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43rd out of 619 books
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Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year
by
Anne Lamott
The most honest, wildly enjoyable book written about motherhood is surely Anne Lamott's account of her son Sam's first year. A gifted writer and teacher, Lamott (Crooked Little Heart) is a single mother and ex-alcoholic with a pleasingly warped social circle and a remarkably tolerant religion to lean on. She responds to the changes, exhaustion, and love Sam brings with apl...more
Paperback, 251 pages
Published
February 9th 2011
by Anchor
(first published 1993)
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This is the best parenting book ever! Right when you feel like you have hit the wall, Anne Lammott makes it OK to feel all the frustrations and pain as well as the awe and overwhelming love for your little offspring. When my second child refused to sleep more than 2 hours at a time for 3, count em, 3 months while I was working full time...I bought every book about getting your child to sleep that I could find. I finally called in sick, sent my kid to day care, and read this entire book in one da...more
Even if you have never been a parent, your kids have grown up, read this for the sheer pleasure of it.
Anne Lamott is the epitome of the vitriolic, hateful liberal. The catch is that she actually seems to realize it. Throughout Operating Instructions, one finds scatterings of an understanding that there’s something not quite consistent about preaching love, mercy, and non-judgmentalism while simultaneously ripping apart Republicans as a group, actively training one’s child to revile them, and comparing them to the greatest of evils. She actually gets that there’s something not quite right about r...more
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This is not an empowering book. This is a let-me-feel-sorry-for-myself kind of book. At some point, it has become hip and "good writing" to use profanity and say shocking things like "I hate my baby". While I acknowledge that feeling overwhelmed is very real for some mothers, especially those without a partner (myself included in the latter category), reading "Operating Instructions" gave me a dark feeling, somewhat akin to the feeling that reading Dostoevsky causes...more
Hold your hats, folks. I’m about to get all “over-the-top” in this review.
I needed this book right now, with all it’s one-lines that make me laugh out loud. You should have seen me last evening, lying in the grass outside my church (it was only in the 70s yesterday, and today, with a light breeze - perfect grass lying weather) and laughing like a maniac. I’m sure all the Amish people who came by in their buggies must have thought I was nuts.
So this book is the journal tha...more
I needed this book right now, with all it’s one-lines that make me laugh out loud. You should have seen me last evening, lying in the grass outside my church (it was only in the 70s yesterday, and today, with a light breeze - perfect grass lying weather) and laughing like a maniac. I’m sure all the Amish people who came by in their buggies must have thought I was nuts.
So this book is the journal tha...more
I teach at Creighton University, and so (like most instructors) was appalled when Lamott was "disinvited," but never more than after I read this book. It's been a long time since I've laughed out loud while reading a book, and longer since a book has provoked guffaws (seriously, hearty laughter) AND reflection, revelation, and grief. "Honest" is a perfect word to describe this book, which bravely (I think) puts out there the concept that being a mother isn't always being 10...more
A friend of mine gave me a copy of this book while I was pregnant, and he never knew what a favor he truly did for me.
Anne Lamott writes all the gritty details of the thoughts that go through any sleep deprived parent's mind, but we aren't ever brave enough to admit them, sometimes not even to ourselves.
Having already read about some crazy lady (Anne Lamott) wondering if she could leave her baby out in the cold and see if that whole "survival of the fittest" thi...more
Anne Lamott writes all the gritty details of the thoughts that go through any sleep deprived parent's mind, but we aren't ever brave enough to admit them, sometimes not even to ourselves.
Having already read about some crazy lady (Anne Lamott) wondering if she could leave her baby out in the cold and see if that whole "survival of the fittest" thi...more
Just finished this one this morning. This was the kind of book that I resisted because everyone else kept telling me to read it. Also, because I'm writing a lot, I was afraid I'd start writing like Lamott and BINGO! I am. Anyhow, that said, I'm glad I've read it. The end is very sad, sadder because it is true. Reading it also fulfilled that promise that you'll think about your own new motherhood and think: "At least I'm not Anne Lamott." I was going to give the book three stars in...more
Oh how I wish I had read this book when my children were babies! Then perhaps I would have realized I was not alone in finding new motherhood so hard while loving my children so unbearably much. Annie Lamott just nails it.
