This Is Not Real Life

by Lauren Southern

This Is Not Real Life is a memoir about the total, unfiltered chaos behind the scenes of my time in media.

From an evangelical upbringing and a steady diet of Fox News, to going viral and playing my first part in media disinformation, to meeting with terrorists, neo-Nazis, intelligence agents, and political crime rings. There's coke binges, MDMA diplomacy with enemies, a nuclear-grade marriage meltdown, and a trail of scandals across five continents. I was arrested in Turkey and Morocco, got banned from the UK, and maybe(?) violated international sanctions. Finally, a psychotic break, addiction, and the dark art of conspiracy.

I wrote this book to claw my way back to reality. I hope it helps you to do the same.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Memoir, Biography

260 pages, Paperback

Published July 13, 2025

About the author

Lauren Southern is a Canadian conservative-libertarian activist, internet celebrity, YouTube personality, writer, and documentary film director (Farmlands, Borderless).

She ran as a Libertarian Party candidate in 2015 for the Canadian federal election and was known for her commentary on feminism, free speech, and immigration. Lauren worked for The Rebel Media and has contributed to a number of programs and websites including CBC radio, BBC Radio, The Libertarian Republic, Spiked Online, International Business Times, and Sky News.

Reviews

[Nicolas Portwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

This might be one of the most important books I've read all year. Lauren is a prophet, but not one who predicts the future. She is a prophet who warns us of the dangers in the present. This book was both challenging and convicting, which is exactly what I expected from Lauren. I am glad I was not disappointed.

“You all talk like you’re afraid of being misunderstood. Like you’re not sure what you think until someone else approves it.”

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

At times funny, sad, heartbreaking, and contemplative, this book is a must-read for political/media junkies, especially those on the right who think the people in media they look up to are heroes.

[Manfred Wendt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a fascinating apology to oneself and the world. Lauren Southern came to fame by being a pretty face who brought a camera to protests while saying the phrases people wanted to hear in return for money. This journey took her all across the globe and in the process broke her. Her world comes crashing down in an abusive relationship and government persecution. Now she simply wants to go back to normal - an almost impossible task when you are formerly internet famous.

This book hit home for me because it reminds me of the consequences of the path I chose not to take. Early in my career, I was in a position where it would have been immediately financially beneficial to behave similar to how she behaved. I couldn't morally do so due to my Lutheran faith and personal dignity. Almost everyone who engages in politics in the same way she did burns out, and burns themselves up in the process.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book as it felt like a mirror to an alternative reality. I hope she is able to move on with her life and live a fulfilling life.

[Tessa Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderfully written memoir of Lauren’s time in the political arena and why she wanted to leave it all behind. It felt honest and real. She did more than just recount events, but wrote meaningful reflections. She practiced extreme responsibility. At times I wanted to say, “it’s ok! You were treated like shit!”, but people heal differently and I have to honor that her ownership over her life’s events is hers and hers alone. Once upon a time, social media encouraged honesty and authenticity, but over time political activism took over, blurring the lines of truth, to Truth wars, to narrative manipulation. If we know politicians lie and now accept that social media is fake… how could we not see what was happening? That people’s values were masquerading as dollar signs and status. I hope more people take inspiration from her courage and begin to tell the story of what is happening behind the scenes. If her world was built on sand, that spells absolute ruin for our society as the division continues to widen, as then it’s all built on lies too. God have mercy…

[Rachel JP · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is may well be the most important book of the year. It’s equal parts insightful, riveting, heartbreaking, funny, and is exceedingly well-written. I’m thankful to Lauren for providing us a deeper peak into not only her personal story, but also the political sphere as a whole.

[Christal]

I’m not going to lie, I loved this, and I’m currently bawling. I feel like I owe Lauren an apology. Deep down, I blamed her for making me trust men, and that trust ultimately led to my own undoing.

I was never far-left, more of an OG liberal from the ’80s, and I still feel that way. Even though Lauren is four years younger than me, I followed her early YouTube videos closely. In a strange way, I felt like I grew up with her. Weird, but true.

