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Adulting 101: How to survive the real world
Sometimes it is hard to be an adult. Yes, you can go to bed as late as you want, but you have to make decisions all the time. You have bills to pay and taxes to do. It’s enough to make you want to scream – WHY DID NOBODY TELL ME IT WOULD BE LIKE THIS?
Adulting 101 will help you navigate the tricky terrain of adulthood. Jen Thorpe guides you through everything you need to know from relationships, sex, work, health and money to how government and the media work.
Adulting 101 will help you navigate the tricky terrain of adulthood. Jen Thorpe guides you through everything you need to know from relationships, sex, work, health and money to how government and the media work.
304 pages, Paperback
Published February 1, 2022
5 people are currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Jen Thorpe
9 books21 followersJen Thorpe is a feminist writer and researcher based in Cape Town, South Africa.
Her latest book, Adulting 101: How to Survive the Real World, was published by Kwela in 2022.
Her first novel, The Peculiars (2016), was long listed for the Etisalat Prize for Literature (2016) and the Sunday Times Fiction Prize (2017). Her second novel, The Fall, was published in July 2020.
Thorpe has edited three collections of feminist essays – My First Time: Stories of Sex and Sexuality from Women Like You (2012); Feminism Is: South Africans Speak Their Truth (2018) and Living While Feminist (2020).
Her latest book, Adulting 101: How to Survive the Real World, was published by Kwela in 2022.
Her first novel, The Peculiars (2016), was long listed for the Etisalat Prize for Literature (2016) and the Sunday Times Fiction Prize (2017). Her second novel, The Fall, was published in July 2020.
Thorpe has edited three collections of feminist essays – My First Time: Stories of Sex and Sexuality from Women Like You (2012); Feminism Is: South Africans Speak Their Truth (2018) and Living While Feminist (2020).
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 22, 2022
#adulting101 – Jen Thorpe
#kwela
#NBPublishers
“For many of us, being a bona fide adult felt like a much better idea when we weren’t one yet.” (p.9) If this resonates with you on any level, even if you are so advanced in age that the thought is nothing but a distant memory, I dare you to read on.
The traditional school syllabus can in no way prepare young people for the requirements of adulthood; the perceived novelty thereof, like sleeping until noon, having lots of money, finding happiness in relationships without parental interference and not going to school and facing horrid teachers, quickly pales and fades when subjected to reality: how to find a job; where to live; relationship issues; transport; costs of living; sexual challenges; tax returns; medical aid, etc. Nobody can prepare you for what it is really like, but this book makes an excellent effort. The author does not pretend to know everything and recommendations by experts in various fields are included in the text.
The book is divided into several chapters and covers various relevant issues, each chapter preceded by a so-called cheat sheet, in effect a brief summary of the chapter to follow, and concludes with impressive lists of extra resources, detailed endnotes and an alphabetical index. The writing style is light-hearted, no-nonsense and quirky (‘I’m not a brand representative for anything and I already have to decide for myself, so I don’t have time to decide for you’), but the subjects are discussed with empathy and detail and the book is aimed at empowering young adults.
The first chapter covers general issues regarding the reader as an individual: physical (including diet, social habits, sleep and exercise) and mental (how, where and when to get help) health and creativity: ‘The economic system that we all live under works hard to convince us that everything we create must have economic value or else it is not worth our time. This is nonsense.’ (p.61)
Chapter 2, simply titled ‘Taking care of, and in, relationships’ is one of the most important and informative parts of the book. It includes challenging relationships with aging parents, friendships and romantic relationships and discusses subjects like death (the grieving process; wills and funerals); marriages and other legal partnerships (types of marriage contracts, rights of spouses, love languages); divorce (maintenance, division of assets, access to and care of minor children) and unhealthy relationships (emotional and physical abuse and the provisions of the Domestic Violence Act, 116 of 1998). There is one mistake in respect of the latter legislation, though. On p.92 the following statement is made: ‘You also have the option to lay a criminal charge of domestic violence at your local police station.’ This is incorrect, since no such criminal charge exists. The correct statement would be: You also have the right to lay a criminal charge of contravening the conditions of a Domestic Violence Protection Order at your local police station once such an order has been issued and the conditions have been breached after service thereof on the respondent.