I really enjoyed this book- written from the prospective of someone who finds themselves shocked and amazed to be performing the role of "mother" Lammott grinds her way through her son's first year with humor and brutal honesty. While I hope I don't think about leaving my son on the porch overnight so that I might gain a few more hours of sleep, I appreciate the author's honesty about her wishes to do so, and am sure that I will sympathize even more once the little guy is finally on t...more
I loved this book. I had never read anything by Anne Lamott before, but after this small memoir/journal, I feel as though I know her well and anything else I read of hers will be like returning to a familiar friend. Operating Instructions made me realize that babies, mothers and the experience of mothering are not unique. I've tried for 5 minutes to get that sentence to say what I mean and I can't quite do it. It may be because I am a mother. But the point is that I spent most of the book t...more
After stopping reading because I'd started when I first got pregnant and stopped when I had my first miscarriage (who needs someone exuding pure love and delight about their baby when you've just lost yours), I finally picked this up today almost two years later to decide about getting rid of it. My place was still marked, so I polished it off this afternoon. It was a good read, but is so very baby-centric that you should only read it if you are a new mother yourself, pregnant at a safe late sta...more
I am going through my daughter's first year, so I identified with some of the issues in the book, and it was a humorous voice. Lamott was depressed and really self absorbed (which happens in a journal of course). When I journal it is often to vent, so the entries are perhaps colored on the depressed side. She had some therapy talk that I literally did not follow. She was surrounded by friends and family, which seemed wonderful. Her character made the book more dramatic for sure; my journal w...more
This is a well-written memoir of one single mother's first year of parenting. If I were rating it just on its readability and interest, I might have given it four stars, but I think that some aspects of her personality are just flaky enough that I could only bring myself to give it three. It's not the story of an average person's journey through their baby's first year. Lamott is prone to anxiety and depression, she's only three years sober, and even though she's met with some success as a wr...more
Sometimes I really hate this site. This is easily the third or fourth time this month I have written a multiple-page review only to have it deleted when I click on the "save" button. Sigh. Let me begin again...
I love this book. I love this author. I love the honesty of this approach. I love a parent that doesn't buy into the idea that a good parent keeps their damned mouth shut.
I love the viewpoint from a parent of a cholicy child (even if her chil...more
I love this book. I love this author. I love the honesty of this approach. I love a parent that doesn't buy into the idea that a good parent keeps their damned mouth shut.
I love the viewpoint from a parent of a cholicy child (even if her chil...more
Liked this one better than the first two. I'm starting to get the hang of Anne Lamott. If anyone had suggested that I read a book about a baby's first year, I would have said, "No, thanks." But I laughed out loud on the Metro, several times. Some of my favorite parts:
pages 84-85 on saying no to party invitations
page 85 "that beautiful old movie by Vittorio de Sica. A Brief Vacation
page 166 ". . . and I thought about how great a few hundred lines of cocaine...more
pages 84-85 on saying no to party invitations
page 85 "that beautiful old movie by Vittorio de Sica. A Brief Vacation
page 166 ". . . and I thought about how great a few hundred lines of cocaine...more
What's great about this book? The writing, the writing, the writing. Her fabulous humor, her honest portrayal of the first year of being a mother, her honesty about her baby not having a father, her grief at her friend's diagnosis, the way she hysterically talks about Republicans, the support so many give her, and especially her true deep belief in a loving God (though it completely contrasts with who she is) and watching her faith ebb and flow.
What is not so good? The language...too o...more
What is not so good? The language...too o...more
I cam across this book by random accident. I think I posted about my disastrous trip to Barnes & Noble during the height of Aidan's colicky days. Well, this is one of the books I bought.
You see, I was looking through the parenting books, and came across this one. Aidan was in full on meltdown, when I turned to a page that mentioned something about the feeling a mother *really* has when her baby is colicky, and I knew this was the book for me.
Thankfully, it's an easy read. Go...more
You see, I was looking through the parenting books, and came across this one. Aidan was in full on meltdown, when I turned to a page that mentioned something about the feeling a mother *really* has when her baby is colicky, and I knew this was the book for me.
Thankfully, it's an easy read. Go...more
My lust for books that are about motherhood has led me to "Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year" by Anne Lamott. This book chronicles the experience of Anne's first year as a new mother. A single mother. Anne wries boldly. Possibly because she did not intend to publish her personal journal. However, I am glad that she did. Her innermost thoughts are right there on the page. Thoughts that all new mothers have but none will admit to. Anne admits these thoughts. She ...more
My friend Michelle lent me this book after we were talking about feminist books about motherhood. I haven’t read anything by Lamott before, but after reading this one I definitely want to read more of her books, both fiction and nonfiction.
She has a book about writing called Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life that sounds interesting; I might look it up. Operating Instructions is presented in the form of a journal, excerpted from the personal journal she kept during ...more
She has a book about writing called Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life that sounds interesting; I might look it up. Operating Instructions is presented in the form of a journal, excerpted from the personal journal she kept during ...more
i picked this up because i really liked anne lamott's book about writing, bird by bird (occasional religious asides notwithstanding). i'd heard good things about this book, a journal/memoir she wrote during her first year of parenthood. the book spans the fall of 1989 to the fall on 1990 as lamott recounts her insecurities about being a single mom, raising a child after overcoming addiction, trying to make ends meet on a writer's salary, & eventually, her best friend's late-term breast cancer di...more
Connie Kuntz
rated it
Recommends it for:
Those who are interested in different parenting perspectives
This is a truthful, dark, insightful and funny book about the first year of single motherhood for Anne Lamott. Up until this book, I was unfamiliar with Anne Lamott and this was a great book to help me get to know a little bit about her.
