Julia Sweeney was nearing forty, and quite famous, when she got on a flight to China to turn her life upside down. She had a flourishing career as a comedienne and performer, ample friends and admirers, but what she didn’t have was a child and, after a string of non-committal boyfriends, she decided to adopt alone.
Mulan was one-and-a-half years old when she met her new mother, and every bit as feisty as the Disney character (whom she was emphatically not named for). If It's Not One Thing, It’s Your Mother is the story of this unexpected mother-daughter pair who eventually became – to Julia’s astonishment and in a hilariously unconventional way – a mother-daughter-father trio.
From being mistaken for her daughter’s grandmother to her tragically short-lived belief that knitting a man a sweater will make him commit to you, Julia’s memoir is at once hilarious, poignant, provocative and wise. It is a story of adoption, Hollywood, dogs, death, marriage, Santa Claus, race and religion, the birds, the bees (and the frogs…) and everything else along the way.
It didn't take long to read "If It's Not One Thing, It's Your Mother." Sweeney has an easy, conversational way of writing. It feels like sitting down for coffee with an interesting person, listening to them share all of their best stories. I could relate to her struggles to become a mother, and to a lot of the changes in thinking she experienced after becoming a mother: seeing our culture differently, wanting to be fully present to her daughter.
I have to admit, I was slightly irritated by the chapter on strollers. It seemed kind of harsh, with little allowance for the possibility that some people may appear completely normal, but have special circumstances. Even though I understand what she was truly referring to, these pages started to take on a judgmental tone. I was glad to move on from it, and that it was a short chapter.
But Sweeney presents herself honestly and openly. She is who she is, without pretense. I loved that - it was so refreshing! Although this book does focus around motherhood, I think it also offers a look into varied slices of Sweeney's life. I especially enjoyed the pages about her adventures with her brother, Bill, who reminds me of a dear friend of my own.
This was an enjoyable read. "If It's Not One Thing, It's Your Mother" will be released on April 2, 2013 by Simon & Schuster.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. I did not receive any other compensation for this review.
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11 February, 2013:
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11 February, 2013:
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