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Dad's Own Housekeeping Book: 137 Bright Ideas
 
 
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Dad's Own Housekeeping Book: 137 Bright Ideas [Paperback]

David Bowers (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

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Book Description

May 24, 2006
Just because you’re born with a “Y” chromosome doesn’t excuse you from cleaning the bathroom, especially in this day and age when time’s at a premium and partners have to be, well, partners. To help men step up to the plate (and wash it) is DAD’S OWN HOUSEKEEPING BOOK, the book of everything your mother never taught you about taking care of a house.

Written by a real guy, in a real guy’s voice and with a direct guy-to-guy point of view, DAD’S OWN HOUSEKEEPING BOOK—in the spirit of Dad’s Own Cookbook, with 270,000 copies in print—takes even the most Swiffer-challenged dad and shows him that housekeeping is no different from yard work, that if you can organize your shop you can organize a kitchen, and if you can load a trunk you can load a dishwasher. From laundry room to attic storage, from the “Five- Minute Attack Plan: Bathroom” to the all-out assault of spring cleaning (it really does make a big difference), from mold to stains to picking-up-after-the-kids-without-driving-yourself-crazy, this is the comprehensive crash course. Here’s how to do the laundry without dulling colors. Stock the pantry to make weekday meals infinitely easier. How to get mildew off the shower tiles. How to make a bed—in one minute. How to be best friends with baking soda—just one of the many tips the author gives for saving money. And what you can do in thirty minutes to make your house completely presentable for your mother-in-law. Sorry, no more excuses.

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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

The complete guide for men to step up to the plate...and wash it. Plus how to "scrub" away pet hair. Tackle mildew and soap scum. Remove ketchup stains. Clean encrusted spills in a microwave, store knives to keep their sharpness, handle every "blot, don't rub" emergency. And set a great example for your kids.

Including:

How to organize the kitchen, and take on dinner, too
Daily 5-minute attack strategies for each room
Dad's stain guide
Real men do dust
Bed making for beginners
Where Do I Put That?-a guide to storage in the attic, basement, or garage
Spring cleaning and other yearly tasks
And The 30-Minute Pre-In-law-Assault on Dirt Program

About the Author

David Bowers is the co-author of Bake Like a Man: A Real Man’s Cookbook, writes “The Grillmaster” column for Cabin Life magazine, and was the “Jake” of Glamour magazine’s “Jake: A Man’s Opinion.” He’s a stay-at-home dad who lives in New York with his wife and two children.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 196 pages
  • Publisher: Workman Publishing Company (May 24, 2006)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0761136673
  • ISBN-13: 978-0761136675
  • Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 4.5 x 0.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,071,700 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

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Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Yes, Dad's Do Housework Too, November 16, 2006
This review is from: Dad's Own Housekeeping Book: 137 Bright Ideas (Paperback)
The Orlando Sentinel tipped me off to this guide. They described it as, "a funny but practical guide for men on vacuuming, cooking, cleaning, spot-removal, decluttering and more."
This would make a great gift for the single guys you know or any stay-at-home dads. It ranks jobs by how important they are and how frequently they should be tackled. It aims to streamline housekeeping so it fits with the male style of management.
The author points out that women learn housekeeping gradually as they grow up, but men might need a crash course (like this book). He gives many chores in five minute or ten minute clean ups, so it fits with the minimalist approach that suits most men. They want a system.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars For dads who do housework., February 3, 2009
This review is from: Dad's Own Housekeeping Book: 137 Bright Ideas (Paperback)
The idea of a housekeeping book written just for dads may seem unnecessary or even condescending, yet David Bowers has written an extremely useful guide that speaks directly to dad sensibilities. Bowers' main idea is that men - especially fathers - want to take a "no frills" approach to housekeeping, doing what's absolutely necessary in the quickest, easiest way possible. He says it best right in the first chapter of the book: "Spotless perfection can't be achieved in a house where kids live, and even if it can, it's not worth it. When your children grow up, they'll remember with fondness that you read to them, helped them with their math homework, and had time to play with them, rather that the beds were made with hospital corners or the laundry folded with military precision."

Bowers devotes almost an entire introductory chapter, "A Man Around the House: Getting Psyched Up", to negotiating expectations and managing responsibilities between men and their spouses. It has helpful sidebars such as What We Want Women to Know About Our Housekeeping including, for example, "We don't expect you to do things our way. Don't expect us to do things the way you do". In addition, each individual chapter also includes additional advice on how to handle "the changing of the guard" for various household chores. This is useful advice for any household no matter what your family looks like, and one of the features that distinguishes this book from the many other housekeeping books out there.

The book is broken down into chapters which cover every aspect of keeping house, from cooking meals to cleaning to doing laundry. Bowers gives advice on how to manage each room at three general cleaning levels: Lick-and-a-Promise Clean, Average-Guy Clean, and Felix-Unger Clean. There are also additional chapters devoted to spaces such as the home office and the attic and basement. While the many helpful tricks and tips (on such topics as stain removal and the many uses of baking soda) alone are worth the price of this book, it is in speaking directly to fathers and our ways of thinking that Bowers really shines. Dad's Own Housekeeping Book shows that a father can run a home without having to turn into Mr. Mom.
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5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Down and Dirty Guide on How to Come Clean!, November 4, 2011
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If I could give this book 10 stars, I would! This is a down and dirty guide to how to keep house. I love Cheryl Mendelson's Home Comforts, Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping House and Martha Stewart's Homekeeping Handbook, Martha Stewart's Homekeeping Handbook: The Essential Guide to Caring for Everything in Your Home but for realistic housekeeping routines and how to keep your house tidy, I highly recommend this book. It's odd shape makes it a little hard to hold. I might take it to my local fast copy shop and have it spiral bound. Then it would be perfect!

It's an easy read from cover to cover or you can easily look up your task and find a quick and efficient way to go about it. I bought a second copy for another male who needs some explicit, to the point directions. This book is worth its weight in gold!
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
microfiber cloth, sponge mop
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Spring Cleaning, Dad's Own Tool Kit
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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