What Lamott did was courageously and honestly document the first year of her son's life with his milestones from her perspective. Lamott is not only a single mother, but is also a recovering addict. Because of those two factors and her lack of inco...more
What Lamott did was courageously and honestly document the first year of her son's life with his milestones from her perspective. Lamott is not only a single mother, but is also a recovering addict. Because of those two factors and her lack of inco...more
I picked this up at the used bookstore 2 days ago, having always heard about it. I'm not a parent and intend not to be one, but I read all sorts of memoirs about things I intend to not do, so I figured why not. And I'm thrilled I did, because I loved this book!
It was a very fast read. And for once I don't only mean that I whipped through the pages very quickly (3 hours). I mean it was fast-paced and I felt like I had to speed-read to keep up. It was an interesting feeling, being whip...more
It was a very fast read. And for once I don't only mean that I whipped through the pages very quickly (3 hours). I mean it was fast-paced and I felt like I had to speed-read to keep up. It was an interesting feeling, being whip...more
So I've enjoyed everything I've read by this author and have always laughed out loud, had tears come to my eyes, and folded corners to remember certain quotations. This one is even better! I was crying while laughing out loud. She tells the truth about motherhood in all its glorious mess, pain, and delight. It's not just relevant for parents of newborns (although most will feel incredibly understood and relieved) because the glimpses of grace she shares apply to life in general.
"...more
"...more
Her world view makes me roll my eyes and sigh. She doesn't claim to be thoughtful or introspective in her political or religious leanings, and she has some self-admitted knee-jerk reactions. However, this somehow contributes to the feeling of a woman who is grasping hard to her world, working to build a better life, to be reliable and responsible for her son. She's going to go with what works for her just to get through another day.
It is a fascinating portrait of the self-pity and neur...more
It is a fascinating portrait of the self-pity and neur...more
I really liked the first half of the book, covering the first 6 months of Sam's life. Those days were written about feelings common to most new moms (even ones that have been through the newborn stage before), and the humor was easily accessible -- at least to those having been there. After that, I found the author's thoughts on raising her son to be somewhat pat and repetitive, and I lamented the lack of description on how she was balancing her new writing assignment with raising her son as a ...more
Kids don't come with operating instructions, of course, and the same is true of so many of the most important things in life. You have to figure them out as you go along.
Anne Lamott, as a single mom and a struggling young writer, journals her son's first year of life. ... the colic, the sleep deprivation, the postpartum body, the financial worries, the friends who step in to help when she needs them. During the year her best friend Pammy is diagnosed with terminal cancer.
...more
Anne Lamott, as a single mom and a struggling young writer, journals her son's first year of life. ... the colic, the sleep deprivation, the postpartum body, the financial worries, the friends who step in to help when she needs them. During the year her best friend Pammy is diagnosed with terminal cancer.
...more
This was my first Lamott book. I was barely out of my teens the first time I read it. I remember practically rolling my eyes as I picked it up. It's not that I was dumb. It's just that I was so sure that I would have nothing in common with this book. Nothing to connect me to it. I read it all before I left the college that day.
Since then I have read it several times. I've read it to other people who were sick and needed their spirits lifted.
This book alters the...more
Since then I have read it several times. I've read it to other people who were sick and needed their spirits lifted.
This book alters the...more
I don't re-read any author's books like I re-read Anne Lamott's books. When I read her books, I really enjoy being a part of her life through her writing. I've read this book three times now--once when I first bought it, once during my first daughter's first year, and once during my second daughter's first year. Lamott's journal of raising her son Sam during his first year reveals the difficulty of a mother's task. She survives even though she has no husband, battles to stay sober, fights an...more
wish I would have read this just before having my son... I would not have felt like mutant mom (after you have the kid and the remains of your gut simply lay along side you like a puppy) and/or horomonal freak mom (SHIT! He's crying AGAIN! OH! Thank Heavens, though, it means he's still breathing).
Did not much care for her novels, but as a memoir, this is truthful, humorous and oddly comforting.
Thanks Marleah, great Christmas present!
Did not much care for her novels, but as a memoir, this is truthful, humorous and oddly comforting.
Thanks Marleah, great Christmas present!
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Anne Lamott is an author of several novels and works of non-fiction. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, her non-fiction works are largely autobiographical, with strong doses of self-deprecating humor and covering such subjects as alcoholism, single motherhood, and Christianity. She appeals to her fans because of her sense of humor, her deeply felt insights, and her outspoken views on topics such...more
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“And I felt like my heart had been so thoroughly and irreparably broken that there could be no real joy again, that at best there might eventually be a little contentment. Everyone wanted me to get help and rejoin life, pick up the pieces and move on, and I tried to, I wanted to, but I just had to lie in the mud with my arms wrapped around myself, eyes closed, grieving, until I didn’t have to anymore.”
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