Quickie Review: Southern Lady Code by Helen Ellis

Helen Ellis believes in following the code: "If you don't have something nice to say, say something not-so-nice in a nice way." In this collection of essays, this works well for her most of the time. And it can be pretty funny.

 For me though, it wasn't all funny. I found the essays to be a mixed bag. Some were funny, some not at all. There were definitely some good lines, but not enough for me to love the collection. I liked it, but didn't love it. I gave it 3 stars out of 5. It's worth a read. It's entertaining, but I wouldn't go out of my way to read it again. For me, the synopsis from Goodreads was funnier than the book. It might tickle you differently.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions herein are my own and freely given.

Teaser Tuesday: Southern Lady Code by Helen Ellis

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by The Purplebooker.
Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read

• Open to a random page

• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

• Share the title and author so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

"I am the kind of woman who spends more money on a bottle of shampoo than on a bottle of wine; who adds three capfuls when the instructions read one; who writes self-affirmations in shower steam; who blow dries her hair an inch from a wall instead of untangling the cord; who looks at a sunscreen display like other women look at a Tiffany's window- and then applies that sunscreen like a meringue pie to the face." (97% through on my Kindle)

The expected publication date for Southern Lady Code by Helen Ellis is April 16th, 2019 from Doubleday. The above quotation comes from an ARC and may appear differently in the final edition.

Would you keep reading? What's your teaser this week? Share it or a link in the comments. Are you enjoying your book? Let us know! Happy Reading!

Can't Wait Wednesday/Waiting on Wednesday #251: Southern Lady Code by Helen Ellis

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event which had been hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlight upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating. I'm now linking up with "Can't-Wait Wednesday" hosted over at Wishful Endings.

Goodreads' Blurb:

The bestselling author of American Housewife ("Dark, deadpan and truly inventive." --The New York Times Book Review) is back with a fiercely funny collection of essays on marriage and manners, thank-you notes and three-ways, ghosts, gunshots, gynecology, and the Calgon-scented, onion-dipped, monogrammed art of living as a Southern Lady.

Helen Ellis has a mantra: "If you don't have something nice to say, say something not-so-nice in a nice way." Say "weathered" instead of "she looks like a cake left out in the rain." Say "early-developed" instead of "brace face and B cups." And for the love of Coke Salad, always say "Sorry you saw something that offended you" instead of "Get that stick out of your butt, Miss Prissy Pants." In these twenty-three raucous essays, Ellis transforms herself into a dominatrix Donna Reed to save her marriage, inadvertently steals a $795 Burberry trench coat, witnesses a man fake his own death at a party, avoids a neck lift, and finds a black-tie gown that gives her the confidence of a drag queen. While she may have left her home in Alabama, married a New Yorker, forgotten how to drive, and abandoned the puffy headbands of her youth, Helen Ellis is clinging to her Southern accent like mayonnaise to white bread, and offering readers a hilarious, completely singular view on womanhood for both sides of the Mason-Dixon.

Southern Lady Code by Helen Ellis is expected out April 16th. 2019 from Doubleday Books. 

Why am I waiting on this one? It looks like a lot of fun. I live in the South and I think that will make it even funnier to me. But, I think it will appeal to anyone who enjoys a good humorous essay.

 What book are you waiting on this week? Share it or a link in the comments so we can check it out and maybe add it to our TBR lists. Thanks for coming by and Happy Reading!

Waiting on Wednesday #144: Hungry Heart by Jennifer Weiner

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine where we spotlight upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating. 

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Jennifer Weiner is many things: a #1 New York Times bestselling author, a Twitter phenomenon, and “an unlikely feminist enforcer” (The New Yorker). She’s also a mom, a daughter, and a sister; a former rower and current cyclist; a best friend and a reality TV junkie. In her first foray into nonfiction, she takes the raw stuff of her personal life and spins into a collection of essays on modern womanhood as uproariously funny and moving as the best of Tina Fey, Fran Lebowitz, and Nora Ephron.

Jennifer grew up as an outsider in her picturesque Connecticut hometown (“a Lane Bryant outtake in an Abercrombie & Fitch photo shoot”) and at her Ivy League college, but finally found her people in newsrooms in central Pennsylvania and Philadelphia, and her voice as a novelist, activist, and New York Times columnist.

