‘Teen Mom’ Books Ranked
Published on September 22, 2017. Updated May 7, 2020MTV’s Teen Mom franchise has become more successful than anyone involved could have ever imagined. After almost 10 years, fans have come to know the stars from both Teen Mom OG and Teen Mom 2 and have watched them go through some of life’s highest highs and lowest lows, but in that time many of the stars have wanted to give fans a more apt understanding of their lives outside of the clips put together for an episode. By now, almost all of the Teen Mom stars have written their own books, providing details about their life before the show and throughout that audiences had no idea about! If you have read all of the Teen Mom stars’ books or haven’t had the chance to check them all out yet, here are our ranking of all the books from worst to best:
9. Kailyn Lowry – Hustle and Heart (2016)
“Hustle and Heart” was Teen Mom 2 star Kailyn Lowry’s second published book in two years and a lot had changed in her life in that short period of time. While her first book was a memoir, “Hustle and Heart” is a book of advice that Kailyn pieced together from her own experiences that she wanted to share with fans. Of course, the main criticism the book faces is “Who is Kailyn Lowry to be giving advice?” which she addresses immediately in the introduction. Regardless, the book is somewhat hypocritical as Kailyn states that people often give advice without realizing it never applies the same way to the same person, so while her tidbits of wisdom are interesting, there is no saying that they would actually be helpful. Longtime fans of the series might also read the book as the reality star’s defense of her attitude as she is often criticized for being “rude” and “ungrateful,” and spends quite a bit of a time trying to explain her attitude.
8. Matt Baier – You Have No F**King Idea (2017)
Matt Baier is the only Teen Mom significant other to publish his very own book after receiving endless criticisms during his relationship with Teen Mom OG star Amber Portwood. Since the pair first hooked up, barely any fans or viewers supported the relationship and it seemed each new day brought a new scandal that Baier was allegedly involved in. With his book “You Have No F**king Idea: The Naked Truth About My Life” which was published in 2017, Baier directly tackled some of the biggest accusations against him such as how many children he really has, and the person behind some of the most scandalous stories about him that were sold to the tabloids. While it was interesting to get Baier’s side to the story, the book was disappointing because he glazed over or ignored some of the worst stories about him, such as his behavior towards Jenelle Evans, Farrah Abraham and Kailyn Lowry on Twitter before meeting Amber on the social media platform. Also, since Amber and Matt split shortly after the book was published, it is easy to see now some of the areas where he was lying which calls into question whether he was telling the truth or just the “truth” he wanted out there which only makes him seem more sketchy than ever.
7. Maci Bookout – I Wasn’t Born Bulletproof (2017)
Much like Kailyn Lowry, Teen Mom OG star Maci Bookout followed up her memoir with an advice book titled “I Wasn’t Born Bulletproof: Lesson I’ve Learned (So You Don’t Have To).” Unlike Kailyn’s “Hustle and Heart,” Maci’s second book is more poised as a compilation of things she has learned and isn’t necessarily trying to tell her readers what will apply to them, but if it does help them than that is an added bonus. The best part out of both of Maci’s books is that her fans finally get to learn more about her parents and her relationship with them. Due to the fact they never appear on the series, many assume their relationship is not that strong, but her memoir and especially “I Wasn’t Born Bulletproof” explain just how close they really are and how supportive her parents have been, not to mention how much she has learned from them which helped her become such a great mom even at a young age.
6. Farrah Abraham – My Teenage Dream Ended (2012)
Out of all the Teen Mom stars, it was actually Farrah Abraham who released the very first Teen Mom memoir back in 2012 with “My Teenage Dream Ended.” Farrah has gone through a lot of transformations since she first appeared on 16 and Pregnant, and even more has changed in the five years since she released the memoir, making it not as relevant to her life now. It is clear that Farrah is the least liked star of the entire franchise, but even for her critics, “My Teenage Dream Ended” is an interesting read. The book offers up more information on her daughter Sophia’s father Derek and Farrah’s relationship with him before his death than anyone could have imagined.
