Planting Dandelions: Field Notes From a Semi-Domesticated Life by Kyran Pittman

Jul 26, 2011 Jennifer Cunningham-Lozano rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: chantel

Shelves: favorites

I couldn't put the book down. Started it as a beach read and then of course - little man needed more attention jumping the wave, making mud pies and that ulitmate beach nap in 100 degrees on my shoulder. As I snuck in some pages I knew I couldnt put it down but I had to nap was over and the end of day was on the way. So I picked up the book for the train ride to the City a little over an hour on the great LIRR and I couldnt stop turing the pages, chapters were flowing by and my heart fluttered w...more

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Apr 13, 2011 Tiffany (Book Cover Justice) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own

I really enjoyed this book. Kyran discusses her leap from being a wild child to a wife and mother of three. Her path was not easy, and she bares in this wonderful memoir about her life. I love that Kyran is honest about her decisions and what made her decide to "jump the picket fence" into a life she never imagined herself living, all the while keeping a great sense of humor. I could definitely relate to her, being a mother of two who never saw myself in this kind of life. I think it was very br...more

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Jul 12, 2012 Lark rated it 2 of 5 stars

I was given to understand this was hilariously funny. I would say - this is what happens when a mentally unstable, narcissist eventually takes baby steps towards adulthood. The author starts her book 'in the middle' and gives tidbits of bare background throughout.
Seems very focused on shallow things- the section on not getting lust-looks from men (aging) was tedious at best.

Noticed a tendency to believe in herself - no matter what her beliefs are and if they've changed radically from yesterday....more

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Jul 19, 2011 Molly rated it 4 of 5 stars

The stories in this book aren't particularly exceptional in terms of the subject matter - the writer is a 40-something woman who was wild in her youth but somehow found herself married and the mother of three boys. But she has that really rare gift of being able to capture details of everyday life in language that is so perfect that you just want to savor it, rereading sentences or paragraphs over and over. I read this in a couple of days and totally laughed out loud multiple times. It's also a...more

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Jun 25, 2011 Ciara rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: autobio-memoir, read-in-2011

maybe more like 3.5 stars? i really, really wish goodreads let us do half-stars officially.

this is more like a collection of autobiographical essays than a real memoir. the author is a canadian woman living in arkansas with her husband & three young sons. she starts the book by detailing the genesis of her relationship with her husband. she had been married to another man when she apparently started an internet affair. she fled from her marriage after less than two years & gallivanted ar...more maybe more like 3.5 stars? i really, really wish goodreads let us do half-stars officially.

this is more like a collection of autobiographical essays than a real memoir. the author is a canadian woman living in arkansas with her husband & three young sons. she starts the book by detailing the genesis of her relationship with her husband. she had been married to another man when she apparently started an internet affair. she fled from her marriage after less than two years & gallivanted around mexico for a while before joining him in arkansas. she talks a nice big game about how THIS time, at the ripe old age of like 26, she truly understands the import of marriage & knows that walking down the aisle is the right choice.

so in that respect, the book kind if immediately got off on a weird foot with me. not necessarily the WRONG foot--i did appreciate her candor, & she doesn't really bend over backwards to try to convince the reader that what she did is not that bad or that her first husband was a monster or anything (she doesn't really write about him at all, actually). i got married at a really young age & was divorced within two years, so hey. i know it happens. (though there were no affairs involved in my marriage.) & at the time that this book was published, she had been with her second husband for more than ten years & things were going strong, so clearly she did make a better choice or become more mature or something. but i still have to scoff at someone in her mid-20s talking such a big game about how she's made some mistakes but THIS time, her huge life decision is the right one, she just KNOWS it. i have been 18, i have been 26, & i can say with some degree of confidence that 26 is not really any more grown up than 26. i wish she just would have toned down the grandiosity a little, maybe.

there was a lot to like about this book. i especially enjoyed her descriptions of motherhood, when she wrote about how she intended to do everything totally natural & "perfect" with her first son, doing attachment parenting all the way, making him a jice-sweetened cake for his first birthday etc...& how her great intentions ceded to reality as she had more babies. it was very in line with my theory that everyone is such a great mom before they actually have kids, thinking they have all the answers & know exactly what to do. & although i certainly plan to adopt some elements of attachment parenting with my kid, hardcore attachment parenting acolytes annoy me just as much as their more mainstream counterparts with the SUV-sized strollers.

