Scan barcode
A review by sarahdm
Hey, Hun: Sales, Sisterhood, Supremacy, and the Other Lies Behind Multilevel Marketing by Emily Lynn Paulson
4.0
I wanna start this out by saying that I actually REALLY like the book. I went into this already knowing a lot about MLMs and how they are basically cults. But I had never really heard a personal first hand account of it. Paulson is personal and detailed about her journey which I really appreciated. As a memoir, I think its a great read.
However-
As much as I actually enjoyed the personal account of being through an MLM, I cannot stand Paulson. (I'm about to get incredibly judgmental and I'm sorry in advanced) Her voice and personality are very present in the book. She very much comes off as the boss babe, upper middle class white lady, "being a mom is my entire personality", type of suburban wine lady that I can not stand to talk to in person. She is also very much a centralist and it shows in her actions and words in he book. A lot of the statement she gives about white supremacy and late-stage capitalism often feels performative since she never really deep dives into the topics or shows any real convictions. The only statements that really felt genuine where the ones made about misogyny and feminism because obviously that's the only social issue she can actual relate to and feel connection to (a very centralist problem). I actually really learned a lot about the isolation that stay at home moms feel and how that craving for community is what draws these woman to the MLMs. Another thing is that Paulson is so obviously financially well off despite being the victim of an MLM. There is a moment in the book where she talks about how "little" she is making through her MLM and the number is more than what a lot of American's live off of. Listen, I feel for her. Her story is super compelling and she is a victim of an MLM. But Paulson has a lot of work to do on herself if she really wants to truly be an authentic person because her convictions seem shallow.
But listen, if you can get passed the voice of the book then I would absolutely recommend this books. I think my interest in MLMs and cults just out weighed the fact that it felt like I was being spoken to by a centralist Karen.
However-
As much as I actually enjoyed the personal account of being through an MLM, I cannot stand Paulson. (I'm about to get incredibly judgmental and I'm sorry in advanced) Her voice and personality are very present in the book. She very much comes off as the boss babe, upper middle class white lady, "being a mom is my entire personality", type of suburban wine lady that I can not stand to talk to in person. She is also very much a centralist and it shows in her actions and words in he book. A lot of the statement she gives about white supremacy and late-stage capitalism often feels performative since she never really deep dives into the topics or shows any real convictions. The only statements that really felt genuine where the ones made about misogyny and feminism because obviously that's the only social issue she can actual relate to and feel connection to (a very centralist problem). I actually really learned a lot about the isolation that stay at home moms feel and how that craving for community is what draws these woman to the MLMs. Another thing is that Paulson is so obviously financially well off despite being the victim of an MLM. There is a moment in the book where she talks about how "little" she is making through her MLM and the number is more than what a lot of American's live off of. Listen, I feel for her. Her story is super compelling and she is a victim of an MLM. But Paulson has a lot of work to do on herself if she really wants to truly be an authentic person because her convictions seem shallow.
But listen, if you can get passed the voice of the book then I would absolutely recommend this books. I think my interest in MLMs and cults just out weighed the fact that it felt like I was being spoken to by a centralist Karen.