Review: How to be a Grown-Up by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus

From bestselling authors Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus comes a timely novel about a forty-something wife and mother thrust back into the workforce, where she finds herself at the mercy of a boss half her age.

Rory McGovern is entering the ostensible prime of her life when her husband, Blake, loses his dream job and announces he feels like “taking a break” from being a husband and father. Rory was already spread thin and now, without warning, she is single-parenting two kids, juggling their science projects, flu season, and pajama days, while coming to terms with her disintegrating marriage. And without Blake, her only hope is to accept a full-time position working for two full-time twenty-somethings.

A day out of b-school, these girls think they know it all and have been given the millions from venture capitalists to back up their delusion—that the future of digital media is a high-end “lifestyle” site—for kids! (Not that anyone who works there has any, or knows the first thing about actual children.) Can Rory learn to decipher her bosses’ lingo, texts that read like license plates, and arbitrary mandates? And is there any hope of saving her marriage? With her family hanging by a thread, Rory must adapt to this hyper-digitized, over-glamorized, narcissistic world of millennials…whatever it takes.

Kindle Edition, 256 pages

Expected publication: July 28th 2015 by Atria Books 

Genre: Womens Fiction

Kristine's Thoughts:

** I received an advanced readers copy from Atria Books via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! **

I thought that this was a cute story about a woman starting over and her struggles to make things work. Everything from being a single parent to understanding the lingo and workings of a company and employers that are almost half her age.

There were a few things that stopped me from loving the book and giving it a higher rating.

I understand that the lingo and language of Rory's younger employers were meant to confuse her and in doing so be humorous to the reader but it was just plain confusing not to mention a little annoying. I also understand that I am not in that age demographic but do people actually use those words? I certainly have never heard of some of them.

That brings me to my second thought. Although there were definitely humorous moments in the story I do feel like some attempts at humour fell flat leaving some awkward gaps in the flow of the story. I was really hoping for more laugh out loud moments than what I got.

Don't get me wrong...even with the above points I thought it was an enjoyable book that was fun and easy to read. It provided me with a few good hours of solid entertainment and I look forward to reading more from these authors.

About the Authors

My partner, Nicki, and I have been writing together for 12 years. We're obsessed by what makes a satisfying story. I'm excited to hear from our readers what does it for them -- and what doesn't. As a working mom, the only book time I manage to steal these days is right before bed. I'm not the girl who can watch SVU and go to sleep with a smile. Ruling out kids/the economy/the world in peril as subject matter leaves sweeping Wharton epics or swift funny observations. The best is when a book makes you feel like you're still talking in the whee hours with your best college friend.   

Kraus graduated from New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. She met Emma McLaughlin while both were attending New York University, and working as nannies. She lived as a child at 1000 Park Avenue, whose residents she claims inspired some of the characters in her fiction.

Connect with Emma & Nicola

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