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This Day in the Life: Diaries from Women Across America [Paperback]

Joni B. Cole , Rebecca Joffrey , B.K. Rakhra
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)

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Book Description

December 27, 2005
Did You Ever Want to Read a Friend’s Diary?

In suburban neighborhoods and on family farms, in uptown lofts and homeless shelters, women across America chronicled their lives on the same day—June 29, 2004. This Day in the Life shares more than thirty complete diaries and hundreds of additional candid moments.

Full of intimate details and laugh-out-loud truths, and drawing on the experiences of women of all ages and backgrounds, this diverse collection is a surprising reminder of how much we all have in common. If you’ve ever wondered what the woman standing in front of you in line was thinking, This Day in the Life is a refreshing glimpse at how we really spend our days—and the value of every single one.

7:03 a.m. Carryn wakes to nurse and I want to sleep. My husband pretends not to hear her, but sometimes I wake him up just so he can see my job is twenty-four hours a day. —Jenee Guidry, 30, mom of four

8:20 a.m. I just read two Psalms aloud to Dad. In the last few months of his life he loved for me to read them to him, both in person and on the phone. I still do it, hoping they reach him in the other world. —Rosanne Cash, 49, singer/songwriter

4:00 p.m. The cast of Friends is on with Oprah. That was one of the few shows I watched every week. My real friends suck. Not a single one called me on my birthday. —Kim Olsovsky, 31, teacher

1915 There’s a boom in the distance, rocket or mortar. I am sitting next to a blast wall built from sandbags. Do I stay here? Do I go into the trailer and lie on the floor? Six minutes pass. I am about to miss dinner. —Beth Garland, 42, army sergeant

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This Day in the Life: Diaries from Women Across America + This Day: Diaries From American Women
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. There is not one piece in this compilation that is not captivating. Following up on the editors' first collection of journal entries published in 2003, they selected 34 diaries out of 493 submissions written by a cross-section of American women on June 29, 2004. The collection's success rests on both the astonishing variety of participants and the sincerity with which they describe an ordinary day. Connie Linnell Ambrose-Gates, a 79-year-old who married her high school sweetheart when she was over 60, spends many hours attending to her husband, who is now on dialysis, and despite the physical and emotional toll, she is grateful for this very good day. Musician and songwriter Rosanne Cash, daughter of the late Johnny Cash, beautifully expresses the grief she will always feel over the loss of her father. A unique contribution comes from Laraine Harper, manager of a legal brothel outside Las Vegas, who details the minutiae of running a business and looking after her working girls in a responsible manner. African-American writer Crystal Wilkinson relates typical conflicts with her two teenage daughters as well as her ambivalence about moving from her Kentucky home to a new job in Indiana. These women communicate bravery, compassion, humor and perseverance in this compulsively readable volume. (Dec.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"This satisfying collection of diaries from 34 women across America details the events of one day in the lives of each: June 29, 2004. From Laraine Harper, manager of a legal brothel near Las Vegas and mother hen to 25 prostitutes, to Cady Coleman, an astronaut managing parenthood and a long-distance marriage to the sole celebrity—Johnny Cash's daughter Rosanne—each writes honestly about her day. The ensemble is simultaneously mundane and captivating—it resonates with drama, humor and pathos. This is one unremarkable day you'll wish could go on forever."—People magazine, 3.5 out of 4 star review

Product Details

  • Paperback: 416 pages
  • Publisher: Broadway Books (December 27, 2005)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1400082323
  • ISBN-13: 978-1400082322
  • Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.9 x 8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,789,719 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Joni B. Cole is the author of five books, and a frequent speaker at writing conferences around the country. The recipient of a 2011 Pushcart-Prize nomination, her books include: Another Bad-Dog Book: Tales of Life, Love, and Neurotic Human Behavior (memoir/humor essays); Toxic Feedback: Helping Writers Survive and Thrive ("I can't imagine a better guide to [writing's] rewards and perils than this fine book," American Book Review); and the three volume "This Day" series, including Water Cooler Diaries: Women across America Share Their Day at Work ("both fascinating and eye-opening," Publisher's Weekly). Joni runs the Writer's Center of White River Junction, Vermont, and is a regular blogger on ThirdAge.com. For more information, visit her author website at www.jonibcole.com

Customer Reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Marvelous! January 21, 2006
Format:Paperback
I really enjoyed this book. It weaves a rich fabric of true stories--diaries--of one day in the life of a variety of women. Excerpts from many women, and those whose day diaries are published in full, show humorous and poignant experiences, and a wonderful array of thoughts, feelings, fears, gratitude. It's easy to identify with many of the women, and to marvel at their strength and resiliance. Included are : a soldier in Iraq, a firefighter, a grandmother, an astronaut, a factory worker, a country singer, a medical secretary, owner of a safari company, an at-home mother, a foreign correspondent, and many others from all walks of life. There's something here for everyone!
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoy a world-wide conversation with women May 11, 2006
Format:Paperback
After reading this book, I felt I had acquired almost 500 new friends, who shared the joys, tribulations, boredom and routines of a typical day in their lives. I was pleasantly surprised by the high degree of apparent honesty and intimacy.

Particularly interesting (I thought) were the stories of women who have chosen to serve in the military, including several on active duty in Iraq; immigrants; and English-speaking women living abroad.

If you're a particularly harried person, this is easy to pick up and put down without losing track, as you simply move from excerpt to excerpt, with a few full-day entries included. My reason for four instead of five stars was that I felt myself unrepresented - a childless, single, high-achieving, professional woman of 53. As I know many women of the same type (BTW, roughly 15% of US adult women are childless), I found this a serious oversight. Also unrepresented were women of extreme poverty.

(You might say this last group is illiterate. Well, in a few cases the authors allowed a diarist to dictate her entries for the day to another woman.)

Nevertheless, buy the book for the lives it does show.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Now I know what I'm getting every woman on my Christmas shopping list! I just finished reading This Day in the Life and couldn't put it down! I started by reading the day diaries I was most curious about--the famous shoe designer, the nun, the stripper--but by then I was addicted and just kept reading. Even though the book featured 35 completely different diaries and hundreds of shorter entries from other women (soldiers, new moms, refugees, TV stars, college grads, nursing home residents, you name it), my only complaint was I wanted more! I'd recommend this book to anyone who is curious about other women's lives and wants a fun, fast read (or a great idea for holiday gifts!)
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous book! August 23, 2006
Format:Paperback
I heard about this book on a podcast, and I bought it not really knowing if I'd like it. I was pleasantly surprised: I'm really enjoying it! I'm not reading it cover to cover; rather, I dip into it each night before bedtime. It's fascinating to read what the lives of women are like all over America - so different, yet so similar. I would recommend this book highly to everyone!
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5.0 out of 5 stars gotta love this April 11, 2007
Format:Paperback
We're all in this book --- somewhere. No matter what your title, marital status or race --- you can find yourself in this book. It allows us to see how other women cope with day-to-day triumphs and tragedies.
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3.0 out of 5 stars Good Read January 26, 2007
Format:Paperback
Great book. It was interesting to see the similarities and differences in all the diary entries. Some were funny, some sad. Very interesting!
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