what did bother me about this book was the hyper-focus on the author's perception of herself as a freewheeling bohemian unfettered by the bourgeois expectations of...well...anyone. it hit a false note throughout the book, like she was playacting at being someone who is all wild & crazy. my suspicions were proven in one of the final chapters, which was all about turning 40 & saying goodbye to the "hot girl" she had once been. she talked about how she has always loved make-up & messing with her hair & feminine clothes, but now she feels she HAS to do it to keep up appearances rather than because it's fun. um. i can't help thinking that a fun-loving free-spirited bohemian wouldn't really stress out that much about a gray hair or some wrinkles. i'm almost 32, i have some gray hair & am starting to get some wrinkles...big fucking deal. i never expected to be 16 forever. i'm certainly not going to tether myself to some kind of beauty regimen in the hopes of achieving the impossible. i guess my point is that this essay, about saying goodbye to youth, was actually about clinging to youth & it didn't tally at all with how the author tried to represent herself in the rest of the book. (less)

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Feb 25, 2011 Brenda Rupp rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book was sent to me by the author and it was an advance reader copy, some of the information included in the book may be changed before it is printed for full distribution.
I think this book would speak to women who are Mom's. I don't have any children, and this author is writing about the changes that happened in her life once she married and eventually had 3 boys. She had to down size their living arranagements to avoid foreclosure. Each chapter speaks of a different area or time in her li...more This book was sent to me by the author and it was an advance reader copy, some of the information included in the book may be changed before it is printed for full distribution.
I think this book would speak to women who are Mom's. I don't have any children, and this author is writing about the changes that happened in her life once she married and eventually had 3 boys. She had to down size their living arranagements to avoid foreclosure. Each chapter speaks of a different area or time in her life. I'm sure anyone who has raised children would enjoy the book more than I did. I liked it, but it took me a while longer to finish the book than some that I read.
Here is the excerpt from the back of the book:
Introducing a writer with a keen eye, a wicked tongue, and an appealing take on family.

In the family of Jen Lancaster and Elizabeth Gilbert, Kyran Pittman is the laid-back middle sister: warm and witty and confiding, with an addictively smart and genuine voice-but married with three kids and living in the heartland. Relatable and real, she writes about family in a way that highlights all its humor, while at the same time honoring its depth.

A regular contributor to Good Housekeeping, Pittman is well loved because she is funny and honest and self-deprecating, because her own household is in chaos ("semi-domesticated"), and because she inspires readers in their own domestic lives. In these eighteen linked, chronological essays, Pittman covers the first twelve years of becoming a family, writing candidly and hilariously about things like learning to maintain a marriage over time; dealing with the challenges of sex after childbirth; saying good-bye to her younger self and embracing the still attractive, forty-year-old version; and trying to "recession- proof" her family (i.e., downsize to avoid foreclosure).

From a fresh new talent, celebrating the joys and trials of a new generation of parents, Planting Dandelions is an entertaining tribute to choosing the white-picket fence over the other options available, even if you don't manage to live up to its ideals every day.

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May 14, 2012 Susanhayeshotmail.com rated it 4 of 5 stars

Another easy read consumed in the wee small hours when sleep was elusive. While titled a memoir this reads much more like a collection of essays (not a bad thing, just a different thing to me) and I should drop half a star for the TMI chapters. But I did find myself giggling and trying very hard not to laugh out loud more than once and really, don't we need to laugh more? I particularly enjoyed the part where she, lone female in a house of fart loving, toilet seat leaving up group of males, pret...more

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Apr 16, 2011 Katie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

I won this book through Good Reads First-Reads program.

