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Coronet will publish Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing, an essay collection by Lauren Hough, author of the viral essay, "I Was A Cable Guy. I Saw the Worst of America" (Huffington Post, 2018).
Hough grew up as a member of infamous cult The Children of God, and she felt she "had her own self robbed from her", the publisher said. With the cult, she travelled all over the globe, but it wasn't until she left that she understood she could have a life beyond "The Family".
Her first essay collection will interrogate notions of ecstasy, queerness, survival, identity, and explore how to reclaim one's past when carving out a future.
Melissa Cox, editorial director, acquired UK and Commonwealth rights, excluding Canada, from Lorella Belli at Lorella Belli Literary Agency. UK publication is slated for 13th April 2021, with Vintage Knopf publishing in the US.
Cox said: "Roxane Gay has described this book 'as one of those rare books that will instantly become part of the literary canon' and I couldn’t think of a better way to describe it. Lauren’s writing is so powerfully moving, alternately shot through with humour or anger or insight that hits you like a gut punch. I just knew we had to get her work to readers in our territories."
Hough said: "I’m honoured to be working with Melissa and the Coronet team and included among their many admirable authors. Having grown up all over the world, I’m thrilled these essays will be available to readers outside the US."