At the time, I was fresh out of a chaotic liberal arts school that had started blaming white men for everything. I came from nothing, a cold, rural shack in Manitoba, and the men in my life didn’t fit that caricature at all. They made me too afraid to talk to another man, wasting my child bearing years lol. Also, I was also exhausted by whiny liberal white women complaining endlessly. While women in other countries couldn’t even have the wind blowing their hair. I felt completely alone, so I clung to Lauren.

Her outspokenness about certain religions and the decay of Canada, which has only worsened over the last ten years, resonated with me more than I can explain. I supported and watched nearly everything she put out. I let my guard down, hoping for the same kind of life she was presenting as perfect.

When it all fell apart, I was fucking broken. It turned out the left had been right about men’s predatory behaviours, and karma hit me square in the ass. I let my guard down out of hopefulness. Which is my fault and flaw. Something I haven’t forgiven myself for yet.

This book didn’t solve any of my problems. But it gave me a window, maybe, to forgive and to do better. I don’t know. But thank you.

[Broxton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I certainly didn't see this coming since this was a total impulse buy after, ironically, coming across the book while doomscrolling X a few weeks ago...

But This is Not Real Life is the best book I've read this year because its message is so timely. My addiction to social media/the internet has not actually spilled over into "real world" consequences, but that's only by the grace of God. I can still see what it's done or is doing to my mind and my soul, though, and that's why Lauren's story is so relatable.

[Mike Futcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lauren Southern has had an interesting, chaotic and unusual life. That fact alone is enough to recommend any memoir. A provocative right-wing YouTuber straight out of her teens, in 2016 and 2017 she was blowing on the embers of the "culture war" that were just then beginning to take flame; a time when the kindling laid in previous years on the fringes of our society began to manifest into the fault lines that even the most sheltered "normie" would recognise today: Trump, the algorithm, the "woke mind virus".

I remember seeing some of her videos back in the day and finding them acceptable enough. Not enough for me to get sucked into the hyperpolitical craziness that seems to have enveloped so many people in the years since, but they seemed fine. Provocative, sure, but I had a broad mind and never clutched pearls and thought less of people who did; I watched them from time to time and had room for them, just as I had room for other perspectives. At the very least, Southern seemed more earnest than others in what was then starting to be labelled the "alt-right". She wanted to delve into things and tackle various subjects. But she also had her image as the much-desired hot "trad" girl who set out to enrage the "woke lefties", and her attempt to balance these two ultimately incompatible personas seems to have contributed to making her fall from grace particularly spectacular – and messy.

So messy, in fact, that I still don't know what to make of it. In writing this review, I'm aware that's there's enough chaos and murkiness inherent in the Lauren Southern story that there may be some 'smoking gun' reveal at some point in the near-future, which will in turn make me seem gullible for taking her, in the broadest strokes, at her word here. I don't have time for any lurid online gossip about her past hook-ups or 'body count', but surely she was aware that a significant part of the audience she received was due to her attractiveness, and the idealised image various men could project onto her, rather than her journalism/punditry? Did she realise the danger she was flirting with as a Canadian, lacking the rights, government indulgence and free-speech protections that would be afforded, however reluctantly, to an American? And, as a thoroughly-cancelled "terrorist", did she really think quickly marrying and having a baby with a federal agent – of all people – was going to be a recipe for happiness and stability?

The point at which I stopped watching her videos when they popped up on my feed – the Mephistophelian algorithm soon learned – was after her video in cahoots with Martin Sellner. She and her New World audience may have been blind to the man, but as a European I knew a real fucking Nazi when I saw one. I had been passively interested in this "new conservative" movement as a sort of potential counterbalance to the homogenised, algorithmic corpocracy that has ossified our Western civilization, but it was becoming clear that all of this wasn't about to bring balance to the Force. That wasn't Lauren Southern's fault, of course, for despite her headlines she was only a small player in the game. And, as I said, she at least seemed to be earnest and self-reflective. She made mistakes – oh boy, did she make mistakes – but even so, I was surprised at how thoroughly cancelled she became.