This book was hard for me to relate to - I guess I am just not at that point in my life - and after reading this book, I'm not sure that I ever want to be. The author shared things in a manner which has convinced me she would be the type of person I would dread being stuck next to at a party - the classic over-sharing in a crass manner person. You know, the one that you and your husband have to have some sort of non-verbal cue for "get me o...more

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Feb 23, 2011 Ashley rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the true story of Kyran Pittman and how she happened upon, as she puts it on the cover, “a semi-domesticated life”. Kyran works backwards, from the get-go you know that she is married with three boys and a writer that contributes to Good Housekeeping. But then she takes you on this unforgettable trip down Memory Lane so real and vivid that you feel like you’ve been there before. And maybe part of why this story works so well is that, if you are a mom, you have been there. In a way, her s...more This is the true story of Kyran Pittman and how she happened upon, as she puts it on the cover, “a semi-domesticated life”. Kyran works backwards, from the get-go you know that she is married with three boys and a writer that contributes to Good Housekeeping. But then she takes you on this unforgettable trip down Memory Lane so real and vivid that you feel like you’ve been there before. And maybe part of why this story works so well is that, if you are a mom, you have been there. In a way, her story is yours.
As a mother of a little girl, I related so much to Kyran’s struggles and triumphs as in parenthood. She was SO candid that I found myself nodding along as I read. ”Yes, yes, I know exactly what you mean,” I thought excitedly. I felt that someone “got” me, that someone else understood exactly where I am in life. And she does it in such a hysterical way, that you can’t help but laugh right along with her.

If you are a mom, you will want to get this book the day that it arrives. Get it for your book club, your MMO group, your bathtub alone time. You will roar with laughter as Kyran compares a mother’s job skill set as class party mom to vaudeville, reminds you of “getting back in the saddle” with your spouse after having a baby, and learns how to tame a houseful of boys. You will feel her pain when she discusses how a child can change your relationship with your husband, how competitive the mom club can be, and how much of an emotional strain finances can put on your family.

You might ask, why should I go get this book when there are so many other “mom memoirs” out there? It’s simple: Kyran Pittman takes such an honest approach to her life. She writes as though you’ve known her for years. You will relate because she says what you are thinking, the things that you don’t want anyone to know. As I was reading this book I couldn’t help but think that if we were all this honest the mom experience would be so much easier. Maybe then we could cut each other and ourselves a break from trying to be Mom of the Year, and instead give each other a high-five for remembering to do the laundry the night before.(less)

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May 08, 2011 sarah gilbert rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: writers-i-know, for-a-new-mother

I know Kyran through our cozy blogworld, and I have loved her writing for years (even before she became a Good Housekeeping contributing editor -- her poetic talent is clear even when not judged by the big ones). I'd always admired her for her way of turning blog posts into short essays, not the journaling you see in most 'mommy blogs.' She has a weight about her.

And so, much of this material was familiar both in story and in tone. I knew several of these stories from our mutual connection and t...more I know Kyran through our cozy blogworld, and I have loved her writing for years (even before she became a Good Housekeeping contributing editor -- her poetic talent is clear even when not judged by the big ones). I'd always admired her for her way of turning blog posts into short essays, not the journaling you see in most 'mommy blogs.' She has a weight about her.

And so, much of this material was familiar both in story and in tone. I knew several of these stories from our mutual connection and the briefer, real-time, non-contextual versions on the blog. Seeing how she wove the excellent short pieces into longer, more complete essays was interesting and, again, familiar (though I haven't written a book yet, I too turn bits and pieces from blog posts into longer essays). Every essay in here stands without knowing anything of Kyran beforehand; I could just as easily have walked into her life off the internet's streets, a new mother or a net ingenue. And I would like it exactly as much.

The real strength of this work is that it does not paint the role of wife/mother as the easy-peasy romance so many modern mother-memoirists do (or, conversely, hell's roller coaster into all-caps snark and stories intimate with poop). We see here, marriage in its ups and downs: we see a real story with real arguments that could be lifted straight into most marriages I know without anyone being the wiser. And we see the true heroism of staying in a marriage, through it all; we see a realism without (much) product placement or blithe boosterism. At times, due to (probably) the difficulties of siding with one group or another, the living she must go on doing in her family and social environment, she seems almost blindingly equaninimous. I am a 40-year-old mother, I contain multitudes! (She can be an attachment parent and still put her baby in child care while she writes; she can be a frugal hippie and still send her kids to private school. She does not judge any mother, holding hands instead, across the cul-de-sacs and picket fences and barbed wire and interstate freeways.)