No subject is off-limits in this intimate and honest essay collection: sex, weight, envy, money, her mom’s newfound lesbianism, and her estranged father’s death. From lonely adolescence to modern childbirth to hearing her six-year-old daughter’s use of the f-word—fat­­—for the first time, Jennifer Weiner goes there, with the wit and candor that have endeared her to readers all over the world.

By turns hilarious and deeply touching, this collection shows that the woman behind treasured novels like Good in Bed and Best Friends Forever is every bit as winning, smart, and honest in real life as she is in her fiction.

Why am I waiting on this book? It sounds like an interesting collection of essays. I like the subtitle: Adventures in Life, Love, and Writing. It promises to be humorous at least in part. And I can kind of relate to the line, "a Lane Bryant outtake in an Abercrombie and Fitch photo shoot." This book is due out October 11, 2016 from Atria Books.

What book are you waiting on this week? Share it or a link in the comments so we can check it out. Thanks for coming by!

Review: A Field Guide to Awkward Silences by Alexandra Petri

Expected publication:
June 2, 2015 by NAL

"Those were the two things I knew about myself: that I was a writer, and that I didn’t mind looking stupid.” (p.3) As a result, Alexandra Petri easily has enough  material probably for many more essays than are in this book. From pun contests to whistling contests to learning how to drive and more, she tackles some of the weirdest moments in her life.

The selection of essays turns into almost a loosely organized coming of age story, where the age is after college and not too sure one is a grownup. The essays are mostly good fun. I mean who doesn’t love a Star Wars nerd? Even if you don’t love Star Wars, you will understand because “Everyone has one erroneous belief that gets him through the chilly February mornings of the soul.” (p.149)

Seriously funny in many parts, gently humorous in others, the essays are autobiographical in nature.  This is my first exposure to her writing and I have to say I really enjoyed it. There is one sad story in it, but she even manages to put a little spin on that.

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars for the quality of writing and for the humor. Also In spite of being a collection of essays, there is a pace which propels the reader forward at a good pace. I’d recommend it for those who like Jenny Lawson’s Lets Pretend This Never Happened and books by David Sedaris. Looking forward to its release in early June so I can get a hard copy for my daughter’s birthday. I’ve enjoyed an ARC on my Kindle to prepare this review. And as such, the quotations may or may not be in the final copy or in a different place.

Teaser Tuesday - A Field Guide to Awkward Silences by Alexandra Petri

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by Miz B of A Daily Rhythm. Anyone can participate, just do the following:

• Grab your current read and open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page.
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title and the author so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR lists if they like your teasers.

Expected publication: June 2, 2015 by NAL

"I am afraid of many things. Drowning, fire, the disapproval of strangers on the Internet, that I'll be hit by a bus without having had the chance to clear my browser history, that one day everyone else on the subway will suddenly be able to hear what I'm thinking and turn on me. You know, the usuals."

This is from page 3 of A Field Guide to Awkward Silences: Essays by Alexandra Petri. From what I've read of the book so far, she is funny and as the synopsis says, not afraid to make a fool of herself.

Synopsis from Goodreads.com: 

Washington Post columnist Alexandra Petri turns her satirical eye on her own life in this hilarious new memoir...

Most twentysomethings spend a lot of time avoiding awkwardness. Not Alexandra Petri.

Afraid of rejection? Alexandra Petri has auditioned for America’s Next Top Model. Afraid of looking like an idiot? Alexandra Petri lost Jeopardy! by answering “Who is that dude?” on national TV. Afraid of bad jokes? Alexandra Petri won an international pun championship.

Petri has been a debutante, reenacted the Civil War, and fended off suitors at a Star Wars convention while wearing a Jabba the Hutt suit. One time, she let some cult members she met on the street baptize her, just to be polite. She’s a connoisseur of the kind of awkwardness that most people spend whole lifetimes trying to avoid. If John Hodgman and Amy Sedaris had a baby…they would never let Petri babysit it.

But Petri is here to tell you: Everything you fear is not so bad. Trust her. She’s tried it. And in the course of her misadventures, she’s learned that there are worse things out there than awkwardness—and that interesting things start to happen when you stop caring what people think.

What's your teaser from this week? Share it or a link in the comments. Thanks for coming by.  Happy Reading!