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\nAlyson Stoner has revealed their top six must-read book recommendations”As a lifelong actor, I never needed help escaping reality \u2014 I needed help surviving it. That\u2019s why I read nonfiction,” the former Disney star told Page Six of their love of nonfiction The recommendations included Stoner’s recently-released debut memoir, Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything<\/p>\n
Alyson Stoner<\/a> is crediting nonfiction books<\/a> for helping them survive reality as “a lifelong actor.”\n<\/p>\n While speaking to Page Six<\/a>, the former Disney star, 32 \u2014 who recently released their debut memoir Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything<\/a> \u2014 revealed their top six must-read book recommendations, listing their own as one of them.\n<\/p>\n \u201cAs a lifelong actor, I never needed help escaping reality \u2014 I needed help surviving it. That\u2019s why I read nonfiction,\u201d Stoner told the outlet.\n<\/p>\n The Dear Hollywood<\/a> podcast host added, \u201cI\u2019m admittedly the person in the corner thumbing through an anthology on late-stage capitalism. Tell me how things work. Tell me what literally happened. Help me make sense of this world.”\n<\/p>\n ‘The Boy Who Was Raised As A Dog’; ‘The Age of Surveillance Capitalism’; ‘Design Justice’ book covers.<\/p>\n \u201cAs you start seeing things for what they really are \u2014 systems, stories, patterns \u2014 you pierce through the illusions driving society (not to mention the illusions within your own mind \u2026 eep!). This clarity enables you to move beyond being a consumer of others\u2019 ideas to being a co-creator of new realities. And that, my friends, is the conscious agency you deserve,” Stoner told the outlet of their love of nonfiction.\n<\/p>\n If they had to pick six of their favorite releases, the Movement Genius<\/a> co-founder would opt for the following:\n<\/p>\n Stoner told Page Six of the latter, \u201cIf \u2018semi-well-adjusted despite literally everything\u2019 isn\u2019t the unofficial mood of 2025, I don\u2019t know what is.”\n<\/p>\n “In my debut memoir, I peel back the curtain on the entertainment industry,” they explain. “But why stop there? I also unpack everything from mental health, to navigating identity and privacy in a digital world, to major life transitions (queerness? religion? new careers?), to what it means to be \u2018well-adjusted\u2019 in a dysfunctional society.”<\/p>\n ‘Our Declaration’; ‘Semi Well-Adjusted’; ‘What If We Get It Right?’ book covers.<\/p>\n “Come for the childhood chaos. Stay for the cultural critique. And yes, I name names,” Stoner added.\n<\/p>\n The Camp Rock<\/a> actor told the outlet that their six must-read book recommendations \u201caided my critical examination of life, purpose and healing.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \u201cThese authors have helped me reimagine how I move through the world,\u201d Stoner shared. \u201cI hope they inspire you on your path toward becoming more informed, more intentional, and more whole.”\n<\/p>\n The former child star \u2014 whose breakthrough arrived when they were age 9 and featured in Missy Elliott<\/a>‘s iconic 2002 \u201cWork It\u201d music video \u2014 recently spoke to PEOPLE<\/a> about their new memoir, insisting, \u201cContrary to public knowledge, dance is not my strongest form of communication.”\n<\/p>\n \u201cWriting is my first and preferred form of processing. Even when I’m thinking through thoughts, I’m writing them out in my head. So this was actually a joy, while challenging, to be able to lean on my preferred mode of communication, finally,” they added.\n<\/p>\n Never miss a story \u2014 sign up for\u00a0PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter<\/a>\u00a0to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer\u200b\u200b, from celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.\n<\/p>\n Stoner \u2014 who has starred on shows including Nickelodeon’s Drake and Josh<\/a>, as well as film franchises like\u00a0Step Up<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Cheaper by the Dozen through the years \u2014 opened up about their experiences in the industry in the candid release, including dealing with stalkers, and suffering an eating disorder that led to a stint in rehab<\/a> in 2011.\n<\/p>\n They also wrote about feeling like a \u201ccommodity\u201d to the adults on set and in their professional orbit, who often “didn’t receive any preparatory training on how to work with kids.”\n<\/p>\n \u201cWhat people may find compelling is not just what happened circumstantially on the set, but what it was like in a prepubescent or pubescent body, to experience these situations,\u201d Stoner shared.\n<\/p>\n \u201cI’ve been contemplating the reality of being this honest and sharing this much information about my childhood, both on camera and behind the scenes,\u201d they explained, adding that the book \u201crepresents a culmination of everything I’ve experienced, as well as all of the training and professional skill-building I’ve accumulated in this first portion of my life.\u201d\n<\/p>\n