Book ~ "You Thought You Knew" (2025) Kevin Federline

From Goodreads ~ Kevin dancer, father, accidental pop culture icon. His star rose electrifying stages alongside Pink, Destiny’s Child, Aaliyah, and more. But it was his turbulent marriage to pop superstar Britney Spears that made him a household name and triggered a relentless media storm, reducing him to a caricature in a world that barely knew him.

Behind the tabloid headlines was a devoted father fighting for his children and his sanity, navigating the fallout of fame and a fractured family, as everything around him spun out of control.

From the heights of global stardom to the pain of public ridicule, this memoir peels back the layers of celebrity, fatherhood, and survival to reveal the man behind the mythology. A man shaped not by spectacle or spotlight, but by love, resilience, and the steadfast resolve to give his kids a normal life.

What you thought you knew was only half the story.

Other than being Britney Spears' ex-husband, I don't know a lot about Kevin Federline. I like reading bios/memoirs and thought it might be interesting and it was. I'd read Britney Spears' memoir when it came out and thought it would be fun to find out Federline's account.

This book is Federline giving his side of the story. He talks about his childhood, his dancer days, his ride of sudden fame and his relationship and breakup with Britney Spears. He says he mostly wrote this book for his kids so they’ll know who he really is, not the loser the tabloids made him out to be. 

He dives deep into their marriage and the messy split. He brings up moments where he says he was worried about Britney’s behavior, including some disturbing stories involving their kids. For example, there was an incident where their sons supposedly woke up in the middle of the night and found her standing in their doorway holding a knife. He said he was scared for his kids and doing what he thought was right at the time. He feels when Britney’s conservatorship ended, the public treated it like a victory but things didn’t magically get better.

I liked the writing style. As a head's up, there is swearing and descriptions of drug use and partying. When reading memoirs, I tend to take them with a grain of salt ... some of it might be true and some might be what the author wants us to believe is true. I check out Britney Spears' Instagram account occasionally and she doesn't seem very stable so I had no problem believing a lot of what he said. I was surprised there were no pictures.