Download I'm Just Happy to Be Here A Memoir of Renegade Mothering Janelle Hanchett 9780316549417 Books
Download As PDF : I'm Just Happy to Be Here A Memoir of Renegade Mothering Janelle Hanchett 9780316549417 Books
From the creator of the blog "Renegade Mothering," Janelle Hanchett's forthright, wickedly funny, and ultimately empowering memoir chronicling her tumultuous journey from young motherhood to abysmal addiction and a recovery she never imagined possible.
At 21, Janelle Hanchett embraced motherhood with the reckless self-confidence of those who have no idea what they're getting into. Having known her child's father for only three months, she found herself rather suddenly getting to know a newborn, husband, and wholly transformed identity. She was in love, but she was bored, directionless, and seeking too much relief in too much wine.
Over time, as she searched for home in suburbia and settled life, a precarious drinking habit turned into treacherous dependence, until life became car seats and splitting hangovers, cubicles and multi-day drug binges--and finally, an inconceivable separation from her children. For ten years, Hanchett grappled with the relentless progression of addiction, bouncing from rehabs to therapists to the occasional hippie cleansing ritual on her quest for sobriety, before finding it in a way she never expected.
This is a story we rarely hear--of the addict mother not redeemed by her children; who longs for normalcy but cannot maintain it; and who, having traveled to the bottom of addiction, all the way to "society's hated mother," makes it back, only to discover she will always remain an outsider.
Like her irreverent, hilarious, and unflinchingly honest blog, "Renegade Mothering," Hanchett's memoir speaks with warmth and wit to those who feel like outsiders in parenthood and life--calling out the rhetoric surrounding "the sanctity of motherhood" as tired and empty, boldly recounting instead how one grows to accept an imperfect self within an imperfect life--thinking, with great and final relief, "Well, I'll be damned, I'm just happy to be here."
Download I'm Just Happy to Be Here A Memoir of Renegade Mothering Janelle Hanchett 9780316549417 Books
"It feels impossible to write a review of this book that will do it justice. I was thrilled to receive my ARC and tore through it. It's raw. It's real. Just when you think you know where it's going, you find out you're wrong. It's a bold memoir. Janelle is unflinching and fearless. She stares herself straight in the eye and tells us her isn't-always-pretty story.
It's a story about growing up. First as a child, who faces her share of adversity. Then as an adult trying to make sense of herself and her history. It's about addiction and recovery and mental health, but so much more than that. Janelle grabs your hand and takes you with her as she wrestles her considerable demons"right there on the mat.
I was equal parts appalled and inspired. Mostly by her bravery. This book shows us we can embrace the paradox of being human. How we can all be wonderful and terrible, EVEN AS MOTHERS."
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I'm Just Happy to Be Here A Memoir of Renegade Mothering Janelle Hanchett 9780316549417 Books Reviews :
I'm Just Happy to Be Here A Memoir of Renegade Mothering Janelle Hanchett 9780316549417 Books Reviews
- I really want to write something profound and meaningful that expresses how I feel about this book, about Janelle's experience. I want to use exactly the right words that evoke exactly the right emotion, and leave no detail out, but truthfully? I'm having a hard time. Because how do you review someone's life? Some other of the reviews had no problem passing judgement on the author's LIFE, and while I'm sure it's comfortable in their ivory towers, Janelle was willing to put herself out there for the benefit of others. THAT is a great story.
The bravery it takes to share the ugly underbelly of the broken mental health system and addiction and abandoning one's own children? This story is a gut-punch because it's so true. It's raw, and if you're not ready for honesty to stare you in the face, you're not ready for this book. Those who are upset with how "vanilla" Janelle's life was prior to falling into the abyss have missed the entire point. Mental health issues and addiction aren't exclusive; there is no poster child for bipolar disorder or postpartum depression or cocaine addiction. Janelle could be any one of us--or any one of our family members or friends. The difference between the rest and Janelle is that she's telling her story instead of rotting in the ground because of it.
Rosemary carrots.
Motherhood fails.
Rehab.
Windshield wipers.
Whiskey benders.
Water births like the sunrise.
Abandoning your children.
Good News Jack.
Homelessness.
Redemption.
Dissatisfaction.
Honesty.
Love, loss.
The dark humor juxtaposed with the severity of Janelle's situation made me laugh, then feel bad for laughing. I held on to the little glimpses of hope the way I imagine she and her family did, only to be fooled again and again by the ruse of addiction. Even on the other side of addiction, she embodies this restlessness many of us have experienced in early Motherhood, and she doesn't apologize for wanting MORE. She loves her children and while she is finally able to delight in the seemingly small, like parent-teacher conferences, she makes no apology for lusting after intellectual stimulation, five minutes to herself, or a break from the monotony. What begins as a story like any of ours, morphs into something straight out of the movies, and eventually rounds out the edges--but make no mistake the edges are still there.
A straight-talker, no-bullshitter, Janelle writes her blog in the same way. I highly recommend both Renegade Mothering and I'm Just Happy to Be Here if for no other reason than to read a woman who has been to the black, found her way home, and somehow continues to make us laugh as she exposes her darkest moments and most frightening thoughts.
(I was fortunate enough to receive an advanced copy of the book--grab your copy today!) - It feels impossible to write a review of this book that will do it justice. I was thrilled to receive my ARC and tore through it. It's raw. It's real. Just when you think you know where it's going, you find out you're wrong. It's a bold memoir. Janelle is unflinching and fearless. She stares herself straight in the eye and tells us her isn't-always-pretty story.
It's a story about growing up. First as a child, who faces her share of adversity. Then as an adult trying to make sense of herself and her history. It's about addiction and recovery and mental health, but so much more than that. Janelle grabs your hand and takes you with her as she wrestles her considerable demons"right there on the mat.
I was equal parts appalled and inspired. Mostly by her bravery. This book shows us we can embrace the paradox of being human. How we can all be wonderful and terrible, EVEN AS MOTHERS. - In over a year of commuting downtown on the train, this is the first book that almost made me miss my stop - every single day.
Janelle Hanchett is simply the most brutally honest writer I have ever come across. I realize that memoirs of alcoholics and addicts are practically a cottage industry. So far it is a sub-genre that never really appealed to me. This book, however, is extraordinary.
Janelle found herself pregnant at age 21. The father was someone she was just getting to know. They got married (and incredibly are still together - not really a spoiler if you read her blog). Post-partum depression following the birth of her daughter Ava soon became basically a bottomless pit of alcoholism and drug addiction. Husband Mac had his own addiction problems. Janelle's mom had the kids most of the time so thankfully they were okay. That's the skeleton of the plot. What is absolutely astounding to me is Janelle's voice - she is funny, angry, refreshing, and she has a way of speaking truths that just make me whisper "wow" as I am reading on the train.
It seems almost impossible that Janelle came through this ordeal of her own creation, and yet she did. She never makes excuses or places blame on others - she takes full responsibility for everything that happens. Yes, she had a decent support system, but the work that she did on herself was completely her own. When AA and rehab did not stick, Janelle figured out a way to heal. Her "sponsor" has a unique voice that turns out to be just what Janelle needs.
At the end of the story (late 2016) there are a couple of particularly stressful twists in Janelle's life. The way she copes makes me feel like she is going to make it. I think writing and her family saved her life - or rather, by focusing on writing and her family, Janelle saved her own life.
I really can't praise this book enough. It's quite dark in places but you know in advance she's going to be okay (or what passes for okay in this day and age). It is quite a tale. It may well be the best book I read in 2018. Highly recommended.
