Book Review: I Can't Make This Up: Life Lessons

by Tracy Simpson, Pratt City Branch Library

I Can’t Make This Up: Life Lessons
Kevin Hart

Between hurricanes, earthquakes, wildfires, politics, and everything else that is going on in the news recently, I was searching for a book that I thought might provide me some much-needed comic relief. Not one to read memoirs, I took a chance on Kevin Hart’s first book, I Can’t Make This Up: Life Lessons. My selection was based on Hart’s appearance in several recent box office hit comedies and it didn’t disappoint.

Hart doesn’t hold back in providing details about his challenges of being born into a household where his birth wasn’t a celebration but a toleration. From a father who lived in a criminal environment to his overprotective mother determined to keep him off drugs and out of gangs, Hart had an opportunity to see the sides of both worlds. One of Hart’s earliest life lessons was witnessing his brother being kicked out of the house for selling drugs, combined with a less than twenty-four hour overnight stay at his father’s residence in which he witnessed the lack of structure and stability he was accustomed to with his mother. Both of these early lessons (along with many more on his journey) helped instill in him a drive and determination for success through hard work.

Hart writes openly about his relationship with his first wife Torrei and the love and struggles they endured as he juggled climbing the ladder to success with being a father and a husband. The relationships and bonds made with other comedians who were there at his lowest and highest points also play a key role in Hart’s life lessons.

While the novel certainly has some laughs, Hart also takes a moment to share some serious pieces of advice with the reader. Many believe that Hart was an overnight comedic sensation, but his novel takes us through the almost twenty years of "life lessons" that helped shaped him and reach a level of success. Take a break from the news and enjoy a good laugh—check out Kevin Hart’s book, I Can’t Make This Up: Life Lessons, from the library today!

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