I have never read anything by Elizabeth Passarella before but I will be looking for her books now. It Was an Ugly Anyway is filled with essays about Elizabeth’s life in New York but the stories aren’t really about New York. The stories are so much more. They remind us that life is about so much more than what we see. We need to dig deeper. Throughout the shorter essays is one essay that continues about trying to acquire an apartment from an older lady who doesn’t live in the building. I will admit, Elizabeth had more patience than I do.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. Thanks to Elizabeth Passarella, too!

📚Synopsis:
A collection of essays sharing the author’s reflections on nearing middle age, and learning to use the wisdom from her past to help her choose which battles are worth fighting, and find fulfilment in humour in the everyday. Share a few laughs and nods of agreement as she provides adulting advice on parenting, relationships, careers, and how to maintain a healthy relationship with your mother-in-law.

✍️ My review:
A quietly entertaining collection of essays that share a realistic and (mostly) positive view of embracing aging as gaining life’s wisdom rather than just getting old. This book took me a while to finish as I found some of the essays were harder to relate to than others, but I did think the story-line of “moving to a new apartment” that occurred in segments throughout the book helped tie everything together.

💕You might like this book if:
🔹 you agree that life, or at least parts of it, gets better as you age
🔹 you appreciate reflecting on life changes
🔹you can see your role in a family as both child and parent / caregiver

Loved this book! Slice of life in essays is one of my favorite genres the past few years. And while this isn’t necessarily a Christian book, her faith comes through in some of the essays which I really liked. NYC living is intriguing to me and I loved getting a glimpse into that. A great mix of laughing out loud but also touching stories. I immediately added her first book to my TBR.
*Thanks to NetGalley for an Advanced Readers Copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed Elizabeth Passarella's first book. It resonated with me a lot, so I was looking forward to this second book by the author. I didn't have as much of a connection with this set of essays. All in all, I'm glad I read it, but her debut was more relatable to me.

A quick read, It Was an Ugly Couch Anyway is a collection of essays around the idea of change uncertainty, and staying put. While I didn't underline/highlight anything, and I'm not sure I have any takeaways (wouldn't read it again), this was still an enjoyable read.

I enjoyed this very much. I had never heard of Elizabeth Passarella (possibly b/c I don't read Southern Living), but I am very glad to have discovered her. I am a sucked for essay collections, but I have been hard-pressed to find great ones written by women that I would return to time and again. I think this collection from Passarella is a keeper.

Passarella is a little older (43? 46?) than most of the women writing. I've read a LOT of Millennial-age collections - and they are good, but don't always resonate. This one from Passarella did. Even though I'm a (cough, decade) older than her, I found her book really relatable. We just purchased a new home last year, and her stories about trying to purchase a new apartment really resonated. I also found her chapter about her mother-in-law endearing as well as chock-full of good advice.

I don't have kids, but Passarella doesn't overly focus on them - they're just part of her life, not her whole focus. So I found the stories that included them very relatable. Passarella is also a practicing Christian. I didn't know that when I requested the book from NetGalley - and I'm glad I didn't b/c (myopically) I probably would have given it a pass. Passarella's faith is a genuine, integrated part of her life, and while her roots are Southern, she's living as a New Yorker and her faith feels like it has evolved to have a bit of New Yorker vibe as well - making it more palatable to a heathen like myself.

Passarella's writing is fun, fresh and easy to read. I'm looking forward to keeping an eye out for her future pieces but also picking up her earlier book, "Good Apple". Oh, what really made me fall in love with this book - Passarella describes reading Ruth Reichl's "Tender at the Bone" (or was it "Comfort Me with Apples"?) and it really resonating with her, just an immediate, visceral reaction. I felt the same way when I read it (ADORE Ruth Reichl!) and felt an immediate kinship with Passarella.

If you like creative non-fiction essays, I heartily recommend "It Was an Ugly Couch Anyway". If those aren't your jam, I'd still give it a try. Definitely worth the time!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read an ARC!

What an absolute delight to read! I devoured Elizabeth Passarella’s previous collection of essays, ‘Good Apple’; I resonated with so many of the themes and topics she wrestled with, that I revisit those stories often. This collection felt like an extension of ‘Good Apple’ and exceeded my expectations. There was an excellent balance of poignant moments and laugh-out-loud anecdotes. I was so thoroughly invested in the essays about the (new!) apartment that I’m already looking forward to her next collection.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

This was really bad. I got a ARC from NetGalley and I liked the title. I figured it would be funny in the way Sloane Crosley is funny. It was not.

First of all I found the prologue, written by the actual actor, to be a horrible indication of what was to come. This is not well written; it’s like reading someone’s diary that is boring and self indulgent. If there were time to change this, I would ask someone else - anyone else to do this on behalf of the author.
Michael’s illness intrigued me- telling it through a religious lens did not. I found all the stories to be fairly dull.
I couldn't get behind the overly holy vibe throughout.

It is rather unique to frame an entire book around selling an apartment, although it felt like a very New York thing to do.

Thank you #Netgalley for the advanced copy!

A collection of interesting essays intertwined with an ongoing story of selling their current apartment in hopes of getting another apartment in the building. I found myself more intrigued with the apartment stories rather than some of the other shorter essays. Enough to where I wanted to look up her instagram to see if there were before and after photos of the new apartment. I loved the sense of humor throughout the book and how she connects with others, including her unique mother in law and Lois. Great read!

I loved this book. Made me laugh and cry.. Wanted to see the layout of the apartment... That's how invested I was reading it. Don't miss this one.
Thanks to author, publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Cute book of entertaining stories about moving on and going forward.

'Really enjoyable essay collection about marriage, parenting, friendship, and—in some of the juiciest bits—New York City real estate. Highly recommended!

I very much enjoyed the authors' introduction and the first part of the book that had to do with the ugly couch. For me, it dive bombed from there .The chapters in between the wonderful story of the couch and discovering the new home she felt was perfect, just went on and on even though they were about different subject matter. Even the story about the new apartment which was only covered at the beginning, the middle and at the end,. didn't seem to have an end in sight.. It got to the point that I didn't care if she moved in or not I would like to thank NetGalley and Nelson Books for the advance read.