How to Be Alone
If You Want To, and Even If You Don't
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
The former Sex & Relationships Editor for Cosmopolitan and host of the wildly popular comedy show Tinder Live with Lane Moore presents her poignant, funny, and deeply moving first book.
Lane Moore is a rare performer who is as impressive onstage—whether hosting her iconic show Tinder Live or being the enigmatic front woman of It Was Romance—as she is on the page, as both a former writer for The Onion and an award-winning sex and relationships editor for Cosmopolitan. But her story has had its obstacles, including being her own parent, living in her car as a teenager, and moving to New York City to pursue her dreams. Through it all, she looked to movies, TV, and music as the family and support systems she never had.
From spending the holidays alone to having better “stranger luck” than with those closest to her to feeling like the last hopeless romantic on earth, Lane reveals her powerful and entertaining journey in all its candor, anxiety, and ultimate acceptance—with humor always her bolstering force and greatest gift.
How to Be Alone is a must-read for anyone whose childhood still feels unresolved, who spends more time pretending to have friends online than feeling close to anyone in real life, who tries to have genuine, deep conversations in a roomful of people who would rather you not. Above all, it’s a book for anyone who desperately wants to feel less alone and a little more connected through reading her words.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In these bitingly honest autobiographical essays, comedian Moore chronicles the aftereffects of being raised by emotionally abusive and indifferent parents. After high school, she left home and moved to New York, hoping to find a soulmate and hide away from anyone who might hurt her. In "So Your Family Dictates Your Romantic Future? What a Fun Punishment!", she explains how her parents displayed pride only after their kids had grown up; in "Maybe Someone Else Will Love Me and That Will Fix Everything," she writes about sexual abuse ("sexual assault is not your my first time' story if you don't want it to be" is the book's most heartbreaking and encouraging line) and dysfunctional adult relationships. In the title essay, about trying to find a partner, Moore writes, "Telling yourself not to look for love is like telling yourself not to look for food or air or water or clothes that fit you perfectly." Almost as if trying to bolster herself, Moore points out that being single and alone isn't a life sentence. Within this compassionately told memoir, Moore offers hard-won advice for those looking to get beyond a painful past.
Customer Reviews
I feel like I know Lane, and love her!
She speaks with such truth — creating an experience as though she’s sitting next to you telling the story. One of my favourite reads in a very long time! Recommend for anybody seeking a book full of smiles, sappy tears and a potential sense of relatability in this harsh modern world. We need more authors like Lane Moore!