
Well, This Is Exhausting
Essays
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $18.74
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Sophia Benoit
-
By:
-
Sophia Benoit
About this listen
From Bustle columnist and Twitter sensation Sophia Benoit, this “charming and often laugh-out-loud funny” (Vogue) memoir-in-essays explores the ins and outs of modern womanhood - from finding feminism, the power of pop culture, and how to navigate life’s constant double standards - perfect for fans of Shrill and PEN15.
Like so many women, Sophia spent her formative years struggling to do the “right” thing - to make others comfortable, to take minimal and calculated risks, to live up to society’s expectations - only to realize that there was so little payoff to this tiresome balancing act. Tired of trying so hard, Sophia finally let go of the crushing pressure to be perfect.
She navigates the highs and lows of the dating world (high: being a beta tester for Bumble; low: hastily shaving her legs before a hotel hookup and getting blood all over the sheets), and walks the line between being a “chill” girl and making sure her boyfriend’s nonchalance about altitude sickness doesn’t get him killed. She learns what it means to be a feminist, how to embrace her own voice, and when to listen to women who have been through more and have been doing the work longer.
With topics ranging from how to be the life of the party (even when you have crippling anxiety), to an ill-fated consultation with a dietician who deemed Sophia’s overindulgence in ketchup a serious health risk, to a masterful argument for why no one should judge you for having an encyclopedic knowledge of reality TV, Well, This Is Exhausting is not only “one of the funniest books you’ll read this year, but it’s also one of the most important” (Shondaland).
©2021 Sophia Benoit. All rights reserved. (P)2021 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Woman in Me
- By: Britney Spears
- Narrated by: Michelle Williams, Britney Spears - introduction
- Length: 5 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice—her truth—was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey—and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history. Written with remarkable candor and humor, Spears’s groundbreaking book illuminates the enduring power of music and love—and the importance of a woman telling her own story, on her own terms, at last.
-
-
Lack of transparency
- By Lori K on 10-31-23
By: Britney Spears
-
Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies
- And Other Rituals to Fix Your Life, from Someone Who's Been There
- By: Tara Schuster
- Narrated by: Tara Schuster
- Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By the time she was in her late 20s, Tara Schuster was a rising TV executive who had worked for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and helped launch Key & Peele to viral superstardom. By all appearances, she had mastered being a grown-up. But beneath that veneer of success, she was a chronically anxious, self-medicating mess. No one knew that her road to adulthood had been paved with depression, anxiety, and shame. Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies is the story of Tara’s path to re-parenting herself and becoming a "ninja of self-love".
-
-
Shallow romp through other authors works
- By MM in Los Angeles on 03-01-20
By: Tara Schuster
-
Lessons in Chemistry
- A Novel
- By: Bonnie Garmus
- Narrated by: Miranda Raison, Bonnie Garmus, Pandora Sykes
- Length: 11 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing as an average woman. But it’s the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute takes a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans; the lonely, brilliant, Nobel–prize nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with—of all things—her mind. True chemistry results.
-
-
Making my 3 adult daughters read this
- By Teresa H. on 04-07-22
By: Bonnie Garmus
-
Sure, I'll Join Your Cult
- A Memoir of Mental Illness and the Quest to Belong Anywhere
- By: Maria Bamford
- Narrated by: Maria Bamford
- Length: 7 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Maria Bamford is a comedian’s comedian (an outsider among outsiders) and has forever fought to find a place to belong. From struggling with an eating disorder as a child of the 1980s, to navigating a career in the arts (and medical debt and psychiatric institutionalization), she has tried just about every method possible to not only be a part of the world, but to want to be a part of it. In Bamford’s “trademark blend of disarming intimacy and dark whimsy” (Publishers Weekly), Sure, I’ll Join Your Cult brings us on a quest to participate in something.
-
-
Hilarious and sincere
- By B. Bazzell on 09-06-23
By: Maria Bamford
-
I'm Glad My Mom Died
- By: Jennette McCurdy
- Narrated by: Jennette McCurdy
- Length: 6 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jennette McCurdy was six years old when she had her first acting audition. Her mother’s dream was for her only daughter to become a star, and Jennette would do anything to make her mother happy. So she went along with what Mom called “calorie restriction." She endured extensive at-home makeovers while Mom chided, “Your eyelashes are invisible, okay? You think Dakota Fanning doesn’t tint hers?” She was even showered by Mom until age sixteen while sharing her diaries, email, and all her income. In I’m Glad My Mom Died, Jennette recounts all this in unflinching detail.
