Natalie Beach might have shot to viral fame with her confession to being the ex-best friend and ghost-writer for an infamous influencer, but in this book she takes us on a tour of various other facets of her coming of age, from working in a pencil store to living in a crooked apartment in New York City to volunteering as an escort at an abortion clinic.

I am notoriously Behind The Times when it comes to Internet celebrities, but I did manage to stumble across Caroline Calloway basically right before Beach’s essay about their friendship hit the Internet, so I suppose I made it to the party just in time this time round. That I was on the verge of my own diagnosis of mental illness as I scrolled through those endlessly glamorous posts seems ironically apt in hindsight. Anyway, Beach’s confessional essay cast all that in a completely new light – and left me with all sorts of thorny, interesting questions about who has the right to tell stories.

This book of essays, branching into some of Beach’s other experiences and preoccupations, brings that off-kilter slant to plenty of other topics. Her topics are nothing out of the ordinary – I too have been a shopgirl, am a thrift store enthusiast (and once crocheted myself a colorful scarf from the yarn and pattern left behind by a dead woman who I obviously never met) – but where the collection shines is how Beach can make each story seem distinct and multi-faceted, polished to a shine so that different sides of it gleam at you all at once, many of them enjoyably contradictory.

The trouble with writing about fairly mundane experiences is that where Beach stumbles, the essay becomes rather dull. For example, the essays about low-rise jeans and her first apartment sank without a trace – that first essay especially, which felt like an odd choice as the opening chapter when there’s much stronger ones later on in the book. Beach’s authorial voice might take a bit more maturing, but I’m excited to see what she comes out with when it has.

I wanted to like this book as I’ve been following Natalie since the Caroline Calloway drama began. BUT! Natalie didn’t do a good job of convincing me I should care about her stories, honestly. I kept finding myself saying “why do I care about this?” Because honestly outside of Caroline…she hasn’t made a name for herself and hasn’t given me a reason to give a shit about her life, even if her writing is good.

I was absolutely captivated by the first essay in this collection, which is an insightful look into what it was like to be a young teen that didn't quite fit the ideal mold in the early aughts at the height of the Abercrombie and Fitch low rise jean era. If that essay had come out alone, and on the right day, I think it would have made waves like Cat Person did. Alas, that was not the case. You're reading this review and likely know who Natalie Beach is because you are aware of Caroline Calloway. Ne'er-do-well New York wannabe socialite and Instagram star of the 2010's, Calloway is now known for being something of a train wreck-- an image that was not helped by the strongest essay in this collection, "I Was Caroline Calloway," previously published in The Cut magazine. Beach closes out the collection with a followup on the fallout of that essay going viral-- what is it like to have the demise of your friendship go "Buzzfeed Quiz" level viral? I enjoyed those three essays, but the rest were a little uneven for me. Beach comes across as real and messy, maybe a little queer, but also unapologetically a privileged white woman who complains about what she has had to do to make ends meet while pursuing a creative career. Maybe I'm just aging out of my romanticism, but I don't know how much of that we're willing to read as a society anymore.

I may have been mostly brought in by my own obsession with the Caroline Calloway drama, I do think Beach is a great writer on her own. I just hope she figures out more to write about, since this is really only interesting to those who care, which honestly is probably fewer people than you'd think.

I had never heard of Natalie Beach when I requested an ARC of this book and I most certainly was not aware of the conflict/drama between Beach and Instagram influencer Caroline Calloway. Heck, I only first heard the term 'influencer' a year or so ago and if I glance at my Instagram feed once a week I'm being pretty active. So what would draw me to this book? I enjoy a well written essay.

And these are VERY well written.

The conflict between Beach and Calloway plays an important role in a number of these essays and, in a nutshell, Beach acted as a ghost writer for Calloway's internet persona which led to a book deal for Calloway (and, hence, her ghost writer, Natalie) but Calloway couldn't keep up with her end of the work and backed out of the deal, costing Beach some work and money as well. Their feud has gone public (not surprising, given that Calloway is an entirely fictitious, public persona) and they've put forth dueling essays about each other.