I am missing something from this work, though, and that is a narrative thread and a clear chronology. Each essay can stand on its own, and many of them probably could do so in major newspapers and magazines without any complaint and with, likely, acclaim from other mother-writers; I, however, prefer to see a story in beginning-middle-and-end form. Each essay wraps its idea (not story: idea) up nicely at the end and shows the development of wisdom with age. I would like to see the wisdom come on more slowly; I would like to not always know the end of the story at the end (or even, often, only half-way through) each essay. I had expected a book, not a collection, and was mildly disappointed.

It's also hard for me, a mother-writer with three boys and a husband who shares many character traits with Kyran's husband Patrick, to read a book in which the strife never comes (or extremely rarely comes) from the children. In my world, children are not so pacific. But that is my story, I think; Kyran's story is either simply a different one, or any trouble coming from the children is glossed over. I can hardly fault a writer for her easy children (but oh! they seem so easy!).

As someone who has been through many of the same thought-essays in my own head, I would suggest this book for younger mothers and mothers-to-be. It's especially useful for mothers who share something with Kyran -- a husband with a genetic predisposition to boys, maybe; a bad-girl past; a freelance lifestyle; a transplantation to the South. It's a great gift-book, good for reading like an approachable literary magazine: in snippets and at random, quoting passages out loud to your intractable husband or your mama friends on the front porch.(less)

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May 09, 2011 Jessica at Book Sake rated it 2 of 5 stars

This story read as if it were a series of articles written for a magazine. (This may come from the fact that the author is a contributing writer for Good Housekeeping.) While the chapters are in the order of Pittman’s life, it still felt as if many of the chapters were disconnected into different thoughts. Unfortuntaly this left me feeling as if I were completely outside of the writing instead of being enveloped within the story.

If you want to read someone’s diary, where the writer talks about t...more

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Apr 20, 2011 Waven rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, non-fiction, humor

The cover says "a memoir" but that's not quite true. This is a collection of 18 short essays on life and love, risk and romance, mistakes and motherhood ... which collectively provides a significant window into the world of the author without quite becoming a true memoir. But its episodic nature - each essay like a chapter - makes it very approachable and easy to read. Pittman also has a good sense of humor, which she often puts to work. The result is a fun, interesting read with surprising dept...more

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May 28, 2012 Heather Davis rated it 5 of 5 stars

I {heart} this book. A friend of mine had said that she read this book and it reminded her of me. She has a tendency to read sob-stories, so I avoided it like the plague. Then I was cast in a little national show called Listen To Your Mother with Kyran Pittman and I thought, "Surely the Listen To Your Mother people wouldn't cast an emo-wreck for this show" and I decided to read it. Kyran is so honest and simple and it was a little like reading a long-lost sister's diary. Her words are fun, and h...more

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Apr 15, 2011 Catherine rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, 2011, non-fiction, parenting

I received an uncorrected proof as part of a first reads giveaway. If I could give half stars, I would probably give this 3 1/2 instead of 4. Definitely a good debut, though.

Kyran Pittman is brutally honest about details of her life before and after children -- the unconventional route she took to suburban motherhood and the ensuing adventures. Some I could really identify with and other parts not at all. For example, raising boys and trying to stick to a more natural, attachment parenting style...more

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Mar 29, 2012 Literary Mama added it

Shelves: memoir

In Planting Dandelions: Field Notes from a Semi-Domesticated Life, Kyran Pittman tells her three sons, "Mommy's an alien." And she doesn't just mean because she moved from Canada to Arkansas. Pittman is a former wild child who jumped the white picket fence --"not in the way the story usually begins, with the heroine breaking out, busting loose, setting off across the wild world in search of her authentic, enlightened self." Instead Pittman was jumping in, thoroughly surprised to be following the...more

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Jul 30, 2011 Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: children, challenge, essays, relationships

I received an advanced reader copy of this book from the publisher way, way back in April. It has been at the top of my TBR pile since I received it, but other books kept pushing it down in the stacks. I finally got around to reading it this week.