-
-
Unexpectedly poor narration
- By Glitchzig on 08-10-22
By: Jennette McCurdy
-
The World Deserves My Children
- By: Natasha Leggero
- Narrated by: Natasha Leggero, Moshe Kasher
- Length: 5 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Natasha Leggero got pregnant at forty-two after embarking on the grueling IVF process, she was over the moon. But once her feelings of bliss dissipated, she couldn’t help but shake the lingering question: Am I doing this right? And then, Should I be doing this if the world is about to end?
-
-
I should’ve picked something else
- By Danni B. on 01-30-25
By: Natasha Leggero
-
The Woman in Me
- By: Britney Spears
- Narrated by: Michelle Williams, Britney Spears - introduction
- Length: 5 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice—her truth—was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey—and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history. Written with remarkable candor and humor, Spears’s groundbreaking book illuminates the enduring power of music and love—and the importance of a woman telling her own story, on her own terms, at last.
-
-
Lack of transparency
- By Lori K on 10-31-23
By: Britney Spears
-
Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies
- And Other Rituals to Fix Your Life, from Someone Who's Been There
- By: Tara Schuster
- Narrated by: Tara Schuster
- Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By the time she was in her late 20s, Tara Schuster was a rising TV executive who had worked for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and helped launch Key & Peele to viral superstardom. By all appearances, she had mastered being a grown-up. But beneath that veneer of success, she was a chronically anxious, self-medicating mess. No one knew that her road to adulthood had been paved with depression, anxiety, and shame. Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies is the story of Tara’s path to re-parenting herself and becoming a "ninja of self-love".
-
-
Shallow romp through other authors works
- By MM in Los Angeles on 03-01-20
By: Tara Schuster
-
Lessons in Chemistry
- A Novel
- By: Bonnie Garmus
- Narrated by: Miranda Raison, Bonnie Garmus, Pandora Sykes
- Length: 11 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing as an average woman. But it’s the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute takes a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans; the lonely, brilliant, Nobel–prize nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with—of all things—her mind. True chemistry results.
-
-
Making my 3 adult daughters read this
- By Teresa H. on 04-07-22
By: Bonnie Garmus
-
Sure, I'll Join Your Cult
- A Memoir of Mental Illness and the Quest to Belong Anywhere
- By: Maria Bamford
- Narrated by: Maria Bamford
- Length: 7 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Maria Bamford is a comedian’s comedian (an outsider among outsiders) and has forever fought to find a place to belong. From struggling with an eating disorder as a child of the 1980s, to navigating a career in the arts (and medical debt and psychiatric institutionalization), she has tried just about every method possible to not only be a part of the world, but to want to be a part of it. In Bamford’s “trademark blend of disarming intimacy and dark whimsy” (Publishers Weekly), Sure, I’ll Join Your Cult brings us on a quest to participate in something.
-
-
Hilarious and sincere
- By B. Bazzell on 09-06-23
By: Maria Bamford
-
I'm Glad My Mom Died
- By: Jennette McCurdy
- Narrated by: Jennette McCurdy
- Length: 6 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jennette McCurdy was six years old when she had her first acting audition. Her mother’s dream was for her only daughter to become a star, and Jennette would do anything to make her mother happy. So she went along with what Mom called “calorie restriction." She endured extensive at-home makeovers while Mom chided, “Your eyelashes are invisible, okay? You think Dakota Fanning doesn’t tint hers?” She was even showered by Mom until age sixteen while sharing her diaries, email, and all her income. In I’m Glad My Mom Died, Jennette recounts all this in unflinching detail.
-
-
Unexpectedly poor narration
- By Glitchzig on 08-10-22
By: Jennette McCurdy
-
The World Deserves My Children
- By: Natasha Leggero
- Narrated by: Natasha Leggero, Moshe Kasher
- Length: 5 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Natasha Leggero got pregnant at forty-two after embarking on the grueling IVF process, she was over the moon. But once her feelings of bliss dissipated, she couldn’t help but shake the lingering question: Am I doing this right? And then, Should I be doing this if the world is about to end?
-
-
I should’ve picked something else
- By Danni B. on 01-30-25
By: Natasha Leggero
-
The Jolliest Bunch
- Unhinged Holiday Stories
- By: Danny Pellegrino
- Narrated by: Danny Pellegrino
- Length: 6 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For many families, the holiday season is—in a word—unhinged. In no family is that more true than in Danny Pellegrino’s, beloved podcast host of Everything Iconic and bestselling author. Inappropriately improvised monologues at the children's Christmas pageant, presents that land someone in the emergency room, or just sitting on the absolute roller coaster that is a Hallmark movie marathon, the holidays are a strange and magical time in the Pellegrino household. And nobody knows this better than Danny.
