Fat, Forty, and Fired: One Man's Frank, Funny, and Inspiring Account of Losing His Job and Finding His Life [Hardcover]

Nigel Marsh (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 1, 2007

"Homer Simpson meets Anthony Robbins. Marsh's honesty and humanity make Fat, Forty, and Fired essential reading for anyone whose life has ever hit a roadblock. Hilarious and inspiring." --Bob Rosner, best-selling author and internationally syndicated Working Wounded columnist

"An extremely funny and touching account of how someone can use humor and optimism to put adversity into perspective. Marsh's warm and distinctive view of life lights up every page and makes this a thoroughly enjoyable read." --Paul Wilson, author of The Little Book of Calm

"I can pinpoint the precise moment when I realized my transformation from 'executive dad' to 'guy who doesn't work' was complete." --Nigel Marsh

Take Dave Barry, Jack Welch, Homer Simpson, and Ray Romano, mix in a family, a little weight gain, failure, introspection, and redemption, and you have Nigel Marsh's international best-selling autobiography.

As a stressed husband and father of four small children under the age of eight, Nigel Marsh was enslaved to his mortgage, recuperating from an embarrassing surgery, and suddenly fired from his corporate career. Deciding to venture "off the treadmill" in search of a more meaningful and balanced existence, Marsh tackled the art of hands-on parenting while simultaneously training for an ocean swimming race and coming to terms with his alcoholism. Touching on topics ranging from marital sex (or lack thereof), dieting, and parenthood to work, love, football, religion, self-help books, and sharks, Marsh makes his U.S. debut after enjoying best-seller status in Australia and the U.K. with this provocative and funny book.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Recounting the life he led during the nine months he was not working, Marsh opens with his operation for "anal fistula"; the six-week convalescence enables him to reflect on his next step after learning that the firm he runs in Sydney, Australia, is being closed. Breaking open the family nest egg, he decides to escape the pattern of "enforced inertia that kept men in a tie and at the office" and to take a year off. Marsh's epiphanies during his hiatus include the realization that he is fat, but more poignantly, that he is an alcoholic. While the light tone of the book sometimes undermines his struggle with alcohol, Marsh clearly takes it seriously. The strength of the memoir lies in the intimate and often humorous moments he shares as he reconnects with his wife and four children. Whether it is his preschool-aged daughter announcing to her gymnastics teacher, "We don't touch Daddy's willy because it's dirty," or the more somber account of his wife talking him out of having a glass of wine, Marsh is at his best in vignettes. The narrative slows in the middle, during a European trip with his wife, but when Marsh finally re-enters the workforce, he does so recognizing that instead of obsessing about the time he misses with his family, he should enjoy the moments he has. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

When a business misadventure offers Marsh the opportunity to take a hiatus from work, he expects to spend some time relaxing with his wife and four young children, rediscovering his family after years as a CEO in Australia. He didn't count on rediscovering himself. This is the touching and laugh-out-loud funny story of a man who embarked on a life-changing odyssey without the slightest clue about what to expect. The book has plenty of the usual comic episodes (see Dad try to get his kids to school on time! Watch as his daughter embarrasses him in front of the foxy gym instructor!), but it also tackles some serious issues. In order to avoid having his dream of "dropping out" become a nightmare, Marsh and his family not only had to adjust to a reduced standard of living but also had to learn how to balance the sudden abundance of "free time" with a seemingly endless list of new things to learn. A very funny but also enlightening and inspiring memoir. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing (April 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0740764330
• ISBN-13: 978-0740764332
• Product Dimensions: 1 x 6.3 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (54 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,036,009 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Up until a few years ago I was the classic corporate warrior. I was eating too much, drinking too much, working too hard and generally neglecting my family. Then when I turned 40 I had an epiphany. I read a line in a book from St Benedict that said "pause for a moment you wretched weakling and take stock of your miserable existence". I decided it was good advice for me at that stage of my life. I made a resolution to try and change my life - in every way. I gave up the booze, lost the weight and reconnected with my family. I started to 'make a life' rather than simply 'make a living'. It began me on a journey that I am still on to this day. I may be poorer than I was in my 'office days' but I have never been happier.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

95 of 106 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing read - lacks inspiration and entertainment June 7, 2010

By SupernovaWriter

Format:Hardcover

I had picked up this book hoping for a funny and inspiring story of someone finding himself after a job loss. Unfortunately, I found Fat, Forty and Fired to be tired and somewhat simplistic. The author came across as overly privileged and frankly, whiny. For example, gosh, he had to fly coach using some of his frequent flyer miles during a trip to Europe! And seats only reclined an inch or two! Plus they had to fire the nanny (although the wife already stayed at home). Yawn.

This is on top of short chapters and a stunning lack of detail.

It was disappointing to see how quickly he went back to some of his old ways at the end of the book. Didn't even make the swim race he had talked about for some fifty pages or so throughout the book.

Even more concerning are the rest of the reviews on Amazon. I find it hard to to see how everyone else gave this book 5 stars. But I see 13 of the 16 other reviewers have only this one review to their name. Nigel's friends and family perhaps?

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Average. This book was OK but I wouldn't read it twice. September 18, 2010

By seldombites

Format:Hardcover

This book was not nearly as entertaining as I had expected. There were some funny bits and I really related to Nigel's struggles with the children, but overall I was quite disappointed. To begin with, the story is non-linear, jumping back and forth from past to present and making it a little confusing to read. There was a lot of the 'whinging pom' attempt at humour, which was also off putting. The majority of the time spent reading this, I was a bit bored. This is a take-it-or-leave-it kind of book.

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars funny and entertaining June 11, 2007

By D. Carlton

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is easy to read and very entertaining. I highly recommend it. I have only one criticism. Nigel Marsh is not some poor smuck who was fired from his average job. He is an extremely well educated, intellegent man who was able at age forty to correct some things about his life that needed fixing by not working for about 10 months. As a father, I had the same day dream when my children were small. I admire Mr. Marsh for being able to make his day-dream come true. I don't think it would have worked out as well for me or many other folks. Still, those ten months were great for Mr. Marsh and his family.