And I’m happy I did. Planting Dandelions is a lovely collection of essays about marriage and families written by a woman who really never expected to find either in her life and who was totally amazed to discover how much marriage and family delighted h...more

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Apr 01, 2012 Florinda rated it 4 of 5 stars

The increasingly popular �novel-in-stories� format seems to have a counterpart in nonfiction: the �linked-essays� memoir. Like all memoirs, these books tell a personal story, but the telling is episodic rather than along the straightforward narrative through-line found in both traditionally autobiographical and �experience-based� memoirs. I�ve read a few of these - Dani Shapiro�'s reflective Devotion, Quinn Cummings�' born-from-a-blog Notes From the Underwire and, less recently, Ayelet Waldman'�...more The increasingly popular �novel-in-stories� format seems to have a counterpart in nonfiction: the �linked-essays� memoir. Like all memoirs, these books tell a personal story, but the telling is episodic rather than along the straightforward narrative through-line found in both traditionally autobiographical and �experience-based� memoirs. I�ve read a few of these - Dani Shapiro�'s reflective Devotion, Quinn Cummings�' born-from-a-blog Notes From the Underwire and, less recently, Ayelet Waldman'�s controversial Bad Mother - and I'�m gaining a real appreciation for the structure, considered apart from the content. But I appreciated Kyran Pittman'�s Planting Dandelions for both.

The seeds of Planting Dandelions (only a little bit of pun intended) are in the blog Kyran began keeping at Christmas 2005, Notes to Self. That blog led to a contributing-editor�'s job with Good Housekeeping magazine as well as this book, and I read it for several years; it�'s since been retitled and folded into a blog connected with this book, and it's still an excellent example of a blog that you keep returning to because of the writing. That writing carries over to the book. While Pittman is selective about the episodes she�s chosen to include in her memoir - as is completely her right - her voice is never less than honest and intimate as she shares them, and her words are thoughtful and well-chosen. I may be bringing my own filter to this, but the voice strikes me as one honed on a blog, in the best possible way.

There were a lot of observations here that really clicked with me. Kyran lives in Little Rock, Arkansas - just three hours from my old home in Memphis, Tennessee - and we/�ve had the common experience of coming from Northeastern roots and growing to love the American South, with all its complications; the 11th essay in the book, �"Southern Man,"� talked about that adaptation with some references that felt familiar. She'�s experienced infidelity and divorce, and both have influenced her eyes-wide-open approach to her second marriage, now well into its second decade. Her reflections on juggling work and family sound familiar, but I felt they were given additional dimension by her openly conflicted feelings about domesticity (hence the "�semi-�" in the subtitle).

Pittman is forthright about the challenges of marriage, parenting, and combining the two, and her storytelling is often moving and frequently amusing. However, I didn'�t get a sense of things being exaggerated for comic effect; while not always overly serious, it�'s clear that the author has given a lot of thought to the matters she�'s writing about, and reading Planting Dandelions feels like a really good, long, deep conversation.(less)

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Apr 19, 2011 Erin rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

Planting Dandelions is a fun and thought-provoking read. Kyran Pittman's life has many twists and turns that are out of the ordinary, but there are parts of this memoir that will resonate with many different people. Anyone who has planned a wedding, become a parent, lived in another country, lived from paycheck to paycheck, or lived in suburbia will find a story or quip that rings true for them.

Pittman's writing is funny and very direct. She doesn't take herself too seriously, while truthfully a...more

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Apr 13, 2011 Kristine rated it 4 of 5 stars

Won this book from ReadingGroupsGuides.com, halfway through and really love it! I am the mother of eight, 6 boys and 2 girls. Everything the author says rings true and has me chuckling, especially the part about the tooth fairy! Cannot count the number of times the tooth fairy forgot to drop by at our house, many a time we accompanied our child to their room with the money hidden in our hand and say , "Oh,Look! Here it is! It must of fallen under the bed while you were sleeping." It works very w...more

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Feb 01, 2013 Kim rated it 4 of 5 stars

Thanks, Sharon for the recommendation. This one was great! This book is a motherhood memoir (momoir?) by a stay-at-home mom of three young boys. I thought it was funny and true and there were so many moments that were incredibly relatable. I especially liked the chapter about realizing that your own parents were just as clueless as you are and the one about holidays and birthday parties and how they make you feel like a crazy person. There are lots of quotable lines, but here is one of my favori...more

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Nov 29, 2011 Becky rated it 2 of 5 stars

