Writing with a delicate balance of humor and
truth, critically acclaimed author Rebecca Barry reflects on motherhood, work,
and marriage in her new memoir about trying to build a creative
life.
When
Rebecca Barry and her husband moved to upstate New York to start their family,
they wanted to be surrounded by natural beauty but close to a small urban
center, doing work they loved, and plenty of time to spend with their kids. But
living their dreams turned out not to be so simple: the lovely old house they
bought had lots of character but also needed lots of repairs, they struggled to
stay afloat financially, their children refused to sleep or play quietly, and
the novel Rebecca had dreamed of writing simply wouldn’t come to
her.
Recipes
for a Beautiful Life blends heartwarming, funny, authentically told stories
about the messiness of family life, a fearless examination of the anxieties of
creative work, and sharp-eyed observations of the pressures that all women face.
This is a story of a woman confronting her deepest fears: What if I’m a terrible
mother? What if I’m not good at the work I love? What if my children never eat
anything but peanut butter and cake? What if I go to sleep angry? It’s also a
story of the beauty, light, and humor that’s around us, all the time—even when
things look bleak, and using that to find your way back to your heart.
Mostly,
though, it is about the journey to building not just a beautiful life, but a
creative one.
Reviews
"Barry's writes about writing, while balancing two
children with her other arm. It's raw and true, heartbreaking and naked.
And in the end it's the story of all of us who strive and settle, grunt
and bear it, while still managing to laugh. Which is easy, cause Barry
is sly and very, very funny." Author: Julia Sweeney, author of If It’s
Not One Thing, It’s Your Mother
“Rebecca Barry looks straight at
her life and describes it—sometimes hilariously, sometimes movingly. Her
generosity of spirit makes for an engaging, wise, and delightful read.”
Author: Ian Frazier, author of Travels in Siberia
“A solid
addition to the growing genre of short, witty essays written by women
about having a career while trying to raise a family.” Source: Kirkus
Reviews
“Spontaneous dinners with good friends, soul-searching
through meditation and yoga, and hilarious snippets of child rearing—all
come alive in Barry’s memoir, which the reader will relish.” Source:
Booklist
“Dip in and out without missing a beat or the message:
Contentment isn’t about getting everything…but finding magic in the
mess” Source: Redbook
“Unblinking honesty and bright humor . . .
[Barry’s] book is refreshing and hopeful, yet not afraid to examine
moments of despair . . . warm, authentic, and funny. She manages somehow
to be truthful about parenthood without falling into treacle or
sanctimony. An expert at vignettes, she easily conjures up the people in
her life and the various moods of our landscape.” Source: Ithaca Times
“Writing
with a delicate balance of humor and truth, critically acclaimed author
Rebecca Barry reflects on motherhood, work, and marriage in her new
memoir about trying to build a creative life.” Source: Sweet Paul
Magazine
“This book will bring a welcome dose of
brightness--leavened with acerbic wit--to those who, like Barry, are
simply trying to do worthwhile work and care for the people they love.”
Source: Shelf Awareness
“Recipes is anecdotal,
funny and telling, with the kinds of momentary glimpses of ordinary days
that reflect something larger — and funny. Did I mention funny?”
Source: New York Times's Motherlode
There is just no way I could
pack everything I love about Barry’s book into this small space, so I’ll
just say—with firmness and a little catch of emotion in my voice—you
need to go discover her writing for yourself. Don’t make me reach
through the internet, grab you by the collar and drag you down to a
bookstore to buy Recipes for a Beautiful Life, because you know I’m
currently reading a how-to manual on how to do just that very thing.”
Source: The Quivering Pen
Rebecca Barry lives in Trumansburg, New York,
with her husband and two sons. She received her B.A. from Cornell and her M.F.A.
from The Ohio State University. Her nonfiction has appeared in numerous
publications, including The New York Times Magazine, The Washington
Post Magazine, Seventeen, Real Simple, Details,
Hallmark, and The Best American Travel Writing 2003. Her
fiction has appeared in Ploughshares, One Story, Tin
House, Ecotone, The Mid-American Review, and Best New
American Voices 2005.
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