention." She says she was so distraught when her marriage fell apart in 2017, she turned to drinking and self-harm to self-medicate.

Specifically, she remembered shattering framed photos of her and Dave and using the shards to attempt to slash herself. She concedes ... "I was certainly not in my right mind. It was almost an unconscious act, a form of punishment."

"The Housemaid" author Freida McFadden just ripped off her own mask ... saying she's done living a "Hannah Montana"-esque double life after concealing her true identity and using a pen name for years.

The popular author revealed to USA Today Wednesday her real name is Sara Cohen -- a doctor from New York who treats brain disorders when she's not cranking out her next thriller novel. Talk about a plot twist!

Freida hid her identity for years ... but, people began figuring her act out ... and she says it's time to come forward.

Savannah Guthrie is taking tips on the art of finding joy -- explaining joy and sadness aren't mutually exclusive -- in one of her first mornings back on the "Today" show.

The longtime NBC host chatted with author Kate Bowler, who wrote "Joyful, Anyway" ... a book all about finding joy when circumstances aren't perfect.

Check out the vid ... Guthrie says it's the exact book she needs right now -- more on that in a minute -- while making it clear being joyful doesn't mean embracing toxic positivity or forcing oneself to be happy.

Kim Kardashian says she learned a lot about success from hospitality mogul David Grutman.

In the foreword for his upcoming book "Take It Personal" -- which comes out April 14 -- the reality star-turned-businesswoman raved about her BFF.

She reflected on how her friendship with David influenced her journey as an entrepreneur, writing ... "When David Grutman has something to teach, you definitely want to listen."

Kim gushed about David's commitment to both personal and professional connections "in a time when so much of our interaction happens on our phones."

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"Real Housewives of Orange County" is the show that started it all, paving the way for the Bravo franchise to go global.

It's officially been 20 years since "RHOC" hit the airwaves ... which means it's time to celebrate the best way your favorite housewives know how -- with a little shopping!

We've rounded up the perfect picks for Bravoholics everywhere!

Liza Minnelli looked totally unbothered rolling out of an event plugging her new memoir ... in which she spills plenty of Hollywood tea.

The legend was wheeled out of her "Live In Conversation'' stop at the Million Dollar Theater in L.A. Tuesday night, where she promoted "Kids, Wait Till You Hear This!"

She was all smiles, waving at fans as she headed to her car -- and honestly, she looked like a weight had been lifted after unloading in the book. And she has a lot to say about her past movie costar and director ...

Zach Bryan just dropped some serious cash on a literary treasure ... shelling out a whopping $12 million for Jack Kerouac’s legendary "On The Road" scroll at the auction of Jim Irsay’s memorabilia collection this month.

The country star snagged the iconic manuscript during Christie’s New York sale ... which tracks, considering Zach bought the Saint Jean Baptiste Church in Lowell, Mass. last year ... with plans to turn it into a museum dedicated to the legendary American novelist and poet.

The typescript scroll of Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" was estimated to go for around $2.5 million ... but Zach ended up paying $12,135,000.

Nicki Minaj is going OFF on California Governor Gavin Newsom after a speaking engagement in Georgia ... she thinks he was telling black voters they're "probably stupid" to their faces.

In a tirade posted to X, the "Super Bass" rapper wrote, "His way of bonding with black ppl is to tell them how stupid he is & that he can't read."

She continued ... "He's not just TELLING them that they're probably stupid & probably can't read, he's LITERALLY SLOW-ING-DOWN-HIS-SPEECH to make them understand the words that are coming out of his mouth!!!!"