The Lauren Southern of 2025, writing her memoir This is Not Real Life, tells us she also struggles with the chaotic mess of it all. It is commendable, then, that the book is thoroughly readable and organised. Southern is a surprisingly clear and astute writer, not only in telling the various stories she has been through – and they are interesting – but in unpacking her thoughts, emotions and philosophies both at the time of those events and in retrospect. She has humour and insight and some completely loony anecdotes to relate to us. By any standards, this is a fine memoir and well worth a read.

At the end of the book, Southern says she held some stuff back out of respect to some of the people involved, and at times you can feel this. Some of the more damaging decisions she made do not really get addressed to the reader's satisfaction: her cocaine addiction, the afore-mentioned Sellner, or the federal agent she quickly married who seemed to abandon her shortly after their son was born. (The suspicion that he was a plant sent to compromise her did cross my mind, particularly in how strange the whole thing sounds, but Southern never addresses this possibility. Nor, out of basic decency, would I expect her to: if remotely true, it's the sort of horrifying thing that could drive someone to the point of madness.)

That said, one does feel throughout the book that Southern is genuine; that This is Not Real Life is a sincere attempt to understand and explain. For the most part, she refrains from excusing or even rationalising her choices; if not always laying herself bare in this book, she's at least recognising that any armour she tried to forge would prove inadequate to the task, and so braces herself for wounds and injury. She hasn't fully abandoned the political sentiments that made (and unmade) her name; this isn't a book that's cravenly seeking absolution from the normie world in order to be allowed a quiet life. She seems legitimately thoughtful here and trying her best. I don't have many real talents, but I've always been quite good at reading comprehension; at knowing, between the lines, whether someone is honest or manipulative in what they're writing. There are always signs, and for the most part Southern doesn't flag them. I don't know enough about her story to be a fact-checker on her memoir, but if Southern is seriously dissembling or lying, I can't tell, and in which case she's an even better writer than I give her credit for.

(As a sidebar, apparently there's some internet drama over her relationship with a left-wing streamer called 'Destiny'. Southern does indeed address this at length, but this was the one part of the story that is fully-addressed but still feels suspiciously incomplete. Having no knowledge of this drama, I Googled it while reading her book and quickly decided I had no time for such silly internet soap-opera. The texts are cringy, but it's nonsense how seriously so many people seem to take it. If Southern is holding back on this affair, I can readily understand it as due to embarrassment rather than deceit.)

Ultimately, what Lauren Southern has provided, out of the ashes of her life, is a thoroughly rewarding piece of writing. Books like this one can't be faked, at least not fully, and so regardless of what one thinks of her political opinions and actions, both past and present, there's evidence here that she now responds to humiliation with humility, to chaos with thoughtfulness. She's not perfect but there's a level of maturity in many of her reflections that deserves respect, particularly when she talks about the mind-warping perspective of internet fame and notoriety, and all the fallout she experienced from that. Having come to fame as a teenager for gleefully "triggering" ridiculous ideologues on the streets with their captured minds, Southern has come to ask how they – and she, and we – became captured, and by whom. This is self-evident growth.

In a world increasingly shaped by clickbait and algorithms and deliberate divisiveness, Southern reminds us – from her own bitter experiences – that there are real people shaping those algorithms for their own ends. Money, power, influence – and all the while our society and our discourse crumbles out of neglect for the things that really matter. Southern might not have the answers, but any good writing on this sickness of our times is to be welcomed. This is Not Real Life warns of the brain-rot that comes from internet fame and from the circus that passes for political discourse nowadays – and, importantly, it comes from one whose brain rotted and was painstakingly recovered. That feat of recovery alone deserves respect; for the recovered author to relate it well to the reader makes This is Not Real Life worthy of your time.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly a wild ride from start to finish.

