Hey, it's NPR's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbaugh. Today, we've got two celebrity memoirs for you

that, in their own ways, deal with an illness that was hiding, you know, that had to be discovered.

In a bit, we'll hear from Jennifer Lewis of blackish fame about how being an actor, you know,

being a performer, masked her bipolar disorder.

But first, Semmel Blair has a new memoir out. It's called Mean Baby. Now, if you haven't heard,

Blair was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis a few years ago. And in this interview with NPR's

Rachel Martin, there are a few tender moments where Blair is really open, really vulnerable, not just about her MS, but about her addictions and about depression and suicide.

In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.

Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors on our new show,

Sources and Methods. NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people,

helping you understand why distant events matter here at home. Listen to sources and methods on the NPR

app or wherever you get your podcasts.

Selma Blair has spent a lot of her life making other people comfortable, including me.

Before we even begin, I'm just letting you know with the MS, you know, I'm in great shape,

but I still do have residual damage. The actress was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2018. So when she meets new people, she prepares them for what hanging out with her looks and sounds like. Some of that is the

voice, as you'll notice. And sometimes if I tuck my legs in, my voice really clears and doesn't

block so much. But a lot of times and I have spasms and it blocks.

And it's fine.

I just work through it.

Is it annoying to have to make other people feel comfortable about it?

I make them feel too comfortable that they're like, please leave me now.

I get it.

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