I enjoyed how she shares her story of addiction and the journey to healing. I recommend this book to everybody wanting to press restart.

The content isharsh, honest, sometimes seemingly self-deprecating until you realize it's just transparency and the author's sense of humor. The ironies she points out about her life, the structure in prison, the system built to put released felons back in prison and just her life in general are poignant. I felt sorry for her, teared up several times and rejoiced when she made good on her new lease on life. I'm grateful for this reminder that that forgiveness of self and of those who wrong you is critical to mental health and well being. And I feel a softness for a loved one who was trapped in the cycle of drug use but I'm so incredibly proud that they are long since sober and doing well. It's harsh reality and joy wrapped in one lady's story.

This book was very captivating. I highly recommend this book. It's a very easy read and worth reading

An honest and raw appraisal of relationships, family and substance abuse. Kept me reading the entire time and rooting for the author.

The Many Lives of Mama Love is unlike anything I've ever read. I found myself fully empathizing with the narrator -- her descent into addiction and ultimate incarceration felt like it could, truly, happen to any of us under the same unfortunate circumstances. Ms. Hardin was at once infuriating and inspirational in her story of hitting a true "rock bottom" and her dedication to rebuilding her life.

In an era when we're so quick to apply labels to one another and castigate people for their past mistakes, The Many Lives of Mama Love is a must-read for reminders of humanity and redemption!

Unfortunately I had to DNF this book as it did not hook me as much as I would have hoped. Many thanks to the author and NetGalley for the ARC.

It took me far longer to finish this than I would have liked. It actively stopped my reading for long periods and it took me a while to understand just what it was that made me so put off, never really stopping altogether because I didn't want to give up on something that wasn't actively poorly written or offensive in some way. Finally buckling down to finish the latter half after a break to read something else for fun, I think I figured it out. This is not a poorly written memoir or one that doesn't offer some merit in some of the subjects it covers- namely drug addiction, recovery from incarceration, and return to public life - but it is a book that lacks some major elements because the author has yet to hold herself accountable for these blind spots and actively chooses to avoid tackling her trauma in a constructive way which would have grounded her memoir far better than the version she published and allowed her to better connect with others she encounters over the course of her work with the incarcerated and excluded.
White privilege, class privilege, and educational privilege all color her experience and her narrative, deeply affecting her ability to be present with her fellow inmates, co-authors, and others she encounters and whose experiences she relates to us through an occluded lens actively steered toward avoiding full disclosure, disengaged from the insights of trauma recovery, and simultaneously interested in protecting the ego by declaring achievements and locked in victimhood that quickly follows the achievements with reductive and disadvantaged narratives that seem to be focused on saying she was incapable of doing better shortly after being clear that some part of her is concerned with appearing to have absolutely proven herself to be better.
There are also many occasions where little of her past experiences make it into the book even where these details would ground so much while other details are given in incidental ways that leave the reader wondering if they missed it's mention before and if not why it comes up now other than to loosely ground an idea without engaging it enough to do so. The reader might have more sympathy for her plight if we knew that a troubled childhood preceded her arrest for identity theft and drug abuse up to and including the death of her brother via overdose but it's only anecdote mentioned more than halfway into the book. The narrative implies some affluence in the first half of the book but notably underplays it until we hear about her older son's travels while also reading she is unable to pay off her debts.for her crimes. She implies many of the crimes she's asked to plead guilty for aren't actually part of her list of actions but doesn't tell us what is or isn't on this list. She tells over and over the system is rigged for felons and especially felons of color but never fully engages with how or in what ways it is worse for BIPOC offenders while relating how she played savior to these same BIPOC offenders both as an inmate and as an editor and ghost writer.

Lara Love Hardin is ultimately an unreliable narrator who hopes to be taken seriously and seen to be a good person while actively being avoidant about so many things that it becomes aggravating, particularly if the reader is at all aware of the way the criminal justice system works and how it favors white offenders, particularly affluent ones.

I enjoyed this memoir…Lara Love Hardin has an amazing story. She had it all, lost it due to her addiction, and then rebuilt her life. The only thing I would have wanted differently is maybe telling us more about how her addiction started/what led her down that path.

Lara Love Hardin’s memoir is a powerful, emotional ride. At times, I had to remind myself it wasn’t fiction—it’s that vivid and gripping. From the first page, Hardin pulls you into her world of addiction, shame, and the tough journey to redemption. Her recovery isn’t easy—it's messy, awkward, and raw—but it's also deeply inspiring, making you want to cheer her on every step of the way.

But this book isn’t just about her personal journey. Hardin also highlights the flaws in the criminal justice system, sharing how she faced 32 felonies, spent a year in jail, and faced challenges that would break most people. But through sheer resilience, she turns her pain into strength, showing what it really takes to rebuild a life from scratch. I admire her courage in sharing such a painful chapter of her life so openly.

This memoir has it all—heartbreak, hope, frustration, inspiration, and even moments of humor. It grabs your heart and sticks with you long after you’ve finished. If you're looking for a book that will make you laugh, cry, and reflect, The Many Lives of Mama Love is a must-read. I can’t recommend it enough!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to read this advance copy.

Lara Love Hardin's The Many Lives of Mama Love is a raw and honest memoir that offers a glimpse into the depths of addiction and the power of redemption. The author's candid exploration of her journey from a seemingly perfect suburban life to the harrowing realities of addiction and incarceration is both heartbreaking and inspiring. Chosen as an Oprah Book Club pick, this book will speak to many readers.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

This memoir is stunning. In The Many Lives of Mama Love, Lara Love Hardin shares her journey from her arrest to navigating life after incarceration. It reads so easily. Not only is Mama Love a beautiful storyteller, she is also a vulnerable one. We get to read the ups and downs of her story, and she doesn’t shy away from sharing her struggles. I felt myself getting frustrated following her cycle of addiction, but in doing so, I felt (in st least a small way) how it could feel to be someone trying to support someone through their struggles with addiction.