-
-
So entertaining
- By LL Martin on 03-02-25
By: Danny Pellegrino
-
Quietly Hostile
- Essays
- By: Samantha Irby
- Narrated by: Samantha Irby
- Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Samantha Irby’s career has taken her to new heights. She dodges calls from Hollywood and flop sweats on the red carpet at premieres (well, one premiere). But nothing is ever as it seems online, where she can crop out all the ugly parts. Irby got a lot of weird emails about Carrie Bradshaw, and not only is there diarrhea to avoid, but now—anaphylactic shock. She is turned away from restaurants for being inappropriately dressed and looks for the best ways to cope, i.e., reveling in the offerings of QVC and adopting a deranged pandemic dog.
-
-
Extremely disappointed
- By Diana in Michigan on 07-20-23
By: Samantha Irby
-
I'm Fine...and Other Lies
- By: Whitney Cummings
- Narrated by: Whitney Cummings
- Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A hilarious and emotional personal account of the life, times, mistakes, and crippling codependence of comedian, producer, director, actress, and writer Whitney Cummings. Full of intellect, pathos, and profundity, I'm Fine...and Other Lies is, in Whitney's words, her first book, which means her last date. With her signature incendiary edge and self-deprecation, Whitney comes clean about what has shaped her into the trailblazing comic that she is today.
-
-
I've been waiting for this woman to write a book!
- By Giggle Pants on 10-09-17
By: Whitney Cummings
-
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
- A Novel
- By: Taylor Jenkins Reid
- Narrated by: Alma Cuervo, Julia Whelan, Robin Miles
- Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one in the journalism community is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now? Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband, David, has left her, and her career has stagnated.
-
-
Glucose Gluttony
- By W Perry Hall on 03-17-18
-
Malibu Rising
- A Novel
- By: Taylor Jenkins Reid
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Malibu: August 1983. It’s the day of Nina Riva’s annual end-of-summer party, and anticipation is at a fever pitch. Everyone wants to be around the famous Rivas: Nina, the talented surfer and supermodel; brothers Jay and Hud, one a championship surfer, the other a renowned photographer; and their adored baby sister, Kit. Together the siblings are a source of fascination in Malibu and the world over—especially as the offspring of the legendary singer Mick Riva. The only person not looking forward to the party of the year is Nina herself.
-
-
Malibu Sinking
- By SB on 06-01-21
-
Glow in the F*cking Dark
- Simple Practices to Heal Your Soul, from Someone Who Learned the Hard Way
- By: Tara Schuster
- Narrated by: Tara Schuster
- Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The author of the runaway hit Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies shares honest and practical lessons for healing your past and owning your future so you can radiate strength, bravery, and joy when life gets dark.
-
-
So awkward...
- By Shawna on 06-15-23
By: Tara Schuster
-
XOXO, Cody
- An Opinionated Homosexual's Guide to Self-Love, Relationships, and Tactful Pettiness
- By: Cody Rigsby
- Narrated by: Cody Rigsby
- Length: 6 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cody Rigsby has a lot of opinions: Kevin is the hottest Backstreet Boy; grape jelly is a crime against nature; if you wear flip-flops in New York City, you do not love yourself. But if there is one opinion—one truth—that he holds above all others, it’s that we shouldn’t let the fear of looking stupid or being judged hold us back from living our best lives.
-
-
This book GIVES MAIN BOOK ENERGY!
- By Coffee N Craft on 09-13-23
By: Cody Rigsby
-
Wow, No Thank You.
- Essays
- By: Samantha Irby
- Narrated by: Samantha Irby
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A new rip-roaring essay collection from the smart, edgy, hilarious, unabashedly raunchy, and best-selling Samantha Irby. Irby is 40, and increasingly uncomfortable in her own skin despite what Inspirational Instagram Infographics have promised her. She has left her job as a receptionist at a veterinary clinic, has published successful books and has been friendzoned by Hollywood, left Chicago, and moved into a house with a garden that requires repairs and know-how with her wife in a Blue town in the middle of a Red state....
-
-
listen to this book. and then repeat. twice.
- By hattie walls on 04-08-20
By: Samantha Irby
-
Wildflower
- By: Drew Barrymore
- Narrated by: Drew Barrymore
- Length: 7 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Wildflower is a portrait of Drew's life in stories as she looks back on the adventures, challenges, and incredible experiences of her earlier years. It includes tales of living on her own at 14 (and how laundry may have saved her life), getting stuck in a gas station overhang on a cross-country road trip, saying good-bye to her father in a way only he could have understood, and many more adventures and lessons that have led her to the successful, happy, and healthy place she is today.
-
-
Hold the shrieking !
