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 "excerpt": "Tiny Beautiful Things is a 2023 Hulu drama miniseries, also called the Dear Sugar series, adapted by Liz Tigelaar from Cheryl Strayed's 2012 advice-column book, starring Kathryn Hahn as Clare, an alternate-reality Strayed who never hiked the Pacific Crest Trail.",
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 "markdown": "# Tiny Beautiful Things\n\n*Tiny Beautiful Things* is an American drama television miniseries that premiered on Hulu on April 7, 2023, adapted from [Cheryl Strayed](https://www.edgepedia.org/cheryl-strayed)'s 2012 book *Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar*, a collection of columns from her anonymous online advice persona \"Dear Sugar\".<sup>[1](https://hello-sunshine.com/project/tiny-beautiful-things/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2023-04-07/tiny-beautiful-things-hulu-liz-tigelaar)</sup> Created by Liz Tigelaar and starring [Kathryn Hahn](https://www.edgepedia.org/kathryn-hahn), the eight-episode series follows Clare, a floundering writer who becomes a revered advice columnist while her own life is falling apart.<sup>[3](https://press.hulu.com/shows/tiny-beautiful-things/)</sup>\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Premiere | April 7, 2023, on Hulu; all eight episodes released at once<sup>[1](https://hello-sunshine.com/project/tiny-beautiful-things/)</sup> |\n| Format | Drama limited series, roughly 30-minute episodes, rated TV-MA<sup>[4](https://epguides.com/TinyBeautifulThings/)</sup> |\n| Source | Cheryl Strayed's 2012 essay collection drawn from the \"Dear Sugar\" advice column at the online literary magazine The Rumpus<sup>[2](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2023-04-07/tiny-beautiful-things-hulu-liz-tigelaar)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[5](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2023/apr/07/tiny-beautiful-things-review-kathryn-hahn-cheryl-strayed-disney)</sup> |\n| Lead cast | Kathryn Hahn (Clare), Sarah Pidgeon (young Clare), Quentin Plair (Danny), Tanzyn Crawford (Rae), Merritt Wever (Frankie)<sup>[4](https://epguides.com/TinyBeautifulThings/)</sup> |\n| Production | Created by Liz Tigelaar; ABC Signature and Hello Sunshine; executive producers include Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Cheryl Strayed, and Kathryn Hahn<sup>[3](https://press.hulu.com/shows/tiny-beautiful-things/)</sup> |\n| Reception | 85% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer from 39 reviews; Metascore of 73 on Metacritic<sup>[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/tiny_beautiful_things/s01)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[7](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/tiny-beautiful-things/critic-reviews/)</sup> |\n| Recognition | Two Primetime Emmy Award nominations, for Hahn as lead actress and Merritt Wever as supporting actress in a limited series<sup>[8](https://thetvdb.com/series/tiny-beautiful-things)</sup> |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Premise\n\nAs the series begins, Clare's union with her spouse Danny is on its last legs, her adolescent daughter Rae is rebuffing her, and the writing career that once showed promise has vanished. When an old writing friend asks her to take over the advice column Dear Sugar, she thinks she has no business giving anyone advice. After reluctantly taking on the role, she finds that answering letters forces her to revisit her most pivotal moments, from childhood through the present, and to excavate the beauty, struggle, and humor in her unhealed wounds.<sup>[3](https://press.hulu.com/shows/tiny-beautiful-things/)</sup>\n\nThe story is told in multiple timelines. Sarah Pidgeon plays Clare in the past, and [Merritt Wever](https://www.edgepedia.org/merritt-wever) plays Frankie, the character based on Strayed's mother, who appears in flashbacks.<sup>[4](https://epguides.com/TinyBeautifulThings/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[9](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2023/04/cheryl-strayed-interview-tiny-beautiful-things-awards-insider)</sup>\n\n## From book to screen\n\n**An alternate-reality Cheryl.** The central adaptation problem was that Strayed had already been portrayed by name in the film of her memoir *Wild*, and did not want to revisit that. Tigelaar's solution, which she describes as an alternate-reality version of Strayed, asks what would have happened if Strayed had never hiked the [Pacific Crest Trail](https://www.edgepedia.org/pacific-crest-trail) and never written *Wild*. The result is Clare, now 49, devastated that she has not fulfilled her promise as a writer, drinking too much, and watching her marriage, work, and relationship with her daughter suffer.<sup>[10](https://time.com/6266265/cheryl-strayed-interview-tiny-beautiful-things-hulu/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[9](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2023/04/cheryl-strayed-interview-tiny-beautiful-things-awards-insider)</sup> After Tigelaar named her Clare, Strayed pointed out that she had called a fictionalized version of herself \"Claire\" in her 2005 novel *Torch*, which was also a version of her life without the trail.<sup>[2](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2023-04-07/tiny-beautiful-things-hulu-liz-tigelaar)</sup>\n\nTigelaar also avoided making the letter writers a character in each episode orbiting the protagonist, choosing instead to build out the memoir element of the essays, so that a letter writer did not need to appear on screen.<sup>[2](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2023-04-07/tiny-beautiful-things-hulu-liz-tigelaar)</sup> Strayed was an active part of the writers' room and executive-produced and helped write the series.<sup>[10](https://time.com/6266265/cheryl-strayed-interview-tiny-beautiful-things-hulu/)</sup> She said the only thing that mattered was making a show that honors the book without replicating it.