Area Woman Blows Gasket: And Other Tales from the Domestic Frontier

by Patricia Pearson

Area Women Unite! In this sharp and sophisticated collection of essays, columnist Patricia Pearson takes us on a hilarious tour of our twenty-first-century obsessions and distractions. Patricia Pearson is a working woman, wife, and mother on the verge. Whether it's being humiliated by the "Beauty Bullies" at the Lancome counter or failing to live up to the "Serene Mother" ideal, Pearson has had enough of negotiating our present-day myths and fads. In fact, she's formed a few opinions on the matter and can't wait to share them with you. In Area Woman Blows Gasket, Pearson plumbs every facet of modern life, marriage, and motherhood, from choosing the right vegan-bran-hemp diet for your family to confronting your husband's irrational fear of mayonnaise to finding a way to return to work and not turn your child into a contract killer. Adult education classes, therapy, $100 haircuts, the latest news on what causes cancer, Christmas shopping-all come into sharp focus with the help of Pearson's comic eye. Her wry brand of wisdom is a refreshing and long-awaited release from our confusing and often contradictory world.

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor

224 pages, Hardcover

First published April 11, 2005

About the author

Canadian journalist and daughter of Canadian diplomat Geoffrey Pearson and former Ontario Senator Landon Pearson, and the granddaughter of former Prime Minister Lester Pearson.

She resigned her weekly column at the National Post in 2003 to protest that newspaper's support for the Bush administration.

Reviews

[LilBib’Phile · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny and relatable!

[Roberta · Rating 2 out of 5]

More like a 2.5 and not really a memoir. It's a series of essays - a few very funny, some not so much. I like her style much of the time but some of the humour feels forced. Nowhere near as engaging as A Brief History of Anxiety.

[Maya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like any other collection of essays/ponderings on modern life, some hit the comic bullseye more than others, yet the ones that worked for me worked really, really well. 3.5 stars, with an extra half star added for the FABULOUS title alone.

[Anneliese · Rating 3 out of 5]

very funny in some parts, an endearing book of essays, but some strong language i didn't think was nescessary.

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think she wants you to think she's witty, but I found her strident, negative, snarky and mean-spirited. What a disappointment. :(

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lmao!

[Kelley Jane Plane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious! Reminded me of moments when I was a young stay at home mom. So many choices, obsessions and opinions that change day to day. Quite entertaining.