- By Dawne on 11-27-15
By: Drew Barrymore
-
The Shift
- Change Your Perspective, Not Yourself
- By: Tinx
- Narrated by: Tinx
- Length: 5 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s time to get laser-focused on what makes us feel happy and fulfilled. Tinx wants to take your hand and guide you to a new way of thinking about life, love, happiness, and friendships—where dating evolves into an era of self-discovery and not just a means to an end, sharing wisdom becomes a collective power, and chaos turns into a source of creativity. Making small but mighty shifts in thinking can be a tool for personal growth that fuels you instead of fatigues you. The point is to know yourself, discover what fulfills you, and have fun along the way.
-
-
Beautiful, funny, insightful all at the same time
- By Katlynn on 05-24-23
By: Tinx
-
You'll Grow Out of It
- By: Jessi Klein
- Narrated by: Jessi Klein
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In You'll Grow Out of It, Jessi Klein offers - through an incisive collection of real-life stories - a relentlessly funny yet poignant take on a variety of topics she has experienced along her strange journey to womanhood and beyond. These include her "transformation from Pippi Longstocking-esque tomboy to are-you-a-lesbian-or-what tom man", attempting to find watchable porn, and identifying the difference between being called "ma'am" and "miss" (" miss sounds like you weigh 99 pounds").
-
-
I like this woman so much!
- By Sarah F. on 07-24-16
By: Jessi Klein
-
The Waymakers
- Clearing the Path to Workplace Equity with Competence and Confidence
- By: Tara Jaye Frank
- Narrated by: Tara Jaye Frank
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What really drives workplace equity and inclusion - beyond strategies and systems? The truth is, all historically excluded persons who have broken through to greater levels of professional belonging and achievement have succeeded not by policy and systems change alone, but because of leaders who chose to remove barriers, open doors, and guide them toward their goals. The bottom line? Someone made a way for them. Using case studies, data, and candid storytelling, Tara Jaye Frank outlines how leaders with power and position can clear the path to workplace equity.
-
-
Not what it seems
- By Shea Stock on 01-02-23
By: Tara Jaye Frank
Featured Article: Listens and Learnings from
The Great Resignation
Living through the COVID-19 pandemic put the fleeting nature of human life front and center, and served as a turning point in the lives of millions. Radical shifts in social interactions and ways of working, along with the prevalence of illness and grief, motivated many to reassess their priorities. A staggering number of adult workers pivoted their careers or just plain left the workforce entirely, in a phenomenon that’s been coined The Great Resignation.
What listeners say about Well, This Is Exhausting
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Elizabeth K. Smith
- 12-20-22
Sophia is inspiring
Sophia’s story is inspiring for women everywhere. As a perfectionistic, queer young adult woman, I feel everyday that everyone else has got it figured out. That everyone else is thriving in their jobs, schoolwork, friendships, and romantic relationships. Sophia destroys that thinking with her raw vulnerability with everything from eating disorders, to hookups, to battling negative self talk. If you’re looking for validation and comfort that you’re not alone, you’ve come to the right place.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Princessmillania
- 04-08-22
Loved it!
This book was an excellent mix of personal essays, memoir, and a splash of life lessons learned. It’s funny and entertaining with the right amount of depth and insights.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Debbie
- 01-12-25
Great storyteller
I loved the way she read the story, I thought the storyline was just okay.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 07-01-22
Could live without it
this book was fine. The first few essays are better then it goes off the rails. It’s more of an autobiography for an author in a hurry than it is anything else. The listical chapters are really annoying and the constant mention of cis white men (pronounced cizz for some reason) got really old and was too repetitive.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- LARynders
- 01-10-23
Very entertaining
Loved it! Litterally LOL'd many times! Which I'm sure was entertaining for the drivers around me.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Lilith
- 04-10-22
love her vocabulary
I love her expanded vocabulary which is the reason I bought the book. she is funny and inspiring
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Svetlana Evgenevna Braunscheidel
- 04-25-22
Refreshing
Was… needed. Appreciated the humor and the heartbreak and everything in between. Thank you, Sophia.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Russ M.
- 01-04-22
Not captivating
I suppose I hold GREENLIGHTS as the bar everyone needs to get to but this book just wasn’t captivating at all. Too much woe is me and putting her fat self down. Not enough inflection by the author/reader either.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ann-Marie Johnson
- 04-12-22
Couldn’t finish this
I really thought this might be enjoyable and fun, but I’m 3 chapters in and I feel like I’m listening to a one sided conversation with a high schooler, despite she is an adult as a writer.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- loves to read
- 04-02-23
Get Over Yourself
This was one of the most disturbing books i have ever read - narcissistic person writing about her poor choices and how she is a victim.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!