5. Maci Bookout – Bulletproof (2015)
Maci Bookout is one of the Teen Mom franchises overall most liked stars which is thanks to her level head and sensible attitude. She is rarely, if ever, involved in any intense drama and has gained the most respect from fans as a whole, but because of this her memoir “Bulletproof” was the least shocking of them all. While her memoir, like the others, offers a better insight into what Maci was actually thinking when things happened and how she has dealt with becoming an MTV star. Unlike the others, it seems Maci played it too safe with her memoir which doesn’t offer a lot more information than fans already know from watching her on the show for eight years.
4. Catelynn and Tyler Baltierra – Conquering Chaos (2015)
Catelynn Baltierra (Lowell) and Tyler Baltierra have one of the most unique stories out of the entire franchise for many reasons including that they are the only original couple to actually make it, and are the only Teen Mom stars who gave their baby up for adoption on 16 and Pregnant. On camera, Catelynn and Tyler are the most real and genuine stars which, along with their heartwarming love for each other, have made them fan favorites. In 2015 the pair released a joint memoir “Conquering Chaos” and while it included some truly shocking information that fans of the series did not know, it wasn’t as much in comparison to the other memoirs because Catelynn and Tyler have always been completely upfront and never held anything back from their story, and have detailed some of the truly unbelievable things they went through in their childhood. The memoir is definitely worth a read for any Catelynn and Tyler fans.
3. Jenelle Evans – Read Between the Lines (2017)
Jenelle Evans was one of the last Teen Mom stars to publish her own memoir called “Read Between The Lines: From the Diary of a Teenage Mom.” Evans was inspired to write the book after rediscovering some diaries she kept periodically from a young age on, and hoped that telling her own story would help Teen Mom 2 fans better understand her as she is one of the most criticized stars out of all the Teen Moms. As one of the most guarded stars, the memoir offered an unfettered look into not only the full story behind some of Jenelle’s most dramatic moments, but also explained a lot more about her childhood which she rarely if ever speaks about on the series. Although most Teen Mom 2 viewers made up their mind one way or another about Jenelle long ago, her memoir is eye-opening for even her harshest critics.
2. Amber Portwood – Never Too Late (2014)
It is no secret that Amber Portwood has had one of the most turbulent lives ever since she began sharing her story on 16 and Pregnant, but the drama started much before then. Amber has arguably changed the most over her time on camera, and her 2014 memoir “Never Too Late” documents not only a lot about her life before MTV fame and her relationship with Gary, but what was going on behind the scenes as she spiraled into severe drug use which eventually led to her stay in prison. While all of the memoirs try to give fans a more complete picture of what they see on TV, Amber’s is one of the few that makes it clear what fans thought they knew from what they saw on TV was not even half of what was really happening in her life. On top of talking about her childhood, suicide attempts she never speaks about, and her parents, Amber details things that went on while she was filming that audiences had no idea about including people in her life such as very important boyfriend. Amber’s memoir in particular makes viewers realize how much truly gets missed in just the few months of filming that is done each season and filled in the blanks of what happened in her life when Teen Mom OG went on hiatus while she was in prison.
1. Kailyn Lowry – Pride Over Pity (2014)
Kailyn Lowry is one of the most polarizing Teen Mom stars because of her no-nonsense and sometimes harsh attitude which has caused her to be the target of some of the most vicious attacks from viewers. Out of all the Teen Mom memoirs it is safe to say that not only does Kailyn’s have the most shocking revelations, it helps to understand her in a whole new way. There is no denying that she is one of the most guarded people on the show and values her privacy, but nothing was off the table in her memoir and Kailyn has been through some incredibly difficult situations, none of which even made it close to MTV cameras. Like many of the other stars, longtime viewers had formed their opinions about Kailyn long ago, but if there is any memoir that gives the most complete picture and understanding aside from what fans thought they knew, it is Kailyn’s “Pride Over Pity.”
