A funny and charming story of friendship and finding contentment in everyday life, referencing classics in children's literature and women's fiction. This enjoyable read handles with heart and a light touch such issues as marriage, family, home ownership, illness, and death.
My (not so) Storybook Life: A Tale of Friendship and Faith
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“Heart-touchingly sweet and tender as any powerful story of friendship and faith should be.”
—Ronda Rich, author of What Southern Women Know About Faith and What Southern Women Know (That Every Woman Should)
“You owe it to yourself to sit for a spell with Elizabeth Owen’s frank, funny, and thoroughly unforgettable memoir.”
—Deborah Ford, author of The GRITS Guide to Life and Bless His Heart
“This book totally makes me want to hang out with Elizabeth Owen and eat her terrible cookies.”
—Elizabeth Beckwith, author of Raising the Perfect Child through Guilt and Manipulation
“Owen takes us on a hilarious, heartwrenching and decidedly modernized literary journey through the joys and woes of homeownership, marriage and friendship. You’ll love as she cleverly juxtaposes your favorite literary giants from days of yore with modern-life experiences. Owen is everywoman through the ages. Anne (of Green Gables) would be proud.”
—Jenny Gardiner, author of Sleeping with Ward Cleaver and Slim to None
From the Inside Flap
Fresh, funny, and poignant, My (not so) Storybook Life is old-fashioned humor mashed with literary spoofery. Elizabeth thinks of herself and her husband, Matt, as a modern-day Lucy and Ricky Ricardo. Together they’ve endured paint-color mishaps, sewage disasters, pest infestations, and a schnauzer that poops at tornado sirens. It’s hardly the domestic perfection a young Liz imagined while reading Anne of Green Gables and Pride and Prejudice. Could it be that these literary stalwarts had led her astray?
Liz tells the story of her own path to happiness, along the way seeking revenge on her literary heroes: Jo March has to cope with a soul-sucking job, Elizabeth Bennett shepherds a Duggar-size brood of kids, and Anne Shirley deals with a penny-pinching husband. But every comedy is balanced by tragedy. Angela was one of Liz’s closest friends, a kindred spirit who at age thirty-one was diagnosed with cancer. Before Angela, Liz was discontened. But it was the journey she took with this friend that made her realize that her house and its decorations and plumbing and dirty-clothes-covered Man Cave were not burdens to be tweaked and perfected, but blessings to be thankful for.
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful
By E. B.
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Last month I received with eager hands a book I had preordered by a lovely woman and fellow blogger [...] Liz Owen. "My (not so) Storybook Life" is part memoir, part fiction, part satire, and completely worth the $20 spent on it. Through it's hilarious and heart-wrenching pages, Liz introduces us to her slightly twisted mind, her completely twisted dog, and a beautiful, all-too-short friendship with an amazing young woman named Angela.
Each chapter begins with Liz's own inspired rewriting of our favorite stories. Anne and Gilbert, Rhett and Scarlett, Catherine and Heathcliff . . . no one is safe as Liz plunges the storybook characters that shaped her perceptions about life, love, and proper housing into the nitty gritty of real-life home ownership. Then she tells amusing and sometimes laugh-out-loud stories about her own experience as a newlywed first-time home (and schnauzer) buyer. And throughout the whole book we see the development of a strong friendship that only God could have orchestrated.
As I read, I marveled at the similarities between Liz and me. Roofing catastrophes, an unhealthy obsession with getting the right paint colors, husbands who sometimes talk in their sleep, a desire to write, and a love of literature that shaped our expectations of life to be perhaps just a smidge too high. And though the trajectory of the story moves ever closer to sadness as Liz deals with the impending loss of a dear friend to cancer, it does not get bogged down in sentimentality or emotional manipulation. In fact, the funniest chapter (at least, the one I laughed loudest at) is 12th of 14. I can't resist giving you a little taste of it here. The context is poor Liz finding out that her husband Matt does more than just talk in his sleep sometimes.
"My first encounter with "sleeping with the enemy" happened several months later. I awoke suddenly in the middle of the night, one eye wide and unblinking into the darkness of our bedroom. But after a few moments of complete confusion and disorientation, I realized my right eye was wide and unblinking because Matt was leaning over me, peeling my eyelid back with his finger, his other finger poking my eyeball like a demented ophthalmologist.
"I screamed. And then I punched him in the jaw."
This goes on for another page and other amusing nocturnal tortures follow. And Liz divulges them with a good dose of humor tempered with righteous indignation. But at the same time, this is the darkest chapter as well as we see Angela deteriorating and Liz questioning the meaning of all of it. It is the finest example of Liz's enviable ability to walk the fine line between comedy and tragedy. As our lives are made up of both, often occurring at nearly the same time, so Liz allows her own story to be a tense mingling of joy and sorrow.
Anyone who has a deep love for literature, who has had the horrifying thrill of buying a home, who has had a friendship that changed her life, who has lost someone to cancer, or who loves the memoir genre (as I do) would enjoy "My (not so) Storybook Life." I hope someday I randomly run into Liz. She is truly a wonderful writer and a sweet person.
Buy the book. Read her blog. You won't be disappointed.
Each chapter begins with Liz's own inspired rewriting of our favorite stories. Anne and Gilbert, Rhett and Scarlett, Catherine and Heathcliff . . . no one is safe as Liz plunges the storybook characters that shaped her perceptions about life, love, and proper housing into the nitty gritty of real-life home ownership. Then she tells amusing and sometimes laugh-out-loud stories about her own experience as a newlywed first-time home (and schnauzer) buyer. And throughout the whole book we see the development of a strong friendship that only God could have orchestrated.