I really thought I would like this more from the introduction but as I went through it I was a little disappointed. The chapter "Back in the Saddle" had a little too much information on her personal life - in my opinion. The chapter "The Crush" as well as the whole way she met her current husband were both disconcerting. The chapter "The Facts of Life" was eyebrow raising. The chapter "Mommy wears Prada" was unrealistic for any mom - who gets a shopping spree from Good Housekeeping. But it is a...more I really thought I would like this more from the introduction but as I went through it I was a little disappointed. The chapter "Back in the Saddle" had a little too much information on her personal life - in my opinion. The chapter "The Crush" as well as the whole way she met her current husband were both disconcerting. The chapter "The Facts of Life" was eyebrow raising. The chapter "Mommy wears Prada" was unrealistic for any mom - who gets a shopping spree from Good Housekeeping. But it is a memoir after all. The chapter "Me, the People" made me laugh cause a lot of her opinions are similar to my Canadian friend.
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"I believe in seeking. I believe ardently that you should drop everything and run toward your true self, as far as you have to go. But I want to put in a word for the path that winds through the backyard, because it can be just as meaningful and wondrous as the one that goes up the mountaintop, if it's your path. (**that is the key - if it is YOUR path**) You want a spiritual discipline? try staying vitally connected to the same person, year in, year out, through surprise pregnancies, late mortgage payments, toilet seat battles, and the occasional, strong temptation to walk away and make a living tending bar somewhere on the coast of Main. Domestic life is full of moments of truth, if you stay awake to them."

"Moms are so hard on each other because we're really so damn hard on ourselves.. None of us can really be sure we're doing the right thing, or know how it's all going to turn out."

"The labor involved in taking care of small kids is menial and repetitive. You're cleaning up other people's body waste day after day. There's an aspect of it that works on your ego in a good way. It can be a humbling act of devotion. It can also make you feel like shit."

"If it takes wearing something special on the outside to remind me I am always her on the inside, I think that's okay. You can call it an investment. But it isn't in the clothes."

"There's a trade-off for being happily long-married. The energy of anticipation diminishes, just like collagen or pigment. You can simulate it, but it's not the same. There are no more first kisses. But there is deeper intimacy, and paradoxically, there is more mystery."

"You can love your husband and children with every breath in your body and still feel restless and detached sometimes. You can be a good mother, and have daydreams of running or simply walking away. It's the ones who can't accpt this paradox who have the most to fear, are most vulnrable to the sudden ambush of desire."
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Oct 06, 2011 caitlin rated it 2 of 5 stars

I hated this book at the beginning when the writer was rambling on about how she didn't intend to be a stay-at-home mom but then magically it happened but she likes it so much better than the corporate world and she's such a hands-on mom she couldn't possibly leave her babies and attachment parenting and blah blah. I am so tired of the "mom" struggle and books like this that are so one-sided. You made a choice; don't pretend that you couldn't possibly have chosen your choice and stop failing to...more

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May 25, 2011 Gail rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book. Although I thought I would have little in commom with this author, I was totally wrong. I felt like we knew each other and were having a conversation. There were many events in her life that I could really understand and relate to. She chronicles her life with humor and honesty. Her message that women are continually reinventing themselves as they adapt to different experiences and stages of life, and that it is ok to let go of some parts of us that are no longer rele...more

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Jun 02, 2011 Misty Wright rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

I received this as part of the Goodreads First Reads. I probably would not have read the entire thing, otherwise. Like a couple of other reviewers, I could not relate to the author, because I am not married, nor am I a mother. I feel that the author kind of jumped around to events in her life and maybe didn't go into as much information as I would have like about certain things. She is extremely open about her relationship with her husband, and the fact that, to paraphrase, adultery worked for h...more

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May 22, 2012 Julie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2012

I am one of the founding members of Arkansas Women Bloggers of which Kyran Pittman is a member. I first met Kyran in December of 2010 when she was the keynote speaker at one of our blogger meet-ups. I was first introduced to this book whenshe spoke omit during her time with us.

I had Planting Danelions on my wish list for just over a year before I finally got around to reading it..

From what I understand the book is made up of blog posts and magazine articles she wrote about motherhood and her fa...more

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Apr 24, 2011 Shannon rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, swapped-donated

The beginning reminds me of the time when I took the kids to visit my former coworkers. One woman was visibly relieved and said, "We thought you would eat your young!!!!"