Who cares? There are probably people out there who actually care about this she said/she said conflict, but frankly, I don't. What I DO care about is a fantastic read, and Beach, who has clearly been influenced by her relationship with the influencer ("Ghostwriting for Caroline was like writing in a new tense - first person beautiful - the rules of time and inevitability were just different for her") proves to be a really fantastic writer in this collection.

It wasn't a symbiotic relationship (though I admit I'm only getting Beach's side of the story) and frankly these essays don't paint Beach herself in a very good light - "I never felt better than when viewed through Caroline's eyes" ... "Being the foil to a hot girl was taking its toll, and writing someone else's love story was even harder".

While the relationship with Calloway is a major incident in Beach's life, and something she probably needs to write about, some of her other essays were much more interesting. I think I liked "How May I Help You?" you the most, describing some of her time as a shopgirl ("A shopgirl becomes useless when she hates the customers for shopping.").

These essays are deeply personal and borderline dark (Beach writes about her virginity and her first sexual encounters, as well as how badly she's treated by men) and I often felt like a voyeur, but as she herself writes: Every true story is disgusting.

Looking for a good book? If you like non-fiction, and even if you don't give a rat's ass about social media stars and feuds, Natalie Beach's collection of essays, Adult Drama, is a must read.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Adult Drama is Natalie Beach’s collection of essays about her life. It’s not exactly a memoir, but the stories are all observations about common every day things and experiences from a personal perspective. For example the first essay is about Natalie’s experience as someone who went to high school in the 2000s but couldn’t fit into Abercrombie & Fitch clothes. In the same essay she also explains the entire history of the store to the reader.

This one is hard to review because I think Natalie is an incredible writer, but this book didn’t live up to my expectations. Self Centered, previously published in The Cut as “I Was Caroline Calloway,” is iconic among those of us who are chronically online and love drama. I’ve seen people say that Natalie is only a good writer when she’s writing about Caroline and I strongly disagree. I think almost every essay in this book is good on its own. But this didn’t feel like it should be an entire book. I don’t think she had enough interesting things to say to fill up an entire volume. It felt a little like reading a lot of very well written blog posts about very common topics. I love a well written blog post, but I don’t want to read a ton of them back to back about basic topics.

Dead People’s Stuff was my least favorite essay, and I’ll always love Self Centered most of all for the memories I have from reading it for the first time in 2019.

I don’t think Adult Drama is bad, but I can’t say I recommend it.

There is no doubt that Beach is a talented writer. However, it just feels as if she has nothing to say. Adult Drama feels like it is trying to hold too tightly to the Caroline Calloway drama without actually writing about it, but still not writing about anything that interesting. Beach has a great voice and I hope she’s able to use it for a more compelling story someday.

I think the concept of these stories or essays started off real well, but some don't seem to make their point very well, or aren't self aware enough to see some obvious privilege, even if she grew up in a poorer neighborhood.

I think the writing still feels very young and inexperienced, and I'd love to see a collection like this after a few more rounds of substantive edits.

Growing up as a child and teenager Who often didn't feel like I "Fit In". I found much relatable in the first essays of this book. I must confess I'd heard very little about Caroline Holloway so didn't enjoy those as much. However the author has a strong voice throughout and an engaging way of walking you through a story and making you feel heard. No matter what stage of life you may be in. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC

AHHHHHH!
I'm so thankful to Hanover Square Press, Netgalley, and Natalie Beach for granting me advanced audio, digital, and physical access to this sweet gem of book that held emotional weight that twisted into my with a sharp knife.

This set of essays wasn’t very appealing to me.

Natalie is a decent writer but the subject matter wasn’t gripping enough for me. I ended up DNF.

Not sure if I’ll feel motivated in the future to finish this.

Solid essays from an interesting voice. I couldn't really bingeread this one — took an essay at a time very spread out, but I liked Natalie Beach's perspective.

Is it a little icky to publish an essay about your codependent college relationship and leverage it into a book deal? Maybe. But that essay was one of my favorite things I’d read at the time, and the book built around it did not disappoint, either.

