I read for pleasure and that is the moment I learn the most. —Margaret Atwood
It all started with a poignant scene from the semi-scripted show The Hills, as many great intellectual undertakings do. The heroine and moral center of the not-quite-reality show that ran on MTV from 2006 to 2010 and preceded the rise of Real Housewives–esque wealth-porn TV was Lauren Conrad, a mega-privileged California girl with tons of wonderful opportunities, a beautiful apartment, great hair, and really bad taste in boys and friends. The entire show had a fake, airbrushed glow about it, but Lauren’s emotions always seemed so real. She felt things. There’s a famous screenshot from The Hills that shows Conrad arguing with a friend over some petty yet dramatic grievance and crying the most perfect single black mascara tear.
