GOLD
in the
ForeWord Magazine
Book of the Year
SILVER in the
Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPYs)
BRONZE in the PMA
Benjamin Franklin Award
"I read about 5 chapters of this
book as a critical judge, then gave up on the endeavor and read it
for the sheer joy of reading it. What a great book! It's intelligent
without being stuffy, real enough that any woman can relate to it
and most of all, funny. I absolutely loved it. Ms. Gruen is a
writer's Writer." - PMA Book Judge
A Quip from the Book Was
Featured on 5 million Starbucks® cups!
ForeWord Magazine
says: When humorist Judy Gruen’s husband presented her with
a visit to a spa for her birthday, she realized, “This was the first
time I ever had a facial steam treatment other than when I opened
the dishwasher in the middle of a load.”
That is the kind of witty
observation Gruen makes in her newest book, and one that millions of
baby boomer parents, especially moms, will certainly identity with.
Gruen is the creator and host of the blog Off My Noodle in which she
riffs on parenthood, friendship, family life, and being a woman in
the new millennium. This book is a compilation of nearly sixty of
her favorite columns.
A graduate of the University of California-Berkeley and Northwestern
University’s Medill School of Journalism, Gruen is the author of two
previous books; both humorous looks at timely topics: Carpool
Tunnel Syndrome: Motherhood as Shuttle Diplomacy and Till We
Eat Again: Confessions of a Diet Dropout.
She’s the mother of four (two teens and two almost-teens) with a
solid marriage of nearly twenty years under her belt, so she writes
what she knows. After a neighbor sells Gruen on a new skin care
system, she notices the name of each anti-aging product begins with
the letters “Re,” “a prefix that essentially means ‘Do over.’”
Her children are older than in her earlier books, and she realizes
there’s now a wider range of possibilities to embarrass them.
For example, the whole family goes camping and Mom suggests singing
around the campfire. Suddenly, it’s just Gruen and her husband. “The
kids had vanished, but I spied one hiding behind a nearby tree. I
had warned him that he would one day regret choosing fire engine red
sneakers, but of course he didn’t listen,” she writes.
There are some laugh-out-loud moments as readers see their own
families reflected in ordinary life transitions such as teens
learning how to drive. Gruen remarks on the irony that the same kids
who “can’t even remember to close a refrigerator door when they
leave the kitchen” shoulder the enormous responsibility “of
navigating our 3,000 pound minivan down city streets.”
The book is divided into five parts (Part I is “A Woman’s Home is
Her Hassle”) with like topics organized together. The articles are
usually a couple of pages in length, making for a fairly quick read,
a plus for busy boomer moms who will see a bit of themselves in
Gruen’s stories and travails.
As Gruen points out, women need to take care of themselves, before
they come to a certain point—as she did when her friends called,
inviting her to go with them to a club: “Sam’s Club or Wal-Mart?”
she inquired.
Armchair Reviews:
If you need a laugh--or several per page, you will get that in the
"irony" of many ideas Judy Gruen writes about in her regular
columns.
Judy's stories have appeared in her web-based column, "Off My
Noodle," www.JudyGruen.com and in many other publications. Her
audioblog is broadcast on www.OURadio.org . This is her third book
of humor.
When I was reading this collection of columns, I'd think: This is my
favorite--until I read my next favorite. I'd also think, jeez I
should share this one with ______--whichever friend this bit of
irony fit best.
How about the author's comparison to the status in her daughter's
eyes of author JK Rowlings of Harry Potter fame--as the daughter
compares Rowlings to her mom's status as a writer. Ouch. Darn kids.
The Oprah letter to God, in which Oprah talks about herself as Me
and Myself with capital M as she describes all she has accomplished
(with HIS help)--and how powerful she is in getting her listeners to
be/buy whatever she advises. So tongue in cheek Judy's tongue may
never be the same.
The day at the spa story was topped by her statement: If I had known
they charged $85 to slather people in mud, I would never had paved
the backyard.
Books like this with short stories/chapters are ideal length for
that quick read when you are the carpool here and there--but you
might start laughing out loud OR you never return from lunch and
hide out so you can read them ALL now.
The humor, starting with the "irony" supplement title, to how well
she really captures what a woman's life is like. Divided into six
parts:
1. A Woman's Home is Her Hassle
2. Holidays and Hijinks
3. Magnificent Obsession
4. Reading this Warning Label May Kill You
5. Guys Do the Darndest Things
6. Just Wait Till You Have Stretch Marks of Your Own
This is the book to have along ready for a quick read or to give a
woman friend as a gift because you know she'll see her self in
several stories--as you did.
Any book that can make me laugh at EVERY story deserves a 5-star
rating from me.
Heartland Reviews: This collection of columns
by a Los Angeles-based humor writer provides a world view similar to
the late Erma Bombeck’s. It provides fun commentaries on the
concerns of mothers, wives, and womenhood in general. Its title
truly represents the foundation of the book—irony of the
tongue-in-cheek variety. Many women readers will identify with the
issues and concerns the author uses to structure her humor. Men
should read it carefully to better understand what they ladies thing
of them and why.
“Judy Gruen is the only writer who reminds me that marriage is
funny. Now when my wife gives me a speech about how I should change
at my inner core, instead of having that stupid look on my face that
all men have, I remember Part V.”—Mark Schiff, author, I
Killed: True Stories of the Road from America's Top Comics
“Whether she's poking fun at Martha Stewart, holiday letters or
designer purses, Judy Gruen is a genius at finding new and utterly
hilarious ways to skewer some of our silliest excesses.”—Celia
Rivenbark, author, Stop Dressing Your Six Year Old Like a
Skank
“Judy’s wonderful new book had me howling with deep belly laughs.
Her take on life, from designer handbags to those sickening and
overly boastful "family and friends" letters, is priceless. This is
a read that will have everyone nodding in knowingness or clutching
their stomachs with laughter.”—Susan Reinhardt, author, Not
Tonight Honey, Wait ‘Til I'm a Size 6
