Beautiful Things (memoir)
| Company type | Autobiography |
|---|---|
| Industry | Publishing |
| Founded | April 6, 2021 |
| Founder | Hunter Biden |
| Products | Book |
Beautiful Things: A Memoir is a 2021 autobiographical work by American attorney and entrepreneur Hunter Biden, the second son of U.S. President Joe Biden and his first spouse, Neilia Hunter Biden. The book was issued on April 6, 2021, through Gallery Books, a division of Simon & Schuster. The New York Times characterized it as a blend of family history, a story of mourning, and an anguished account of addiction.
Synopsis
In Beautiful Things, Hunter Biden explores his familial roots alongside his battles with substance abuse, chronicling his journey toward recovery. He reflects on the sorrow following the passing of his brother, Beau Biden, as well as the tragic 1972 automobile accident that claimed the lives of his mother and sister. The memoir further includes his explanation regarding his role on the board of the Ukrainian firm Burisma.
Biden disclosed that his dependency on cocaine reached its height in 2015, subsequent to his brother’s demise.
Publication and promotion
The memoir was launched in both hardcover and digital editions on April 6, 2021, by Gallery Books and was also released as an audiobook featuring narration by Biden himself. To promote the book, he appeared on various media platforms such as CBS Sunday Morning, CBS This Morning, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and WTF with Marc Maron.
Upon release, Beautiful Things entered The New York Times nonfiction best-seller list at number four for the week ending April 10, 2021. It achieved a ranking of 130 on Amazon Best Sellers and recorded sales near 10,000 copies during its initial week.
Reception
Marianne Szegedy-Maszak from The Washington Post called the memoir "relentless, harrowing, and a purposeful effort to reclaim his story from political opponents and media scrutiny." Seija Rankin of Entertainment Weekly commended Biden’s candid portrayal of addiction but remarked that the storytelling occasionally seemed hurried and contained some rehearsed elements.