Boy, I love Hannah Hart. There was a point when, after a few hours of watching her videos, I realized I was talking about her like she was my latest crush. Then I realized that she was my latest crush, and needed a minute while the whole world realigned itself a little. Anyway, I loved her goofy, very sweet cookbook so I pre-ordered her autobiography.
I am... not sure I can recommend this book. It's interesting and well-written, but it's the farthest thing from a light hearted, fun read.
A lot of the book is about Hannah's mother, who is schizophrenic, and was unable to really care for her daughters because of it. Hannah's younger sister was taken away by Child Protective Services. Hannah's father, who left and remarried, is a Jehova's Witness who disapproves of homosexuality. Hannah talks candidly about depression, self-harm, and growing up in a home that didn't have electricity or running water from time to time.
There are funny and charming stories here, and Hannah is almost always upbeat and positive about even the worst of her experiences. But I was so sad and upset reading about the things she has overcome that I wasn't sure I'd make it to the end of the book. I think what she really wanted to write was a book about our broken American mental health system, and her personal experiences trying to help her mother, and so the stories about YouTube and living in Japan are just sort of sprinkled on top.
Definitely check it out if you're interested, but don't mistake this for vacation reading or something fun to tell your friends about.
Grade: B
#74 in 2016
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