Mommies Who Drink: Sex, Drugs, and Other Distant Memories of an Ordinary Mom [Hardcover]

Brett Paesel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 10, 2006

For young single women, every night is Ladies' Night. For Brett Paesel and her friends, Friday happy hour is all they get--if they can wrangle a babysitter. Like most mommies, they support each other through pregnancies, sleep deprivation, and the need to talk about it all. Instead of meeting at the playground, they convene at the local watering hole while sipping Black and Tans and flirting with the cute bartender. With a poignant voice and a fresh style that makes this memoir read like the best women's fiction, Paesel navigates mommyhood in all its forms--the ecstatic, the terrifying, the tedious, the hilarious, the transcendental, and the sticky. Paesel's laugh-out-loud perspective will appeal to all women who are braving the new world of motherhood, where the secret question on their minds at playgroup is "When is it too early in the day to start drinking?"

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Paesel would love to spend "an evening doing half a gram of coke in the back of a limo with her girlfriends" and still craves "a stranger to fuck me blind in a parking lot after loading me up on margaritas and Thai stick"—only she's got a husband, a baby and a toddler waiting for her at home. Paesel couldn't care less if other mothers have careers (she herself is an actress who's appeared on Six Feet Under and Mr. Show) or stay home with the kids. She's got bigger problems—like, what's happened to all the parties? This collection of short sketches opens with a trip to an L.A. prenatal yoga class, where "gorgeous actresses" with "little round bellies" brag about how much birthing pain they plan to endure. With enough drugs, Paesel actually enjoys childbirth—but full-time parenting is another story. Luckily, she's got a foursome of girlfriends who spend Friday afternoons at the local bar together, doing a reality check on all the mothering guilt trips they've had to endure all week. This is Seinfeld but raunchy and L.A. with a full cast of potty-mouthed moms. No wonder it's already optioned by HBO. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"... Paesel, unlike other recent mother-writers of note, actually seems to like women" -- Elle Magazine (August “Must Read”)

"...better than a giant bong hit." -- Sarah Silverman, Writer/Actress, Jesus is Magic

"Brett Paesel- a poet, a spy, an artist, a comedienne... laugh-out-loud writing and skewed perspective..." -- Jill Soloway, writer and co-executive producer, Six Feet Under and author of Tiny Ladies in Shiny Pants

"I didn't want the book to end - it's that good." -- Cheryl Hines, Producer/Actress, HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm

"Just when you worry there are no taboos left to explode, Brett Paesel redefines new motherhood.." -- Cindy Chupack Author of The Between Boyfriends Book and a Writer/Executive Producer of HBO's Sex and the City

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; First Edition edition (August 10, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446578738
• ISBN-13: 978-0446578738
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,506,111 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Brett Paesel has developed and written shows for HBO, Fox, Comedy Central, and Oxygen. Her book Mommies Who Drink, is a Los Angeles Times Bestseller. Her work has appeared in Violet, Brain,Child, Hip Mama, and Babytalk. As an actor, she appeared on Six Feet Under, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Gilmore Girls. She was a cast member of Mr. Show with Bob and David. Brett is a married mother of two, living in Los Angeles.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally!, August 9, 2006

By 

Stefanie Taylor "Author of 'Sippy Cups Are No... (Encino, California USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mommies Who Drink: Sex, Drugs, and Other Distant Memories of an Ordinary Mom (Hardcover)

If you're looking for a book on how precious babies are and how complete a woman feels once she's given birth, this is not your book. But, if you're someone who feels alienated by books like that and have been looking for the antidote to pedantic parenting guides and new mommy chick lit, look no furthur. This book is hilarious and so relatable. During my first few years of parenting I thought I never find a kindred spirit. Someone who didn't want to solely discuss the ins and outs of potty training and preschools, someone who understood the difference between Sauza and Tres Generations. Well, this is that person. I just need to make her my friend.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very funny, September 3, 2006

By 

Bearette24 (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Mommies Who Drink: Sex, Drugs, and Other Distant Memories of an Ordinary Mom (Hardcover)

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It literally made me laugh out loud several times. In fact, I lost track of how many times. My husband kept asking me what was funny.

This is a memoir where parts feel a bit exaggerated, but are hilarious nonetheless. The supposed main subject: Brett (the author's) coming to grips with motherhood, struggling to hold onto her pre-baby self, and remaining her own woman with ideas and thoughts independent of motherhood. Yet a lot of it is about the bizarreness of raising a child in Hollywood: preschool auctions where face lifts and breast jobs are up for grabs, getting "points" to get into competitive magnet schools, and there is a priceless scene where she and her husband get stoned out of boredom at her in-laws' and end up raiding their children's Christmas stockings.

This is motherhood at its irreverent best.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars couldn't put it down!, December 30, 2006

By 

PhillyReaderHere - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mommies Who Drink: Sex, Drugs, and Other Distant Memories of an Ordinary Mom (Hardcover)

I really loved this book and couldn't put it down until I finished it. Funny, touching, shocking, just a fabulous read about one woman's struggles to re-find herself after becoming a mom. If you love your kids desperately AND sometimes think parenthood is driving you towards insanity, buy this book!