This is not a book for someone (me) who likes escaping into another place or to another life when reading. The book described exactly what I'm doing here at home with the kids and husband - childcare, day-to-day finances, marital and housing issues. It was like reliving my day during my "free" time.

The book didn't tell me anythi...more

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Sep 15, 2011 Melana rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoir

Reading Planting Dandelions was sort of like reading my own journal, if I were a journal-keeper, but with much more coherent, descriptive, and witty writing than I could conjure.
It was during the last few chapters that I really began to develop a love for Ms. Pittman's work. I am 'morphing' an much the same rate; I'm the mother of three children, aged 11 to six; my husband and I recently celebrated 12 years of marriage. While I could mourn the fact that I appreciate Ms. Pittman's later chapters...more

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Jul 04, 2011 Danielle rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own, chicklit, for-review

From party girl to stay at home mom, Kyran Pittman is living a life that is becoming more and more popular by the minute. Her life revolves around her three boys, her husband and when she can find time…her part-time work writing. Not only does she feel fulfilled by a life of domesticity, but she revels in it. Pittman’s life is a non-stop mile a minute thrill ride that many might be surprised to learn is exactly how she likes it.

When I initially was offered the opportunity to review Planting Dand...more From party girl to stay at home mom, Kyran Pittman is living a life that is becoming more and more popular by the minute. Her life revolves around her three boys, her husband and when she can find time…her part-time work writing. Not only does she feel fulfilled by a life of domesticity, but she revels in it. Pittman’s life is a non-stop mile a minute thrill ride that many might be surprised to learn is exactly how she likes it.

When I initially was offered the opportunity to review Planting Dandelions I jumped at the chance, having seen it on Goodreads first, I fell in love with the cover. After I read the synopsis I remember thinking that this was exactly the type of book I could relate to. I’m a stay at home mom with two children under five, I have a very busy husband who’s been practicing law for only a few years now which means he’s rarely home, and I also keep very busy by both writing & outside activities. Basically, Kyran Pittman and myself were near mirror images in many ways, not all, but many. What I was truly eager to read were her positive messages about being a stay at home mom as opposed to the opposite it mentions in the synopsis, Eat Pray Love. It was absolutely that!

Many of the experiences in Planting Dandelions revolve around Kyran’s life after she is married & has children, but what I truly enjoyed was the opening of the story. In the first thirty to fifty pages or so she shares how it was that she came to meet and marry her husband. Surprisingly she was married at the time, but the circumstances surrounding that marriage are shocking to say the least. This is where the story came alive for me in terms of it being a “Chick Lit” type novel and it continued throughout the novel with her mentions back to her “partying & traveling” years.

Kyran’s life with her children was wonderful to read about as well. Like I mentioned earlier, as I wasn’t a fan of Elizabeth Gilbert’s self-indulgent travels, this was the exact opposite. It was refreshing to hear how someone could thoroughly enjoy giving of themselves so much and love raising their own children by truly caring for them. What I had hoped for though was more connection. My rating on the book has more to do with this than anything else. It could have possibly been because we didn’t have the same philosophies or also the fact that the story is more of a number of essays compiled into a larger book making it harder to have a continual connection. I’m not exactly sure, but for some reason I wasn’t exactly pulled through the book though it was still excellently written.

With a past that included staying up until last call at the bars to partying in Mexico until she ran out of money it’s hard to believe that Kyran Pittman would relish in a life of diaper changing and carpooling, but she does! Stay at home mom and writer extraordinaire, Pittman proves that you don’t need to travel the world to discover who you really are and what you want out of life. Self-sacrifice and love are what she chooses and her stories take readers to places they see in their everyday lives. I have no doubt that Chick Lit fans who may also happen to be moms (want to be, have been, will be, etc.) will love Pittman’s take on this often daunting endeavor. A wonderful debut and the perfect introduction into the beginning of a very successful novel writing career I’m sure!