<sup>[11](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/awards/story/2023-06-14/tiny-beautiful-things-hulu-kathryn-hahn)</sup>\n\nThe path to production was long. Strayed and her team had discussed adapting the book for television as early as 2014, including an early development effort at HBO, and things moved when [Reese Witherspoon](https://www.edgepedia.org/reese-witherspoon) introduced Strayed to Tigelaar, whom Witherspoon was working with on *Little Fires Everywhere*.<sup>[9](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2023/04/cheryl-strayed-interview-tiny-beautiful-things-awards-insider)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[12](https://www.flavorwire.com/545108/tell-yourself-the-good-stories-cheryl-strayed-on-collecting-quotes-overcoming-jealousy-and-binge-watching-tv)</sup> The book had also been selected as Reese's Book Club's November 2022 pick.<sup>[1](https://hello-sunshine.com/project/tiny-beautiful-things/)</sup>\n\n## Other adaptations\n\nThe book has lived in several forms. [Nia Vardalos](https://www.edgepedia.org/nia-vardalos) adapted it for the stage, and the play has been staged in theaters across the country.<sup>[13](https://belvoir.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Tiny-Beautiful-Things-2024-What-to-Expect-new.pdf)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[14](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ii26eRP7ZU)</sup> Strayed also revived the column as a podcast, *Dear Sugars*, and later as a newsletter, and hosted a second podcast, *Sugar Calling*.<sup>[2](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2023-04-07/tiny-beautiful-things-hulu-liz-tigelaar)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[14](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ii26eRP7ZU)</sup>\n\n## Reception\n\nCritics singled out Hahn's performance. The Rotten Tomatoes critics consensus calls the adaptation \"littered with cumbersome narrative choices\" but says Hahn's soulful performance keeps it compelling; the Tomatometer stood at 85% from 39 reviews and the audience Popcornmeter at 83%.<sup>[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/tiny_beautiful_things/s01)</sup> Metacritic assigned a metascore of 73, with 11 positive and 3 mixed reviews and none negative.<sup>[7](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/tiny-beautiful-things/critic-reviews/)</sup> Paste called Hahn's work \"a straight-up revelation,\" and [The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hollywood-reporter) noted that much of Clare's prose is excerpted from Strayed's actual Dear Sugar columns.<sup>[7](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/tiny-beautiful-things/critic-reviews/)</sup> The Guardian was more skeptical, calling the show an unashamed tearjerker whose manipulations sometimes show too starkly.<sup>[5](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2023/apr/07/tiny-beautiful-things-review-kathryn-hahn-cheryl-strayed-disney)</sup>\n\nThe series received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations, for Hahn as Outstanding Lead Actress and Wever as Outstanding Supporting Actress in a limited series, and Hahn also received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination.<sup>[8](https://thetvdb.com/series/tiny-beautiful-things)</sup> The show ran as a single season and is listed as ended.<sup>[4](https://epguides.com/TinyBeautifulThings/)</sup>\n\n## References\n\n1. [Tiny Beautiful Things, Hello Sunshine](https://hello-sunshine.com/project/tiny-beautiful-things/)\n2. [How Cheryl Strayed's 'Tiny Beautiful Things' was adapted for TV, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2023-04-07/tiny-beautiful-things-hulu-liz-tigelaar)\n3. [Tiny Beautiful Things, Hulu Press](https://press.hulu.com/shows/tiny-beautiful-things/)\n4. [Tiny Beautiful Things: A Titles & Air Dates Guide, epguides.com](https://epguides.com/TinyBeautifulThings/)\n5. [Tiny Beautiful Things review, The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2023/apr/07/tiny-beautiful-things-review-kathryn-hahn-cheryl-strayed-disney)\n6. [Tiny Beautiful Things: Limited Series, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/tiny_beautiful_things/s01)\n7. [Tiny Beautiful Things critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/tiny-beautiful-things/critic-reviews/)\n8. [Tiny Beautiful Things, TheTVDB.com](https://thetvdb.com/series/tiny-beautiful-things)\n9. [Cheryl Strayed Didn't Dream Any of This, Vanity Fair](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2023/04/cheryl-strayed-interview-tiny-beautiful-things-awards-insider)\n10. [Cheryl Strayed Will Always Be Here for You, Time](https://time.com/6266265/cheryl-strayed-interview-tiny-beautiful-things-hulu/)\n11. [Kathryn Hahn and Cheryl Strayed build 'Tiny Beautiful Things', Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/awards/story/2023-06-14/tiny-beautiful-things-hulu-kathryn-hahn)\n12. [Cheryl Strayed on Collecting Quotes, Overcoming Jealousy, and Binge-Watching TV, Flavorwire](https://www.flavorwire.com/545108/tell-yourself-the-good-stories-cheryl-strayed-on-collecting-quotes-overcoming-jealousy-and-binge-watching-tv)\n13. [Tiny Beautiful Things: What to Expect, Belvoir St Theatre](https://belvoir.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Tiny-Beautiful-Things-2024-What-to-Expect-new.pdf)\n14. [Tiny Beautiful Things from the Page to the Screen: Cheryl Strayed and Liz Tigelaar in conversation, ALOUD on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ii26eRP7ZU)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Adapted and franchise screen series › Literary and classic serial adaptations › Romance and comedy-drama adaptations*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n",
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 "speakable": "Tiny Beautiful Things is a 2023 Hulu drama miniseries, also called the Dear Sugar series, adapted by Liz Tigelaar from Cheryl Strayed's 2012 advice-column book, starring Kathryn Hahn as Clare, an alternate-reality Strayed who never hiked the Pacific Crest Trail."
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