[Nat Wolf · Rating 2 out of 5]

i'm not even remotely close to being a member of lauren southern's target audience. if i had to describe myself using 3 words - also using them to elucidate how stark this difference is - i'd call myself a transgender bosnian communist. i'm not exactly sure how i ended up reading this book, but i'm glad i did - even though it was oftentimes an extremely frustrating experience.

lauren southern can write well enough, and she has a lot of interesting stories to tell. they're also quite educational for those of us who don't know much about how north american right-wing media operates and how people like southern end up with the mindset and views that they hold.

unfortunately, the insight that i did gleam from southern's writing came in spite of her constant quasiphilosophical rambling. southern can write, sure, in the sense that her writing is legible, entertaining and occasionally funny. i'll admit that she was also occasionally able of eliciting an emotional response out of me. but she's not exactly a great thinker, and the ideas she does have are seldom original. yes lauren, media narratives are being heavily pushed by large corporations and intelligence services in order to serve their interests in some way. and i'm aware that being caught in the middle of this - especially at such a young age - ended up feeling scary and chaotic. you ended up reiterating these points at least 20 or so times throughout the course of the book without ever adding any analysis beyond surface level commentary that feels like it could be done by a high schooler. these parts are an absolute slog to get through and made me consider dropping the book altogether at various points.

despite working in media for so long and being ostensibly somewhat well-read, southern curiously makes next to no reference to political theory of any kind and appears surprisingly uneducated in this field. at some point she claims that she's seen 'corporations push both left-wing and right-wing' narratives which is a baffling idea to me as an old-school yugoslav leftist. are these corporations that are pushing for universal healthcare or worker self-management in the room with us right now? is blackrock pushing for itself to be nationalised? but beyond her lack of political knowledge, what strikes me as being particularly odd is her lack of reflection on certain parts of her life. there's a passage that sticks out to me, where lauren talks about how she felt jealous of a group of a french nationalists she'd met because of how attached they were to their country, and how they had a centuries-old family history in the area, and how she wished she could feel the same thing in canada and how the multi-ethnic and migrant-heavy nature of her neighbourhood made it difficult for her to connect with it. but this is the same woman who admits she grew up on thousands upon thousands of hours of fox news, watching american political commentators talk about american politics. very little mention is made about any sort of canadian equivalent, or canadian politics - bar a few jabs at justin trudeau - or even about canada in general. southern is extremely americanised, to the point where if it wasn't explicitly said that she's canadian i would've just assumed she's from the united states. yet she never makes the link between her americanisation and lifelong obsession with american politics and her detachment from her local community.

it's very bizarre to me that she doesn't address this at all, especially since this is something i can relate to as someone who struggled with this issue myself. i grew up very online - perhaps even moreso than lauren herself, although i've nevertheless had a much more normal life overall in spite of living in post-war bosnia - and ended up knowing more about the cold war and 90s russia than any bosnian teenager ought to know. it might seem like nitpicking, but this is something that provides a rather obvious bit of insight into southern's character, and i think it's telling of what she's like as a person that she doesn't pick up on this at all.

this isn't the only instance of southern failing to pick up on basic patterns about her own behaviour. i feel as though she's due for another round of ego death and a lot more reading if she's to put out an actually good and cohesive book - and i hope she does, because there's a solid author in there.

[Mary Mccants · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny, insane, and very touching. Even if you can't relate to international drug binges and accidental visits to arctic nazi clubhouses, if you've ever been on the internet I think you can find important perspective in this book on the ways the internet shapes us and pulls us into chaos. I'll be thinking about this one for a while.

[Freddi Triback]

Lauren nailed it when she said, “Should’ve called this one “Me, Starring Me, Directed by Me” instead of “2018 Media Archive.” While she was referring to one of her old records, this would be a better title for this book and her life. This was a frustrating read. I’ve never felt more opposite in every way to anyone than to Lauren. If we are supposed to feel sad for her in any way, let’s be reminded of some of her experiences, most of all, the ones that she got away with and/or laughed at.

“Luckily, I’d grown used to the chaos of riots and came prepared—with a helmet, goggles, and a gas mask. All of it came in handy as explosives bounced off my head and I coughed through clouds of pepper spray, livestreaming the whole thing to thousands of viewers who’d tuned in for the ride.”

