2024 was the year I really got back into audiobooks (thank you, Libby), and I think I've figured out what I like to listen to on audio. Memoirs, particularly celebrity memoirs, are perfect audio listens because often the author reads them, and then it feels just liked a podcast. I had been wanting to read the Paris memoir ever since this one girl I follow on TikTok read it and discussed it, so it was one of my listens in 2024. 

    Warning: I went into the Paris memoir thinking it would be fun and frothy just like Paris Hilton's reputation, and instead there are several chapters towards the middle of the most upsetting and harrowing descriptions of physical and mental abuse from adults towards minors I have read this. In case you didn't know from her activism, Paris Hilton spent about 18 months in "schools" that were a part of the trouble teen industry. I put air quotes around school because these places were more like prisons than schools. Paris writes extensively of the abuse she suffered there: how the rules are arbitrary and designed for you to fail at obeying, the toxic culture of verbal abuse and snitching that was promoted amongst the teens, and the physical and mental abuse hurled at these kids by adults. She attempted to run away three separate times, and each time I held my breath and hoped this time she'd get away. In the end, Paris stayed until she turned 18, and then she rebuilt her life as the "party girl" we all know and love.

    With the context of her time in these horrific programs, Paris Hilton's life makes a lot more sense. She chose a life that would keep her entertained and stimulated so she would never feel like that again. She turned her skills (networking, socializing) into a profitable business. And to be honest, good for her! I'm officially a Paris Hilton fan now, and I will be watching her documentary because I want to see some of how these revelations have impacted her family.