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Once Upon A Nervous Breakdown
 
 
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Once Upon A Nervous Breakdown [Paperback]

Patrick Sanchez (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)


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Book Description

July 31, 2007
Patrick Sanchez delivers a hilarious, moving, and all-too-true snapshot of a generation of women stretched between extremes, frazzled by time and tides, and determined to make everything work without losing themselves in the process.

Jennifer Costas has her hands full. She's the single mother of a five-year-old son; her full-time job is only getting busier; her force-of-nature college roommate recently showed up on her doorstep in need of a place to stay...indefinitely; her increasingly cranky "old-world" mother answers the phone every morning with, "I'm not dead," and her newly out-of-the-closet ex-husband is constantly late with his child support payments while he tries to get his new restaurant, Gonads (think gay Hooters) off the ground. She feels guilty about not making "stay-at-home mom cookies" and wary about tip-toeing into the dating scene carrying thirty-six years' worth of baggage. Having it all means juggling it all, and Jennifer's trying desperately not to drop anything. But just when Jennifer thinks she's operating at maximum capacity, her mother's health begins to fail. Faced with taking care of her mother in addition to her son, keeping her career on track, and maintaining some semblance of a social life, Jennifer's in for the ride of her life--one that will challenge her sense of humor, her sense of self, and her sense of sanity.

"A wonderful read! I loved it!"--Alisa Valdes Rodriguez, New York Times bestselling author on Tight

"A frank comedy of manners that exposes both the highs and lows of the modern quest for youth and beauty."--Kirkus Reviews on Tight


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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the latest from Sanchez (Tight), life opens up both barrels on Jennifer Costas: her husband comes out of the closet, her mother's health is deteriorating and an old friend shows up out of the blue to camp out on her couch. Two years after 36-year-old Jennifer divorces hubby Marco, son Andrew has settled into being shuttled back and forth every other weekend. Stressed single mom Jennifer vies for a promotion at work while caring for her mother, who is steadily deteriorating. Additionally, her college roommate Desma shows up on her doorstep, moving in with no leave date, and her promiscuous next-door neighbor, Claire Edwards, tries to convince her to find a sexual romp at her mega-church. Jennifer's struggle to come to terms with her Colombian Catholic heritage, her desire to get back into the dating pool, and her discomfort with her son's Catholic schooling are both humorous and poignant. The writing is brisk, and the emotional undertones treat nicely the ups and downs of life, love, children, and aging parents.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Kensington (July 31, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0758210027
  • ISBN-13: 978-0758210029
  • Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #752,871 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Hysterically funny, warm story of coping with what life deals you, August 4, 2007
By 
Bob Lind "camelwest" (Phoenix, AZ United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: Once Upon A Nervous Breakdown (Paperback)
Jennifer Costas is a different kind of "Desperate Housewife." The 36 year old is divorced from her 5 year old son's father, Mario, who came out as a gay man. Jennifer is balancing raising her son with her high pressure position in human resources for a pretigious lawfirm, trips of over an hour to help her aging "old world" Columbian mother (who answers her phone "I'm not dead" and urges her to reconcile with her ex), putting up her old college roommate (a diehard feminist and environmental activist who came for a visit and hasn't left, camping out in her basement, and encouraging her son to decline gender roles by playing with dolls), and dealing with a pushy neighbor who wants her help to cheat on her husband. The first date she goes out in since the divorce turns out to be to see her ex-husband in a charity drag show, after which he tells her that he may be late with the child support check because he is investing in a bar-restaurant called "Gonads" with hunky waiters wearing speedos! As her mother's health rapidly declines, her son "acts out" at school, she is being considered for a promotion at work, and further dating attempts prove to be disasters, Jennifer wonders if her life will ever be simple again.

Talented author Patrick Sanchez's latest "chick lit" book is one anyone will find hysterically funny as well as warm and sweet. A perfect escape from your own crazy life! Five stars out of five.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Bridget Jones, Move Over! A new kind of chick-lit heroine, October 28, 2009
By 
Rayna Gorowitz "Sparkina" (Pembroke Pines, Florida USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
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This review is from: Once Upon A Nervous Breakdown (Paperback)
Once Upon A Nervous Breakdown is a warm, sweet entertainment, at once funny and touching, and stressed-out but loving single mom Jennifer is a welcome change from the Prada-wearing, calorie-obsessed protagonists of other chick-lit books. How refreshing to find a heroine in contemporary women's fiction who isn't obsessed with clothes or consumed with the size of her rear end. Instead, Jennifer is devoted to her elderly, ailing mother and her young son, and devastated when the husband she loves comes out as a gay caballero. How does she cope? Read this book and find out.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars True to life, June 8, 2008
This review is from: Once Upon A Nervous Breakdown (Paperback)
Not a hilarious book, but not a total heart breaker either. The main character has a refreshingly upbeat attitude, and it can't hurt to let it rub off! Not one second of this story isn't realistic... this stuff could happen to any of us.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Patrick Sanchez, Sister Greta, Cracker Barrel, Aunt Desma, New York, Father Hill, Jennifer Costas, Reverend Clarke, New Horizons, Jennifer Peredo, Diva Longoria, Tysons Bible Church, Thank God, Claire Edwards, Social Security, Ana Peredo, Barbie Doll, Virgin Mary
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