It was refreshing to see that the chapter on sex and baby making describes sexual intercourse as something to be enjoyed, rather than simply endured – the latter having been the norm for the limited and patriarchal sex ed presented to youngsters for centuries. The discussion on sex includes the concept of informed consent; contraception and STI’s and the second part, baby making, provides information on infertility, miscarriages, adoption, AI and surrogacy.
Additional chapters cover living arrangements (renting; buying; applying for bonds; rights and obligations when renting, the latter including one of my favourite parts: ‘So if your lease says you’re renting the property as a home, you can’t suddenly set up business there and start selling your custom-made intergalactic back scratchers through the window’ p. 149); career choices (job interviews; basic conditions of employment and quitting); financial planning (getting out of a debt spiral; planning a budget; and how to register as a tax payer); misinformation and fake news; climate change; your relationship with the government and how to handle being a victim of crime.
Although the primary focus of the book is obviously the young adult market, there is nothing preventing older readers from also benefiting from such a concise source of information; it is indeed never too late to teach an old dog new tricks, after all. It is a fun and informative read and a wonderful gift for your loved ones on the verge of adulthood.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
#Uitdieperdsebek
NB-Uitgewers/Publishers
#kwela
#NBPublishers
“For many of us, being a bona fide adult felt like a much better idea when we weren’t one yet.” (p.9) If this resonates with you on any level, even if you are so advanced in age that the thought is nothing but a distant memory, I dare you to read on.
The traditional school syllabus can in no way prepare young people for the requirements of adulthood; the perceived novelty thereof, like sleeping until noon, having lots of money, finding happiness in relationships without parental interference and not going to school and facing horrid teachers, quickly pales and fades when subjected to reality: how to find a job; where to live; relationship issues; transport; costs of living; sexual challenges; tax returns; medical aid, etc. Nobody can prepare you for what it is really like, but this book makes an excellent effort. The author does not pretend to know everything and recommendations by experts in various fields are included in the text.
The book is divided into several chapters and covers various relevant issues, each chapter preceded by a so-called cheat sheet, in effect a brief summary of the chapter to follow, and concludes with impressive lists of extra resources, detailed endnotes and an alphabetical index. The writing style is light-hearted, no-nonsense and quirky (‘I’m not a brand representative for anything and I already have to decide for myself, so I don’t have time to decide for you’), but the subjects are discussed with empathy and detail and the book is aimed at empowering young adults.
The first chapter covers general issues regarding the reader as an individual: physical (including diet, social habits, sleep and exercise) and mental (how, where and when to get help) health and creativity: ‘The economic system that we all live under works hard to convince us that everything we create must have economic value or else it is not worth our time. This is nonsense.’ (p.61)
Chapter 2, simply titled ‘Taking care of, and in, relationships’ is one of the most important and informative parts of the book. It includes challenging relationships with aging parents, friendships and romantic relationships and discusses subjects like death (the grieving process; wills and funerals); marriages and other legal partnerships (types of marriage contracts, rights of spouses, love languages); divorce (maintenance, division of assets, access to and care of minor children) and unhealthy relationships (emotional and physical abuse and the provisions of the Domestic Violence Act, 116 of 1998). There is one mistake in respect of the latter legislation, though. On p.92 the following statement is made: ‘You also have the option to lay a criminal charge of domestic violence at your local police station.’ This is incorrect, since no such criminal charge exists. The correct statement would be: You also have the right to lay a criminal charge of contravening the conditions of a Domestic Violence Protection Order at your local police station once such an order has been issued and the conditions have been breached after service thereof on the respondent.
It was refreshing to see that the chapter on sex and baby making describes sexual intercourse as something to be enjoyed, rather than simply endured – the latter having been the norm for the limited and patriarchal sex ed presented to youngsters for centuries. The discussion on sex includes the concept of informed consent; contraception and STI’s and the second part, baby making, provides information on infertility, miscarriages, adoption, AI and surrogacy.
