Review: A Window Opens by Elisabeth Egan

Title: A Window Opens
Author: Elisabeth Egan
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: August 25, 2015
ISBN: 9781501105432
Number of Pages: 384
How I Got It: NetGalley
Format: Kindle
Goodreads Description:
For fans of I Don’t Know How She Does It and Where’d You Go, Bernadette?.
In A Window Opens, beloved books editor at Glamour magazine, Elisabeth Egan, brings us Alice Pearse, a compulsively honest, longing-to-have-it-all, sandwich generation heroine for our social-media-obsessed, lean in (or opt out) age.

Like her fictional forebears Kate Reddy and Bridget Jones, Alice plays many roles (which she never refers to as “wearing many hats” and wishes you wouldn’t, either). She is a mostly-happily married mother of three, an attentive daughter, an ambivalent dog-owner, a part-time editor, a loyal neighbor and a Zen commuter. She is not: a cook, a craftswoman, a decorator, an active PTA member, a natural caretaker or the breadwinner. But when her husband makes a radical career change, Alice is ready to lean in—and she knows exactly how lucky she is to land a job at Scroll, a hip young start-up which promises to be the future of reading, with its chain of chic literary lounges and dedication to beloved classics. The Holy Grail of working mothers―an intellectually satisfying job and a happy personal life―seems suddenly within reach.
Despite the disapproval of her best friend, who owns the local bookstore, Alice is proud of her new “balancing act” (which is more like a three-ring circus) until her dad gets sick, her marriage flounders, her babysitter gets fed up, her kids start to grow up and her work takes an unexpected turn. Readers will cheer as Alice realizes the question is not whether it’s possible to have it all, but what does she―Alice Pearse―really want?

My Review:
I don't know whether I loved the fact that the main character had a "babysitter" who took care of the kids, cooked, etc. while she was working or hate it. I loved that it showed how impossible it is to be a mother who works outside the home and be able to take care of your kids...we can't be two places at once, right? I also hated it because having that sort of paid assistance isn't the case for most mothers who work outside the home. Plus I was downright pissed that her husband wouldn't step into the home caregiver role, given his situation. The snotty, young workers who change their mind and direction of the company daily is too real for most women returning to the workforce. I like having characters that make me feel something and Alice and her crew certainly did. I like unlikeable characters and this book had plenty.

***Disclaimer:: I was given a copy of this release in exchange for an honest review. I received no additional compensation. ***