I love when a book points me towards some issue plaguing us in the real world, and Mama Love does this so well. In talking through her own difficulties navigating the penal system, she lets us see how corrupted the sytem is. I also really appreciate it that she mentions, more than once, that if it’s this hard for her, the suburban white lady, how much harder it must be for people who are in marginalized group. Thinking about how the system perpetuates itself makes me sick to my stomach, and I hope it does the same for others.

I want to read every other book that Mama Love is a part of. She has suh a way with words, at least telling her own story, that I don’t doubt she has done swimmingly with her others, especially the ones she mentions in the book. I want so many people to read this book. Maybe i’m a memoir girly now.

This was a very inspirational story of a woman who hit the rock bottom and found her way back. The author tells us the story of her incarceration and the struggle to bring her life back to a place of peace and success despite a system that is not designed to help you succeed.

Memoir of Suburban Mom’s Addiction, Crime, and Redemption

The Many Lives of Mama Love is a memoir by Lara Love Hardin that chronicles her tumultuous journey from a suburban soccer mom to a heroin addict and ultimately to a jailhouse shot-caller. The book begins with Hardin's seemingly perfect life in a wealthy neighbourhood, which quickly unravels as she becomes addicted to opioids and starts stealing from her neighbours to fund her addiction. After being arrested and spending time in jail, she manages to rebuild her life, eventually becoming a successful ghostwriter and bestselling author.

Overall, The Many Lives of Mama Love is a profound and widely recommendable masterpiece that offers a raw and insightful look into the struggles and triumphs of overcoming addiction and rebuilding one's life. It is a memoir that not only tells a story but also imparts valuable life lessons.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

I think this is the first time I've gotten a random book from NetGalley that ended up an Oprah Book Club selection. When I started reading this book, I had no idea what it was about. I assumed the author was writing about her mother.

I soon realized that the author was telling her own story about her addiction to various drugs, her time in jail (not prison), and her efforts to get her life back on track, mostly motivated to be reunited with her children.

A well-off woman who struggles with addiction isn't a new story. But the parts of this book that resonated with me were the stories of how to manage probation, multiple court appearances each week, drug tests, holding a full-time job, having no car or home, and jumping through more hoops than one can imagine. Probation is no joke and clearly needs to be reformed because most people end up back in jail because they don't have outside resources to help with all the jumping of hoops.

I really enjoyed this book and felt Lara's story was important, but she had more help than other people do. I'm curious to read a story of someone who doesn't have a wealthy mother-in-law to fund bail and an apartment. How do those people manage to make it on their own?

“The Many Lives of Mama Love is a heartbreaking and tender journey from shame to redemption, despite a system that makes it almost impossible for us to move beyond the worst thing we have ever done.”—Lara Love Hardin, The Many Lives of Mama Love.

Soccer mom Lara Love Hardin had a seemingly perfect life until the police knocked on the door of her million-dollar home. Behind her suburban facade, she was funding a heroin addiction by stealing her neighbors’ credit cards. Hardin’s memoir, The Many Lives of Mama Love, blends despair and comedy as she recounts her journey. “I carefully pick through the bottom-of-purse debris until I find some small brown chips... I don’t know if I’m smoking heroin or food crumbs or lint…,” she writes.

Her crime spree came to a screeching halt with a conviction of 32 felonies and a prison sentence. In the women’s correctional facility, she confronts her choices and quickly adapts, climbing the social ladder to the top. Jailhouse politics aren’t much different from PTA meetings.

Hardin doesn’t shy away from critiquing the criminal justice system, exposing its flaws and the stigma ex-cons face when reentering society. She sheds light on the challenges of finding work and rebuilding a life post-incarceration. However, parts of the memoir, like a Shaman scene, the author’s worship of Oprah Winfrey, and Buddhist thought made me uncomfortable. 4 stars.

** Thanks to the publisher for a comp. The opinions expressed are my own.

I can see why people would have mixed opinions on this book, but I really enjoyed it! Candidly and honestly portrays how hard it is (1) to overcome an addiction and (2) to successfully avoid recidivism one you are criminal justice system involved.

Lara Love was the typical mom next door -- until she became the "neighbor from hell". When she wasn't stealing the identities of those in her community to create new credit cards she was taking theirs right from their purses -- to buy necessities for her kids because her and her husband spent all their money feeding their heroin addiction. Once she is finally caught she is sentenced to county jail, where her rock bottom moment of being separated from her kids spurs her to get clean once and for all and to reconnect with her first addiction instead -- writing.

But things are even harder outside the wall than they were in -- between probation and restitution and reunification with her children she has many balls to juggle and if she drops a single one she will be back to square one.

This is truly a book about forgiveness -- and self-forgiveness in particular (the hardest kind!) It also does a great job highlighting the knowledge and resiliency of children and the areas where our criminal justice system needs vast improvement.

Beautifully written memoir!

Wow! Addiction is a powerful force and this memoir is quite the ride. This provided some much needed inspiration that even the most difficult of situations can be overcome, or at least tolerable. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

Man, this book was good. It was honest and eye opening and full of great lines that really make you think. I'm glad she was able to turn it around. 5 stars!

This book was full of amazing insight. There were many lines throughout the book that were thought provoking, made me put the book down in order to reflect on my life and my own choices. The love the author had for her children and her determination to get them back after everything pinned against her was incredible. Love this book and will always recommend! Thank you Netgalley!!

This book is a must read and I have already recommended it to several friends. Lara is an inspiration and a reminder that our mistakes do not define our future.