Additional chapters cover living arrangements (renting; buying; applying for bonds; rights and obligations when renting, the latter including one of my favourite parts: ‘So if your lease says you’re renting the property as a home, you can’t suddenly set up business there and start selling your custom-made intergalactic back scratchers through the window’ p. 149); career choices (job interviews; basic conditions of employment and quitting); financial planning (getting out of a debt spiral; planning a budget; and how to register as a tax payer); misinformation and fake news; climate change; your relationship with the government and how to handle being a victim of crime.
Although the primary focus of the book is obviously the young adult market, there is nothing preventing older readers from also benefiting from such a concise source of information; it is indeed never too late to teach an old dog new tricks, after all. It is a fun and informative read and a wonderful gift for your loved ones on the verge of adulthood.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
#Uitdieperdsebek
NB-Uitgewers/Publishers
July 5, 2022
4.5
This book sets out exactly what it intends to do. Probably the most useful self-help book I own.
This book also does what the subject Life Orientation is apparently meant to do, and frankly, I've learned more from this book alone.
Jen Thorpe goes over various spheres relating to Adulthood in South Africa, from general good advice on how to take care of yourself, to how to get to know and participate in your government, to your rights as an employee, how to manage money, and the whole tax story I completely missed in school (as in it is actually pretty straight forward to register at SARS and get your number, but only do it once your annual income is over the threshold to be taxed on).
Even though it does not go deep, it is a 101 book, has some good information and advice in its pages, and provides some lovely resources for those points you want to learn about more. The only statistics I thought could be better were from the data taken with the census, but Jen Thorpe also points that out, and that it would be meaningful if more frequent statistics and information could be collected so that more can be done.
I think if you are in any way curious to give this book a read, give it a try, maybe it won't completely change your life, but there sure are nice nuggets of advice and resources!
This book sets out exactly what it intends to do. Probably the most useful self-help book I own.
This book also does what the subject Life Orientation is apparently meant to do, and frankly, I've learned more from this book alone.
Jen Thorpe goes over various spheres relating to Adulthood in South Africa, from general good advice on how to take care of yourself, to how to get to know and participate in your government, to your rights as an employee, how to manage money, and the whole tax story I completely missed in school (as in it is actually pretty straight forward to register at SARS and get your number, but only do it once your annual income is over the threshold to be taxed on).
Even though it does not go deep, it is a 101 book, has some good information and advice in its pages, and provides some lovely resources for those points you want to learn about more. The only statistics I thought could be better were from the data taken with the census, but Jen Thorpe also points that out, and that it would be meaningful if more frequent statistics and information could be collected so that more can be done.
I think if you are in any way curious to give this book a read, give it a try, maybe it won't completely change your life, but there sure are nice nuggets of advice and resources!
July 25, 2023
I am very impressed. As someone in their early twenties, this is full of all the information we wish we learnt in Life Orientation.
It is written in such a calm and educational way- making all the information seem a lot less daunting.
I also love how thoroughly researched this book is. The last lot of pages is all references and resources.
This would be a great gift for matriculants or even a 21st birthday present.
Highly recommend
It is written in such a calm and educational way- making all the information seem a lot less daunting.
I also love how thoroughly researched this book is. The last lot of pages is all references and resources.
This would be a great gift for matriculants or even a 21st birthday present.
Highly recommend
July 27, 2025
The first quarter I thoroughly enjoyed, however the rest was very boring…
Some things were explained well, while other parts, particularly the last quarter if the book, didn’t have as much explications of “adult” things, which makes the book feel more advanced when it should be teaching you how to be an adult.
The book also isn’t universal, as all the data and info is about South Africa.
Some things were explained well, while other parts, particularly the last quarter if the book, didn’t have as much explications of “adult” things, which makes the book feel more advanced when it should be teaching you how to be an adult.
The book also isn’t universal, as all the data and info is about South Africa.
September 25, 2022
A decent read , some really good advice given by the author , some of the information I have come across before so it wasn’t particularly new but it’s nice to have all in one book
December 26, 2022
For everyone new in the adulthood and any other sdult who needs a "manual" sometimes, this is the book for you
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews