Rating: 
Summary: This book Stinks
Review: I am a working mother and I found this book to be outrageous and offensive beyond all measure. Not only was the heroine possibly the most heinous mother imaginable (every horrible stereotype about a woman who likes her career and has no business being a mother at all magnified by 3000), but the moral of this awful book is that even a heinous horrible mother is better served being home with her kids. That this book is touted aS a comedy novel for working mothers is outrageous and I'm sorry I wasted my time (thankfully not money) reading it. Working mothers beware -- DO NOT READ THIS HORRIBLE TRASH!
Rating: 
Summary: Funny, and real world
Review: I see a lot of negative reviews here, but I think this book is hilarious and very real. It may seem to some like it has a feminist agenda, but if you have ever worked in a high-pressure business (as the heroine does) you will have experienced some of the frustrations of trying to compete with men who have stay-at-home wives, or have tried to ignore sexual jokes during meetings, or rushed from work to school to home. I loved reading about a woman a little like me, who is over 20 and is trying to DO IT ALL. It is not preachy, just very funny and very true - and the revenge she exacts on a particularly vile coworker at the end of the novel is WONDERFUL. Does she make the right decision at the end of the story? You read it and decide for yourself.
Rating: 
Summary: Extremely funny, but with an agenda
Review: After the first 50 pages, I couldn't wait to give this book to a friend of mine who's juggling work & family. After the last 50 pages, I knew that'd be a really bad idea.The book is screamingly funny, no question. But it feels to me like the author means it as a parable for our time, with the choice that the heroine makes near the end of the book strongly implied to be the Right Choice, and other choices of necessity therefore Wrong. That bothered me tremendously. It's not a problem if people, or characters, behave differently than I would. It is a problem if they're preachy about it. So, 5 stars for snort-aloud-on-the-subway humor on every page, 3 stars for smugness -- 4 stars overall, and it might've been lower except that I've simmered down now.
Rating: 
Summary: Funny book, but has its drawbacks...
Review: I am in the middle of this book, and while I like the narrator's (Kate's) wry wit, the book does have its problems. She does only seem to be aware of herself and her world. She makes a lot of money and also has to work hard, I understand, but other women (like my own mother)work just as hard, in careers that are considered "boring" and don't have the perks (like travel)that her job does. They also have to deal with the same issues she does- a husband who doesn't know how to do things without her, doesn't start dinner, etc. I am glad other women do have these things, but sometimes this book just seemed like a love story to thoise with glamourous careers and children. Someone should try writing a story about a mom who has to work 3 jobs and deal with her family. This character just needs to get her head out of the sand a bit.
Rating:
Summary: Witty, hilarious and oh-so-true!
Review: I could not put this one down! How very true are the basic observations Allison makes about the dilemma of working motherhood! We all love our kids more than anything else, but in order to preserve our sanity, we all go out and work our tails off until we can't fully enjoy either. My two favorite things: the ever-powerfull Muffia and the ever-patient husband with a memory for no more than three things. Tops. P.S. Last night, I read one more book than usual to my kids AND snuggled up very close to my hubby. And today, I was 10 minutes late for work. Not on purpose.
Rating:
Summary: "PRAYERS FOR THE WORKING MOM" Author Recommeded
Review: Kate Reddy is a character that working moms will find believeable...so believeable that it has apparently made people uncomfortable. "I Don't Know How She Does It" should not be read like its the Bible for working mothers...it isn't. Remember, this book is ficticious. Consider it as you would a satire or parody with just enough elements of truth to keep it relevant. If you're a working mom looking for a light book to laugh about, then this is a good book for you. If you're struggling to keep up, overwhelmed and searching for help, then this book would probably just make you mad. For FUN, Read I Don't Know How She Does It.
For HELP, try Prayers for the Working Mom.
Rating: 
Summary: I can completely relate
Review: OK, I cannot relate to our main character's job, unhappy childhood, or income. But Kate's life is similar in more ways than it is dissimilar to many women out there who are trying to do it all. It's not a question of whether she can do it all, it's a question of whether she can do it all to the high standards she has set for herself. And let's remember: this is fiction---Kate is not real! But she is very funny.
We get to accompany Kate through her hectic days of managing her job (which uncomfortably includes a lot of travel, most of it international), her 2 small children, and her husband. Her husband's ineptness, whether feigned, real, or imagined, is hilarious and something I bet all of us can relate to. I am sure they based this character on my husband! And I'm also sure there are a lot of you out there saying the same thing. It's important not to read too much into this book---it's not meant to be a social commentary, it's meant to entertain by making you laugh. And it works beautifully! I snickered my way through page after page, and really did find myself hoping she'd find a way to make it all work. In the end, Kate reassesses her life and decides that driving herself isn't working for anyone. Maybe you will and maybe you won't agree with her, and how she decides she will cope with it all but you will be entertained until the end. Recommended to any woman who needs a 26 hour day.
Rating:
Summary: I don't know why I read this
Review: I am a working mom and I felt pretty good about my life until I read this book. None of the working moms in this book are happy! The main character won't stop complaining. She spends loads of money on gifts for her kids to make up for time she doesn't spend with them. The underlying message is "if you work, you can't be a good mother to your children." Pearson is a very good writer and the book is sometimes quite funny, but I think the book made working mothers look absolutely horrible. This is not what working moms need. This is one book I wish I had never read!
Rating:
Summary: I Don't Know How She Dupes Us
Review: Between more serious books, I look for 'light' reads. In my opinion, a 'light' read refers to the subject material, and not to the quality of writing. Within this book, however, light certainly refers to both. When I was out getting groceries at 8 pm, with my three little shadows, and, of course, at the end of a 9-5 work day, I spotted this book in a bin and glanced at the back. The premise sounded pretty interesting: harried mother of two, trying to juggle a full-time job and a household. Sounded like something I could relate to. Upon reading the book, what I couldn't relate to was Pearson's writing style. Why did Pearson choose to write the book in first-person, present tense? How awkward! eg. I go to the kitchen, I get something from the fridge. Never have I been so exasperated with an author's writing style, or lack thereof. Pearson's sentences are stilted in their style and stunted in their portrayal of information. She loves to be 'wordy' for 'wordy's sake.' She tries to be witty and fails. Her main character comes across as self-important and not nearly as droll as the author tries to make her. I tend to find something I like about most books I read. But this is the first book that has prompted me to want to write a review. Why? To advise readers not to bother. Try "Confessions of A Shopaholic" if you would like something light, funny, and well-written.
Rating:
Summary: A fabulous "just for fun" book!!
Review: This is a superb story that is well written and thought provoking. I recommend it highly. It is the story of Kate Reddy, a British working mother, who has a difficult time juggling her high power career and her family life. The story is told with incredible feeling, personal insight and great humor. The characters are exceptionally real and loveable, and the plot will carry you along until the end. I rate this book very highly and don't understand the reviewers who did not do the same.
| 
