Just a Busy Season: Essays on Motherhood, an Unexpected Comedy by Taylor Wolfe
"It's just a busy season," we say to ourselves after a chaotic morning (that we've had every day for the past three years). It turns out that season is actually just life, and here Taylor Wolfe explores the funny and dark side of all a busy life can entail. We've all found ourselves at a highway rest stop allowing our child to pee directly into our hands because she's scared of the toilet, right? Right? In her trademark voice—hilarious, poignant, and real—she dishes about everything from motherhood to the roots of anxiety (childhood and tornados, obviously), to the highs and lows of getting through whatever season we find ourselves in.
Just a Busy Season dispenses a necessary dose of hope and relatability as Taylor candidly reflects on how we cope, or don’t, with the stress and unrealistic expectations of being a mom, daughter, woman, and person in the world without losing ourselves—or our sense of humor.
Review: A big thank you to the author and HarperOne for a gifted finished copy of this book!
I have followed Taylor Wolfe on Instagram (@thedailytay) for years and find her to be relatable and funny and was so excited for a chance to read her sophomore book. I have to tell you, as a fellow anxious mom, so much of this resonated with me.
I especially loved the chapter on breastfeeding that honestly had me crying so hard I was tearing up: "I switched her to my other boob, then tried the football method, the dangle, the bangle, side step, hopscotch, kick the can, ghost in the graveyard. Nothing was working! My boobs grew more furious and fierier as I kept them waiting, my power boob (the left one) began foaming at the mouth in anticipation" (36). The whiplash of new motherhood is so keenly felt in her vivid and entertaining descriptions. The author has a knack of making experiences that make her very uncomfortable or stressed and turning them into very humorous anecdotes that we can all relate to. And later on, the chapters about her late dog Vinny made me cry!
I do think if you suffer from anxiety or you're a mom, this book would be particularly appealing. But I also think it would be ideal for a reader who isn't a mother or who isn't anxious, because the author does such a great job of putting us in that headspace and allowing us to see what it feels like to walk in her shoes.
This is a funny, fast read. It is technically non-fiction, but it reads like a comedy show transcript with nuggets of real wisdom threaded throughout. I liked getting to know the author a bit more through this book, especially seeing how fiercely she loves her children.
Stars: 4
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