Rachel Hollis, author of 'Girl, Wash Your Face,' announces divorce

By Brandon Showalter, Opinion writer and social commentator Tuesday, June 09, 2020

The author of the bestselling book Girl, Wash Your Face announced that she and her husband are divorcing.

In an Instagram post on Monday, Rachel Hollis said that she had no idea how to disclose the difficult news, but that she and her husband have decided to end their marriage.

"We started out as best friends 18 years ago and the truth is, that core friendship and the parts of us that work so well, have become a band-aid for the parts of us that don’t. We have worked endlessly over the last three years to make this work and have come to the conclusion that it is healthier and more respectful for us to choose this as the end of our journey as a married couple," Hollis, daughter of a Pentecostal preacher, said.

"We remain dear friends as we raise our family as co-parents and run our company as partners. We are choosing joy — even though, I’ll be honest, the last month has been one of the most awful of our lives. I want to be strong and bold and optimistic for you now, but every ounce of my energy is reserved in being those things for my children."

She continued: "That said, having been such an open book to this beloved community, we hope that you can allow us a human moment. We hope you can understand our need to process these changes away from social media. We graciously ask that you respect our privacy so we can focus on what matters most, our four kids and the next chapter of what our family looks like now."

The 2018 book Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are So You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be was a New York Times bestseller, selling over 3 million copies.

The book explores 20 lies and misconceptions that prevent people from living fully, which drew upon her own experiences and how Hollis overcame various hurdles in life.

Among the misconceptions that many women believe that she addressed were: "Something else will make me happy," "I’m not a good mom," "I will never get past this," "I am defined by my weight" and "I should be further along by now."

Critics of the book said it was light on theological substance and at times deviated from historic biblical teaching despite employing Christian concepts and language.

"Hollis is a self-proclaimed Christian, and the book is published by Thomas Nelson (a Christian publisher). References to the Bible, Jesus, her faith, and Christianity are peppered throughout the book. It’s not some kind of devotional—but it is marketed as Christian. And yet much of Hollis’s advice isn’t Christian, though some of it is still good," Alisa Childers, a songwriter, wrote in a review.

Childers warned that Hollis' book makes it "all about you" and supports the notion that sin isn't the problem.