Originally reviewed and copyrighted at Chick Lit Reviews.(less)

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May 21, 2011 Jessica rated it 2 of 5 stars

Over and over, I found myself thinking “if Chelsea Handler had children, this might be her book”. In general, both excel writing about all those nasty things many of us think about (over and over and over…) but never say out loud. For example, both unabashedly chat about their vaginas. At length. In great detail. Including color wheels, when needed. Both are really pretty smart. I enjoyed Kyran’s well considered discussions on gun control, immigration and gross consumerism, amongst many, many ot...more

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May 05, 2011 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have to start this book review with a big disclosure: I am friends with Kyran Pittman, the author of Planting Dandelions. She and I have much in common, including long distance love affairs, immigration issues and a house full of testosterone. Since her book is a story about her and her family, and because before reading it I already knew that I loved her and her family, my review is, by default, biased.

That disclaimer out of the way,Planting Dandelions is one of the worst memoirs I've ever r...more I have to start this book review with a big disclosure: I am friends with Kyran Pittman, the author of Planting Dandelions. She and I have much in common, including long distance love affairs, immigration issues and a house full of testosterone. Since her book is a story about her and her family, and because before reading it I already knew that I loved her and her family, my review is, by default, biased.

That disclaimer out of the way,Planting Dandelions is one of the worst memoirs I've ever read. Just kidding! It's actually one of the best. And I really wouldn't say that if it weren't true.

The title of Kyran's book refers to her long time love of the tiny-yet-hardy plant that many consider to be a weed, but that she considers a flower. The dandelion has become a bit of a metaphor for her life, a reminder that one doesn't have to be like everyone else on the block, that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder, and that wishing is a worthwhile activity.

In her memoir, Kyran mainly covers the years of her life spent falling in and out love, finally finding "the one," and raising a family with him. Anyone who's ever chucked it all to run away and be with a boy or been a mother unsure of herself and her role within the family and society can definitely relate to her story. I've heard her writing compared to Erma Bombeck's, but Kyran is a funnier, raunchier, and dare I say more honest voice.

If you're looking for a hilarious take on what the "real" modern family is like, an honest glimpse into the confusing, contradictory cesspool of emotions that mothers and wives must wade through, or a treatise on the negotiations and contracts necessary to run a marriage, you will absolutely love Planting Dandelions.

There. Now I've finished the trite and standard book review stuff. I know that many people just read the first part of a review or post, so there's the necessary bits out of the way. Now I can really talk about Kyran and her book.

There are parts of it that are tough to read. If sex talk or graphic descriptions of childbirth bothers you, be warned -- she writes about both of them. I'm a bit of a prude, and I'll say, those parts didn't really gross me out too much, but I did wince or giggle like a pre-pubescent boy at times. But I still can't believe some of what she put out there. She's either brave or crazy, or a bit of both.

It's also tough to read because it's brutally honest. Kyran talks about her failed first marriage, her emotional affairs, and her judgmental feelings toward other women. I like that kind of thing. I think more women need to be writing about that stuff. None of us are perfect, dammit. There are enough craft blogs and beauty magazines out there making us feel less-than because we don't have a perfect home, a perfect marriage, perfect kids or a perfect body. The last thing we need is yet another "momoir" that glorifies and airbrushes the realities that women face.

Kyran's writing is also very different from that of many bloggers-turned-writers and people who write about their lives. It's different because it's good. I know "she writes pretty" isn't necessarily your standard reason a review gives to read a book, but I think it's valid. I hate writing styles that insult my intelligence. Kyran's writing, while relatable and easy to devour, still makes you feel smart. She doesn't talk down to her readers, and she's not afraid to use her brain or big words or make erudite references. And I like that -- it's quite rare in this genre.

But what I love most about Planting Dandelions is how it makes me -- and I'm sure others -- feel. It made me feel like my story is worth telling. That my banal life of packing lunch boxes and paying bills and (not) changing light bulbs is worth remembering, worth preserving. I don't mean that I need to go out and write a memoir. I just mean that, since reading this book, I find myself taking a little more time to find the joy in the carpool line, to honor the importance of listening to my husband, and to reflect on the tradition and history involved in raising my children. While Kyran's story could give me an excuse -- "Hey, nobody's perfect, what am I so hard on myself for?" -- instead, it's given me a new challenge, a new outlook, and a new appreciation of my role as wife and mother. In a way, it's given me a new sense of purpose.

For that, I can truly say that Planting Dandelions is one of the few books that has changed my life. I hope you'll read it and give it a chance to change yours, too.(less)

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