As I read, I marveled at the similarities between Liz and me. Roofing catastrophes, an unhealthy obsession with getting the right paint colors, husbands who sometimes talk in their sleep, a desire to write, and a love of literature that shaped our expectations of life to be perhaps just a smidge too high. And though the trajectory of the story moves ever closer to sadness as Liz deals with the impending loss of a dear friend to cancer, it does not get bogged down in sentimentality or emotional manipulation. In fact, the funniest chapter (at least, the one I laughed loudest at) is 12th of 14. I can't resist giving you a little taste of it here. The context is poor Liz finding out that her husband Matt does more than just talk in his sleep sometimes.
"My first encounter with "sleeping with the enemy" happened several months later. I awoke suddenly in the middle of the night, one eye wide and unblinking into the darkness of our bedroom. But after a few moments of complete confusion and disorientation, I realized my right eye was wide and unblinking because Matt was leaning over me, peeling my eyelid back with his finger, his other finger poking my eyeball like a demented ophthalmologist.
"I screamed. And then I punched him in the jaw."
This goes on for another page and other amusing nocturnal tortures follow. And Liz divulges them with a good dose of humor tempered with righteous indignation. But at the same time, this is the darkest chapter as well as we see Angela deteriorating and Liz questioning the meaning of all of it. It is the finest example of Liz's enviable ability to walk the fine line between comedy and tragedy. As our lives are made up of both, often occurring at nearly the same time, so Liz allows her own story to be a tense mingling of joy and sorrow.
Anyone who has a deep love for literature, who has had the horrifying thrill of buying a home, who has had a friendship that changed her life, who has lost someone to cancer, or who loves the memoir genre (as I do) would enjoy "My (not so) Storybook Life." I hope someday I randomly run into Liz. She is truly a wonderful writer and a sweet person.
Buy the book. Read her blog. You won't be disappointed.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By Cheree
Format:Hardcover
My (not so) Storybook Life by Elizabeth Owen is broken into 14 chapters that take us into the world of marital bliss {that prove to not always be so blissful, as is often the case}. The book also shares Liz's personal journey of the loss of a friend to cancer. While Liz could have chosen to run away from her problems or write her story in a cynical way, she chooses instead to be grateful for all of the moments that make up her life, even when things don't turn out the way she thinks they should.
One unexpected twist in this book is Liz's introduction to each chapter. She takes literary characters that we grew up with and weaves modern-day scenarios of what those characters would be up to in their ever after {the parts that don't always go so happily}. If you are a lover of literature and are curious about what Anne and Gilbert; Scarlett and Rhett; Marianne and Colonel Brandon or the March Sisters are up, you cannot miss out on this book. Just be prepared to both laugh and cry.
One unexpected twist in this book is Liz's introduction to each chapter. She takes literary characters that we grew up with and weaves modern-day scenarios of what those characters would be up to in their ever after {the parts that don't always go so happily}. If you are a lover of literature and are curious about what Anne and Gilbert; Scarlett and Rhett; Marianne and Colonel Brandon or the March Sisters are up, you cannot miss out on this book. Just be prepared to both laugh and cry.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is a great fist book by Liz Owen. I loved every page, every tale. I identified with her woes of getting adult life started in this crazy world and I appreciated her rawness in the details. I literally found myself laughing out loud and I look forward to any other publications in the future.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
HILARIOUS!!!
i haven't laughed so hard out loud and fallen in love with a book in the first twenty pages EVER like i have with this book. Read more
Published 14 days ago by Emily Kathleen Gibson
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful story!
This is a wonderful true story of a genuine friendship through the good and bad times of life. I loved it.
Published 1 month ago by Stacey Marsengill
5.0 out of 5 stars
Funny, Creative, and Real!
I loved this book for many different reasons! It is written in a unique way because Liz connects each chapter to the famous literary figures from books of history (think Jane... Read more
Published 2 months ago by HopelessRomantic
5.0 out of 5 stars
Laughter Through Tears, My Favorite Emotion
With Steel Magnolias being one of my favorite movies of all time... and Dolly Parton's famous quote from said movie "Laughter through Tears is my favorite emotion" being one of my... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Bobbi Phillip
4.0 out of 5 stars
Smiles and tears
This book so realistically hits upon the tragedy and triumphs of today's woman. I love Liz's writing style and have followed her blog for a couple years, it was great to see all... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Echo
5.0 out of 5 stars
great read
This book is funny, relateable, and real. Great perspective on what's really important. It will make you laugh out loud and shed some tears.
Published 15 months ago by C. Sommer
5.0 out of 5 stars
Inspiring, Heartfelt and Real
After reading "My (not so) Storybook Life", I was inspired to live a more grateful life and cherish relationships with those I love. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Sohl & Aohl
5.0 out of 5 stars
My (not so) Storybook Life
I really enjoyed this book. I totally related to all the stories of turning into a grown up and liked the "where are they now" aspect of all my favorite books.
Published 15 months ago by Phoenix Marie
5.0 out of 5 stars
My (not so) Storybook Life: A Tale of Friendship and Faith
I received this book from my son for Christmas and read it in a couple days right after the holiday. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Catherine
5.0 out of 5 stars
I cried tears of laughter & sorrow
I've kept up with Liz Owen's blog for quite some time and anxiously awaited for her book to come out. The same charm that has kept me reading her blog I also found in her book. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Karla
