How Hard Can It Be?

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This book is written by former television presenter Jeremy Clarkson, I chose to read this because I have read several other books by him and their humorous and interesting topics have hooked me to his books. This book is written by small newspaper articles made by Clarkson put together to form a book. each day it gets slightly harder to retrieve the things that I know. Correction. The things that I know that I knew. At forty nine years of age, the tip of my tongue becomes a very crowded place.” Or this...“Today is my seventh session at the gym this week. Even God got to rest on the seventh day, but God was only trying to create the world, not restore a middle-aged female body to a state of battle readiness.” I hate to tell her how bad it’ll be as the years go on! This was a good book. I really enjoyed it and sadly, related to a lot of it. With menopause looming in the near future, it was really fun to have her perspective on menopause and reaching fifty years of age. And then with the unhappy marriage and the teenagers to deal with as well, I found myself laughing and wanting to cry all the way through.

Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson (born April 11, 1960) is an English broadcaster and writer who specialises in motoring. If I didn't know the author, I probably would have given it 4 stars because I wouldn't want you to know how much I enjoy entertaining and ridiculous books. I like to pretend that I am a serious reader* of serious books. It was also very refreshing to see Rena being aware of her looks, and actually like herself. Too many time I read about characters who spend time agonizing over their this and that, instead of liking themselves.

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It’s not quite as funny as the first one. The first book opens with Kate taking a frozen pie and reworking the crust to make it look homemade for an event at her kids school and then she gets lice from her kids and gives it to a client. So darn funny! This book is funny but not as funny as the first one. I was hoping for less serious/ depressing problems and more fly by the seat of her pants funny. First off this book was really good and I laughed so hard because some of things I read I had to look around to see if anybody noticed me reading this book because right off the beginning they were talking about hardcore sex, handcuffs and porn. I couldn't believe some of the stuff that was in the book. It kept it really interesting and it sparked my interest to keep reading it to see what happens to the characters in the book. Husband Richard has lost his job and is in a two-year program to become a counselor, while pedaling a pricey bicycle and doing lots of yoga and therapy to recapture what’s missing in his life. This is a story that will be familiar to many women, the act of juggling so many commitments while trying to hold down a full time job at the same time. For Kate though, it's also about reaching this important milestone and discovering who she really is - who she'd like to be if she wasn't so concerned with making everyone else happy. His opinionated but humorous tongue-in-cheek writing and presenting style has often generated much public reaction to his viewpoints. His actions both privately and as a Top Gear presenter have also sometimes resulted in criticism from the media, politicians, pressure groups and the public.

That being said, I could see most of the plot twists coming a mile away, and you couldn't help but get frustrated that Kate couldn't see them too. Overall, while I found parts of this novel funny, refreshing, and quite apropos, I couldn't really get over Kate's obsession with her looks or her one-sided relationship with her children. In the end, 3.5 stars, probably bumped up a bit for a little Kate Reddy nostalgia. For now, I really like this book and will most certainly keep reading it. The parts that I have read from this book have been good enough to get a 9/10 rating from me and I think that I will recommend this book to all of my friends. The pressures placed on this woman are extreme and can be interpreted as satire of the devaluing of women of a certain age. But the author portrays this woman as enthusiastically invested in this unrealistic game of trying to be young. There are occasional hints of resentment, but not what I would want for a protest of such an environment. I would have happily read about her experiences at the firm along with her struggles with menopause, memory, transatlantic friendships and unexpected support from a new friend. From a career as a local journalist in the north of England, he rose to public prominence as a presenter of the original format of Top Gear in 1988. Since the mid-1990s Clarkson has become a recognised public personality, regularly appearing on British television presenting his own shows and appearing as a guest on other shows. As well as motoring, Clarkson has produced programmes and books on subjects such as history and engineering. From 1998 to 2000 he also hosted his own chat show, Clarkson.I freaking LOVE this book. How hard can it be is THE funniest book I have ever read. The premise is truly one of a kind. Perceptive and funny....Allison Pearson has a gift for comedy, but the best bits of How Hard Can It Be? are her sharp asides about modern life." -- The Times (U.K.) This was a tough one for me. It was a slow read, although in its defense, I read it during a very busy time at work. I empathized with Kate's return to working motherhood--especially juggling kids and work and dealing with a male-driven workplace. I didn't enjoy the intense focus on how old Kate was, making her seem nearly decrepit at fifty. It's one thing to deal with turning the big 5-0 and its ramifications, but its another to make it seem like it's the end of the world. Even worse, while Kate could seem so strong in the workplace, she was such a pushover with her children. She was supposedly clueless with technology, unable to keep up with their exploits, and a complete doormat. (I also couldn't handle the endless endearments she used with her kids--there's only so many "sweeties" and "darlings" I can take.)