“Adult Drama” may owe its existence to Caroline Calloway, but it solidifies Natalie as a powerful voice in her own right, separate from the famous friend she once ghostwrote for. This collection is clever and gross and moving and brutally honest in a way that I deeply admire. And while many people will walk away thinking the Caroline essay is the strongest part of the book by far, I was equally moved by Natalie’s reflections on gardening and advocacy and cancer and everything in between.

For anyone who feels unsure about whether Natalie deserved to tell these stories (valid) or whether her privilege means she’s not worth listening to at all (less valid), I hope you’ll give this book a chance — especially the final essay, where she grapples with the decisions that led her to this point and the fact that none of us are reliable narrators of our own stories. This book won’t be for everyone, but it certainly was for me, and not just because the Caroline Calloway essay has been a years-long source of fascination for me and my friends.

As an avid follower of the Caroline Calloway drama after the Cut article came out, I was excited to get a chance to read this collection of essays. I was hoping Natalie Beach would be able to break out of the Caroline Calloway shadow with her own voice, but unfortunately, the only stories I found interesting were the ones about her.

It’s not a question of whether or not she can write, which she definitely can, but I found that the stories she chose to write were just kind of boring. Hearing her go on and on in the first one about how she wasn’t like the other girls, for example. It just didn’t really capture my attention all that well.

I never really felt super connected to the author, which is what I typically look for in a personal collection of essays. Overall, I would say this book is fine — not anything more, not anything less.

Rating: 3.5
Adult Drama publishes on 7/4/23

I must live under a rock because despite being on social media more than I'd care to admit, I somehow hadn't heard about Caroline Calloway and the drama related to her. That being said, I was very curious as to what I missed and was interested in learning about their connection as well as what the author had to say in her other essays (most of which do not touch on the Calloway issues).

I think the author is a talented writer, and I enjoyed many of the essays, particularly the estate sale one. I also found the Calloway essays fascinating. The essays felt a bit disjointed though. This was a quick read, and I'd recommend to readers interested in the Calloway story. The author had many interesting things to say, and this was a solid collection of essays. I don't have a whole bunch in common with the author, but her book was an interesting dive into a world I somehow knew nothing about.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was obviously much more than the Caroline Calloway essays I suspect people will pick it up for. However, after the initial essay on fashion culture and growing up tomboyish, the book lost a lot of steam for me. It often felt very disjointed and a little too self-focused without great purpose. I think there is a need for the personal narrative to guide us through, but it seemed half of this book was diary work and the other half was ruminations on culture and the world. It would have been much stronger should it have been just the latter. Ultimately I was left with an unusual taste in my mouth, neither bad nor good, just off.

ADULT DRAMA wasn't for me. There are a few of the stories I thought were relatable. However, I wanted more from the writing. I was hoping for more Dolly Alderton when I chose this book and it didn't quite get there for me.

I was commissioned by Hanover Square Press to review this on TikTok. However, I genuinely enjoyed this essay collection way more than I expected to. Beach is a great writer and storyteller. This book is so much more than someone capitalizing on her viral New Yorker piece. I'm eager to see what she writes next.

Natalie Beach has written a funny entertaining look at her path to adulthood.From her first essay her relationship with the instagram influencer Caroline Calloway whom she had already written about in a fascinating article for The Cut.An interesting group of essays told in her unique voice.#netgalley #adultdrama

Thank you to the publishers for the opportunity to check out an ARC of this book through NetGalley!

Adult Drama by Natalie Beach was interesting, but it didn't grab my attention like I wanted it to. I think I am not ready yet to read memoirs of people who are super close to me in age. A lot of what Natalie wrote about was relatable, but I think I was looking for a more cohesive flow through the various essays. I never felt super connected to Natalie and I feel like that was what I was searching for.

I think overall if you are a fan of social commentary about growing up in the 2000s and existing as a 20-30 year old in current day this book would be just for you.

As always with memoirs, I appreciate that the author chooses to be vulnerable and share a part of their life with readers.