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Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling is a 2007 acclaimed autobiographical book written by Canadian–American professional wrestler Bret "Hitman" Hart, it details his life from his childhood to early years of retirement. It took Hart seven years to complete the writing. It was mostly based on audio recordings Hart had kept during his career in the 1980s and 1990s.

Hitman chronicles Hart's journey from a middle child of twelve growing up in the famous Hart family in Calgary, Alberta, being the eight child and sixth son of professional wrestling promoters Helen and Stu Hart, his school years becoming an accomplished amateur wrestler for the sake of pleasing his father, (who himself was a national champion in his youth), leading Bret to start working in professional wrestling to make ends meet when he becomes a father of four himself, later rising to the top of the World Wrestling Federation and the eventual crumbling of his career and family life due to a series of tragedies around the turn of the millenium.

These subjects are covered in four parts of the book, each comprising a period in Hart's life. Between these sections Hart includes many drawings and pictures of his experiences and people he's known and encountered. Images from his time in the WWF were licensed from company owner Vince McMahon during a time of reconciliation between the two as he and Hart were not on good terms during most of the writing of the book.

The book became an international bestseller and instant success in Harts native country of Canada. It was also critically well received, both in wrestling circles and the mainstream and has since its release become regarded as one of the best works ever written about professional wrestling. The book created some controversies as well, most surrounding Hart's family, with some family members finding the book to be revealing in ways they had not hoped, the subject of his father Stu's discipline during Bret's and his siblings childhood also awoke contentious reactions from many readers.

Background
Marcy Engelstein

Reception
The book is acclaimed.

Sales
The book was a major hit and financial success in Canada immediately upon its release.

Mainstream reviews
http://www.quillandquire.com/review/hitman-my-real-life-in-the-cartoon-world-of-wrestling/

http://www.cbc.ca/books/2015/05/fighting-words-memoirs.html

http://www.marchofdimes.ca/EN/programs/src/Pages/BretHart.aspx

https://blankmaninc.com/hitman-my-real-life-in-the-cartoon-world-of-wrestling/

https://www.pressreader.com/canada/calgary-herald/20161119/282149290903901

http://hour.ca/2007/12/06/wrestler-says-no-mma/

http://www.therichest.com/sports/wrestling/13-shocking-facts-you-didnt-know-about-bret-the-hitman-hart/

http://businessincalgary.com/november-2016/team-two-bretts/

http://thecommentary.ca/ontheline/20071108a.html

http://www.avclub.com/article/bret-the-hitman-hart-sounds-off-on-wrestlings-bad--33020

http://torontoist.com/2012/03/pro-wrestler-bret-hart-does-improv/

http://www.niagarafallsreview.ca/2012/06/07/calm-after-the-storm-bret-hart-savours-life-after-25-years-of-tragedy-and-triumph

http://heavy.com/entertainment/2015/01/top-15-wrestler-wrestling-autobiographies-books-wwe-wcw-ecw/

Professional wrestling critics
Greg Oliver of SLAM! Wrestling refered to the book as "confessional in tone and content, vicious and bitter when called for, and heartbreakingly honest".

http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/2006/10/07/1971338.html

http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/2006/12/17/2841858.html

http://slam.canoe.com/Slam/Wrestling/2007/10/21/4593934-sun.html

http://www.thewrestlinggame.com/wrestling/update_on_bret_harts_wrestling_book/

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/200439-bret-hart-the-hitmans-legacy

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/428204-bret-harts-account-of-his-life-in-professional-wrestling

http://www.wrestlingepicenter.com/1011122008articles//226719526.shtml

In the wrestling industry
Industry veteran Jim Ross said that he loved the book. He expressed it was essential reading to any wrestling fan, a classic and that it would make for a good television series. He felt that it was a honest look at Hart's life that included "strong and well founded opinion of his personal experiences and amazing career". He also stated that before reading the book all of his acquaintances had raved about it and that every single person spoke to afterwards that had read it loved it.

After his inital read of the book Lance Storm felt it left him with very mixed emotions, stating that it was not what he would describe as an "entertaining read" (comparing it to the autobiographies of Chris Jericho and Mick Foley) but that it was surely interesting. He called it "heavy on substance and short on flash, much like the Hitman himself" explaing that this at times made it a difficult book to read. He also stated that "If you are or were a Hitman fan at all though, I think this is a must read. Bret digs so deeply into himself for this book that you get likely the most honest portrayal of any wrestling biography ever written." On the subject of Hart's honesty Storm said that Hart comes off as both very good and very bad throughout the book, and on the whole it is a very sad tale. He also praised how openly Bret spoke about his lowest points in life, such as the death of several family members including his little brother Owen, his career ending concussion and recovering from a stroke. Storm also cited a sentence in the book which he felt sent chills down his spine and made him worry about Hart's mental wellbeing; Hart had wrote: “If I had to write a will, it would have been a few lines long, but if I’d had to write a suicide note, it would have been a thousand pages long.” Storm noted that he knew that the original draft of the book had been a thousand pages long, and it felt ominous, but did add that the end of the book picked up after that and made him feel as if Hart would recover.

From Hart's family
Hart's ex-wife Julie was initially apprehensive about reading the book, but Hart convinced her to do so, feeling that she needed to in order to understand his life outside of their home. She found his honesty about the extent of his infidelity shocking and upsetting to some extent. She did not feel that the book properly portrayed their relationship from her viewpoint. Julie in turn published her own book named Hart Strings: My Life with Bret and the Hart Family which covers events from her point of view. She also stated that the book shocked even Hart's extended family with it's revelations of some of his inner thoughts. At the time of the books release three of Hart's niblings were employed by the WWE, one of them Teddy Hart (Edward Annis) claims that he was fired in retaliation for the books damning coments about the company's ceo Vince McMahon. On a personal level Annis expressed that he felt like he had never truly known his uncle before reading the book. Bret adressed his family's reactions to the book in a chat on WZRonline.com.

Other influence
Canadian author Susin Nielsen has said that Hitman inspired her book The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen and gave great insight into the professional wrestling world. She read the book for research but ended up enjoying it greatly.