27. I can’t fully picture Margaret Qualley playing Caroline Calloway (maybe because she’s not blonde?), but I’m intrigued by Caroline’s view that she’s the perfect fit. Emma Roberts is an interesting recommendation too.

28. The writing about Caroline’s dad and his death is so powerful and devastating.

29. I can relate to so much of Caroline’s descriptions of mental illness and the creep towards destruction. Maybe I’ll write another article, titled ‘no, *I’m* Caroline Calloway’.

30. Genuine thank you to Caroline for including a chapter on writing advice from her old professor. It’s great stuff.

31. “Over my fucking dead goddamn body would Natalie put out a book before I did.” Ha.

32. It brings me joy that this book has a happy-ish ending/redemption arc, with Caroline making amends, paying back funds, and doing some healing.

33. Also, “I’ve made a promise to myself to start dating more women. I don’t want to be rattling around inside my shrunken and shriveled body someday wishing I hadn’t only ever dated men because it was the path of least resistance.” Yes! Good for her.

34. And lovely final lines that are a truly important, valuable message about ditching shame.

35. I love a hefty acknowledgements section.

36. And I really love a note about the typeface.

37. Caroline Calloway has smashed it. Her first book is, at the risk of being hyperbolic, a masterpiece. The writing is incredible, the narrative delicious.

38. Do I think you should pay $65 for the first edition, however? Perhaps not. To many people, Caroline has proven herself by writing this real, actual, in-existence book, but to many, she hasn’t totally eradicated her reputation for not being entirely trustworthy. Sending someone you don’t entirely trust a not-small amount of money for something you’re not convinced will arrive sounds a bit stressful. What I would recommend, however, is rounding up a couple of your friends from the disparate Caroline Calloway camps, chipping in a more manageable portion of the cost, then sharing around this memoir like the delectable treat it is. I very much hope it gets snapped up by a bigger publisher and sold in proper bookshops so more people can enjoy Scammer as much as I did.

38 thoughts I had while reading Caroline Calloway’s first book, Scammer