A review by shannonohannessian
Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing: Essays by Lauren Hough

2.0

Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing was one of my most anticipated new releases of 2021. With one of the most intriguing premises I have seen in a few years, I could not wait to get my hands on this book, but was quickly disappointed. One of the most important aspects of any memoir style work is reflection, which Hough lacked greatly. A great chunk of the work focuses on recounting stories as they happened with seemingly no comment from Hough in the present. Her essay recounting her experience being a cable guy was just that, with no takeaway - and for the second to last essay in the book, I expected more. Other than a few pages at the end, there is virtually no takeaway. No question, Hough has had interesting experiences and struggles enough to fill a memoir, but with no offer of hope or learning, it felt that there was no growth and no message. The essays had some connections and yet not enough for the story to feel complete. The way the author treats others throughout the story is concerning, offering empty justifications. After reading the work, I'm not surprised to see the author publicly putting reviewers of her book on blast and criticizing glowing reviews because they gave her work 4.5 stars instead of 5 stars. Quite an unprofessional, embarrassing, and unnecessary scene. Hough's behavior is a great example of how to not to behave on the release date of your debut novel, as seen by the average rating of this book here on goodreads.