Reality Matters : 19 Writers Come Clean About the Shows We Can't Stop Watching

Top Chef. America’s Next Top Model. Survivor. Dancing with the Stars. American Idol. Big Brother. The Biggest Loser… Everyone has a guilty reality television pleasure. Curated by Party Girl author Anna David, Reality Matters is a collection of hilarious yet revealing essays from novelists, essayists, and journalists―including Toby Young, Neil Strauss, and Stacey Grenrock Woods, among many others―about the reality television shows they love, obsess over, and cringe at; and why they, and America, can’t stop watching.

What happens when brilliant writers dissect the TV shows we can’t stop watching?

• Humorous Essays: Laugh-out-loud funny and surprisingly insightful takes on the shows we secretly love, from The Bachelor to Jersey Shore.
• Witty Pop Culture Commentary: Some of today’s sharpest novelists and journalists—including Neil Strauss and Toby Young—come clean about their own reality TV obsessions.
• Celebrity Culture Unpacked: Go beyond the guilty pleasure to explore what our fascination with fame, conflict, and on-screen drama reveals about our own lives.
• Smart TV Analysis: A collection that treats reality television with the sharp, intelligent analysis it deserves, proving that even our guiltiest pleasures are worthy of a closer look.

Anna David is the author of the novels Party Girl and Bought, and the editor of the anthology Reality Matters. She has written for the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Redbook, Details, and many other publications. She has appeared on national television programs including Today, Hannity, and CNN’s Showbiz Tonight.