“Maybe that’s why I really do remember these moments least of all. The moments where I travelled the world, got millions of views, watched men go up in flames, lives destroyed, careers launched, and cities thrown into turmoil.”

“From my Western perspective apartheid had died with the rise of Mandela. Black and white townships were a thing of the past.” Seriously?

“I knew was that I was growing tired of the same old riots, the same old stories. The thought of making yet another video critiquing feminism felt suffocating.” Poor thing…tired of riots.

“Now, I know the TSA (and every equivalent agency) is largely nothing more than a time-wasting joke.” Opinion or fact?

“And honestly, what’s more interesting than a war? I’d seen my share of riots by then, but I hadn’t yet encountered tanks or missiles.”

“Borderless filming was a whirlwind. Chaotic, life-threatening, and utterly reckless.”

“Somewhere out there, in the ether, there’s a picture of me with a group of neo-Nazis in the North Pole. I had no idea how I’d explain that if it ever got out. By that point, I honestly didn’t care.” Something to be proud of? Glad she doesn’t care.

“Then she placed a picture on the table. I could’ve screamed—half in horror, half in hysterical laughter. It was an old Instagram post of mine. I was wearing a burka, holding soy milk and a copy of The Communist Manifesto.”

Not sure why I’ve wasted my time highlighting these passages that made me so upset. The most shocking thing…is she really a teacher? I’m sorry for the children who are looking up to her.

I’m sure that there are many people who will read this book and find her stories funny and adventurous, and there will be some who disagree with my review, but II don’t think her redemption makes up for the terrible things that she has done. Unlike Lauren, I won’t thrive on people’s comments. My only apology is that I wasted money on this book.

[Chris Sotelo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is not explicitly a book about faith, but it has everything to do about faith and God. Much has been written on the right about the hidden connections in mainstream media from talking points, to money, to the business itself. Lauren writes about the alternative media facing some of the same problems, replacing their humanity and curiosity to chase headlines, only read the headlines, and money problems. I've followed Lauren from the beginning, even her first book. This one is an important read about the state of letting external factors consume our lives. Lauren was consumed by money problems, "the cause," and politics. It kept her from her ultimate joy in life, settling down and letting her kid grow. Many could learn the lesson taught to us by the religions of the world.

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even if you are not familiar with Lauren Southern, this is a great book of the effects of internet and political fame. Funny, self deprecating and some shock and awe.

She tackles issues any young woman would, confidence, love, marriage, social media, love except on an international and very public stage. She navigates the meaning of soul and purpose all while telling her story in a way you can hear her voice through the words.

Self-published, this is a truly genuine story that I highly recommend anyone that grew up in the internet age to read.

[swampeater · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty wild read. I grew up watching Lauren Southern so I've always had a soft spot for her compared to her contemporaries. I miss her commentary videos but I respect that she needs distance from this kind of work, and her observations on internet political figures are astute. I'll probably always indulge in political commentary of some form or another but its not productive, ultimately it's entertainment fir entertainment's sake.

[Sarah Cain · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was phenomenal. I'm not sure how interesting it would be to those unfamiliar with the characters, from Milo to Tommy Robinson to Ezra Levant, but for those who've followed the political saga for some time, it's fascinating. I can relate (in a much smaller way) to a lot of what Lauren warns about the nature of the online political world, and even the adrenaline bursts that come from immersion. It's one of the more introspective works I've read in a really long time.

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly great read

I really enjoyed this book. It should be on reading lists in schools (as an option - you need to want to read it to benefit from it). I will give it as a gift to those I think are ready to see.

[Nicholas Jaroma · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fascinating look into the world of online politics. Having spent too much time as an onlooker in this realm, I enjoyed Southern’s insights, and the behind the scenes looks into some of her infamous moments.

[Jacqueline Babb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting set of topics. Hard to read. Needs editing.

[Crissy Moss · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great discussion of getting sucked into internet culture, get chewed up, then spit out.

[Tyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book. Love Lauren's story.