Amateur Hour: Motherhood in Essays and Swear Words

Amateur Hour is a collection of short essays and thoughts about the entire spectrum of motherhood, from the humorous and sarcastic mind of Kimberly Harrington. Essays range in topic from the many jobs of motherhood, schools, bodies, struggles, freedoms, frustrations, and fears. Essays are grouped into general themes with a “time out” section in between. The time outs are mostly humorous and sarcastic observations about the whole motherhood/wife gig.

The subtitle of the book is “motherhood in essays and swear words,” which gave the impression that the entire book would be edgy and humorous. However, it was a delight to discover that the essays are also heartfelt, emotional, and very, very real. Have a box of tissue nearby when reading this book, as you’ll be alternating between laughing and crying as Harrington skillfully and honestly breaks into the common threads of modern motherhood. The book is probably best geared toward moms who have been around for a bit. Harrington’s own children are tweens as of the writing of this book, and those are the experiences she relates most. An excellent companion for mothers in the trenches of raising their own tweens. If you don’t mind f-bombs in your reading, this is a must read.