How Hard Can It Be?
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- £6.49
Publisher Description
Kate Reddy is counting down the days until she is fifty, but not in a good way.
Fifty, in Kate’s mind, equals invisibility, and she’s caught between her traitorous hormones, unknowable teenage children and ailing parents.
She’s back at work after a break, now that her husband Rich has dropped out of the rat race to master the art of mindfulness. But just as Kate is finding a few tricks to get by, her old client and flame Jack reappears – complicated doesn’t even begin to cover it…
Reviews
‘Made me laugh, wince, shudder and shed a tear!’ SOPHIE KINSELLA
‘Revolutionary … Both funny and unflinching’ ELIZABETH DAY, Daily Telegraph
‘As sharp and witty as ever … hugely enjoyable’ Daily Mail
‘How Hard Can It Be? is that rare thing: a sequel that matches and even surpasses the original’ Daily Telegraph
‘Once again, countless women will recognise themselves … Pearson has a gift’ The Times
‘Filled with smart insights into ageing parents, female friendships, tricky family dynamics and failing marriages … Kate makes good company’ New York Times
‘Ms. Pearson writes with great wit and verve’ Wall Street Journal
‘Pearson features menopause as nearly its own character in this laugh-out-loud yet all too realistic romp through midlife concerns about aging, sexual appeal, careers for older employees, and family care issues. Spot on’ Library Journal, Starred Review
‘Brilliantly well observed’ INDIA KNIGHT
‘Written with a light touch and verve … Pearson makes a sharp point about the lack of value and status that society places on the onerous job of a stay at home mother … in these pages, there is a raw honesty’ Financial Times
‘Sparkling, funny and poignant, this is a triumphant return for Pearson and hopefully not the last we will hear of Kate’ Daily Express
‘It is this relatable quality of Pearson’s story, along with laugh-out-loud zingers on nearly every page, that makes this sequel shine. How Hard Can It Be? is witty, current and a good reminder that age can be a trump card, even if you need reading glasses to see the deck’ Washington Post
‘Few sequels beat the original, but How Hard Can It Be? does so hands down … zesty, razor-sharp and hilarious. It’s full of such quotable casual profundity on the female condition I couldn't read it without a pencil to underline the abundance of great lines. Get ready for Kate!’ TINA BROWN, magazine editor and bestselling author
‘Funny, heart-breaking, wise and delightful’ SOPHIE HANNAH
About the author
Allison Pearson was born in South Wales. She is a columnist and feature writer for the Daily Telegraph. Allison’s first novel, I Don’t Know How She Does It, was an international bestseller; translated into 32 languages it was made into a movie of the same name. Oprah Winfrey called the book ‘A Bible for the working mother’. Allison lives in Cambridge with her family and two poodles. You can find her on Twitter @allisonpearson
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The winning follow-up to Pearson's bestselling I Don't Know How She Does It is anchored by heroine Kate Reddy's authentic, intelligent, and consistently funny British voice. When Kate's architect husband is laid off and begins training as a therapist, the 49-year-old stay-at-home mother of two tries to return to the workforce. After a disastrous job interview confirms she has aged out of her field she was formerly a jet-setting power player at an influential London brokerage firm Kate starts lying about her age and is hired to market the very hedge fund she created years ago. Meanwhile, her daughter just texted a belfie (a "selfie of your bum") to a friend, who posted it on Facebook; her son won't look up from his phone; and she hasn't had sex with her husband in months. Further muddying the waters is a man from her past, who reasserts himself in her life just as her marriage stagnates. Pearson maintains a humorous tone throughout, wresting laughs from her lead's lowest moments and greatest triumphs. Pearson also hits the right notes in conveying the cluelessness and powerlessness parents feel raising teens obsessed by gaming and social media. Readers will cheer on Kate as she becomes a kick-butt woman of a certain age. 250,000-copy announced first printing.