Then there’s India, which I can’t take seriously until its air force has some planes with fewer than three wings. Yes, they have nuclear missiles – but could they actually hit Islamabad with them? ‘I very much doubt it,’ said an Indian professor chum of mine recently. ‘I’m not even certain we could hit Pakistan.’" Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.Kate has a decent resume, her problem is her age, and competing with all the twenty/thirty-somethings in the workforce. "Lie," say her friends. "Or at least twist the truth a little." (my paraphrasing) So she becomes 42, on paper. Filled with smart insights...Kate makes good company. You can't help rooting for her." -- The New York Times Book Review So, I have a confession to make. I didn't realize How Hard Can It Be? by Allison Pearson was a sequel to I Don't Know How She Does It when I started reading it. BUT, I don't think that mattered all that much. The story opens with Kate’s daughter having a picture of her naked rear passed around on snapchat, much to her dismay and social ostracization. There are long conversations about social media and how different life is now. Parents wring hands about the pressures to excel. They worry about helicopter parenting, etc. .

Pearson has found a way to explore pressing questions—the delaying of marriage and childbearing, the dangers of social media, the growing anxiety of teenagers and their trouble gaining independence as young adults, the crushing pressures on people caring for both their kids and their parents—without sacrificing story for sermon." — The Weekly Standard The winning follow-up to Pearson’s bestselling I Don’t Know How She Does It is anchored by heroine Kate Reddy’s authentic, intelligent, and consistently funny British voice....Pearson maintains a humorous tone throughout, wresting laughs from her lead’s lowest moments and greatest triumphs. Pearson also hits the right notes in conveying the cluelessness and powerlessness parents feel raising teens obsessed by gaming and social media." — Publishers Weekly (starred review) I’m pretty sure this is the summer of the “mom com” for me. I’ve read like three of them in the past couple of weeks and they have each been such a delight. I have not yet read I Don’t Know How She Does It (this book’s predecessor), but didn’t feel like I missed out on anything as this worked perfectly as a standalone. I am happy there’s more by Allison Pearson, however, because apparently smiling is now my favorite (well, and porn and stabby stuff, but whodathunk I’d like all this mommy shit, right?). It turns out that this is a sequel to another book, which I’d never heard of, I Don't Know How She Does It. That’s a fact I discovered after I read this book, which functioned perfectly well as a standalone. When everything seems to be at its worst an amazing guy shows up in her life again—someone she had hit it off with so well that it spooked her, and she’d ended the friendship. But has not stopped thinking about him for several years.

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This romantic comedy is simply brilliant! Ms. Peterman had me LMFAO…[she] is amazing in bringing in good humor, friendship and good romance”. ~Under The Covers Kate Ready is almost 50, she is returning to the workforce and finds herself having to lie about her age to be considered for employment. Her husband is distant and appears to be more into his self-help books and bike riding than he is in her or their marriage. Her daughter has taken an inappropriate picture of herself and it was posted on the internet, she has aging parents and is dealing with the onset of menopause. Kate has a lot going on in this book. She shakes her head and I smell my conditioner on her hair, the expensive one I specifically told her not to use. Monday, 1:37 A.M. Such a weird dream. Emily is crying, she’s really upset. Something about a belfry. A boy wants to come round to our house because of her belfry. She keeps saying she’s sorry, it was a mistake, she didn’t mean to do it. Strange. Most of my nightmares lately feature me on my unmentionable birthday having become totally invisible and talking to people who can’t hear me or see me. What are the words you’d use to describe the fact that women take care of the young and the old, year in, year out, and none of that work counts as skills or experience or even work? Because women are doing it for free it is literally worthless.”