Tiny Beautiful Things is a newly-released comedy drama on Hulu that was wonderfully written. The miniseries is based on a book of the same title written by Cheryl Strayed.
The main character in the show, Clare Kinkade (played by Kathryn Hahn), writes an advice column called Dear Sugar. This makes viewers wonder if the advice column is real.
Is Tiny Beautiful Things a True Story?
So here's what we know: Strayed's book is a mix of memoir and fiction. There are some parts of the show that are real and some that were made up.
According to Strayed, the parts where Sarah Pigeon portrays young Clare are "very autobiographical and extremely personal" to her. She also says that the life that Hahn plays out "is not [her] life at all."
Another part of the show that was emotional for Strayed is reliving the memory of losing her mom at a young age. Just like Clare, Strayed lost her mom when she was only 22 years old.
But this isn't the first time Strayed's mom, Bobbi Lambrecht, was brought to life onscreen. Her role was also portrayed by Laura Dern in another film based on Strayed's life, Wild.
"Laura Dern was extraordinary and was nominated for an Oscar for her performance. And Merritt Wever just absolutely blows me away. She's captured the essence of my mom. I see my mom shimmering in Merritt's face. It makes me so grateful."
One important thing that was changed in Tiny Beautiful Things is that when her mom died, Strayed actually went on a soul-searching trek. Meanwhile, Clare becomes a young mom in the show.
Another difference from Strayed's life and the show is that the main character stopped pursuing her dream to be a writer. After giving birth, we see that Clare actually struggled in being a mom and getting published.
In real life, however, Strayed has published a total of four books: Torch, Wild: From Lost to Found, Tiny Beautiful Things, and Brave Enough. She is also a podcast host.
Is the Dear Sugar Advice Column in Tiny Beautiful Things Real?
Yes, the Dear Sugar advice column is actually a real, anonymous column. It can be found on The Rumpus, where it has been published since 2010.
Like Tiny Beautiful Things, Strayed's Dear Sugar column was actually handed over to her by a fellow writer, Steve Almond. Around this time, Strayed had already published her first novel.
She continued to write for the column under the pseudonym, Sugar, and referred to her readers as "sweet peas." The last entry on The Rumpus dates back to 2012.
In October 2020, however, Strayed announced on her website that she is bringing Dear Sugar back. Together with the original creator of the column, Strayed and Almond have turned to answering letters via a podcast.
Tiny Beautiful Things is available to watch on Hulu. There are a total of eight episodes in the miniseries. You can watch a featurette of the show here:
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