This book was really unique and, in my opinion, didn't get the attention it deserves! It's unusual to read a book about a difficult marriage that actually ends with the couple STAYING TOGETHER. I really liked that aspect of this. I also thought it was surprisingly detailed and transparent, and I wondered often how Key's wife let him write this (I'm guessing she felt she "owed" it to him.) The writing is HILARIOUS, even though the content is decidedly less so. This was great! (Maybe kind-of wish it had a different title/cover... I was a little embarrassed to be reading it. Haha!)

Being somewhat familiar with the author, I was really looking forward to this, and it didn't let me down. This is a heart-lacerating but also totally compelling read, and stayed with me.

This memoir and/or portrait of a marriage is outstanding for a Christian audience. It was funny, interesting and authentic. For the right reader, I think this would be an excellent choice.

I thoroughly enjoyed this memoir by Harrison Scott Key. It’s the raw and honest story of his wife’s affair and his decision to forgive her and fight for his marriage. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you to Net Galley and the Publisher for this Advanced Readers Copy of How to Stay Married by Harrison Scott Key!

This book was incredibly interesting. I feel like I learned a lot even though I feel like this space in the book world can be pretty saturated. I loved it.

Harrison Scott Key has made me both laugh and question everything about my marriage in the best way possible. He is so honest and real it's heartbreaking, but I am so glad he shared his story with us. Key's humor is not for everyone, but he is so clever and quick-witted, I want to be friends in real life.

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife;” but one day the woman says to the man, “I want a divorce. I’m in love with somebody else.” And the man is rendered senseless, as if he has been bashed in the head with a sledge hammer. How can I review a book like this one, unlike any that I’ve ever read before? Harrison Scott Key’s memoir, How to Stay Married, is haunting, hopeful, and hilarious. I felt like crying, but the author’s side-splitting narrative left me hysterical.

What therefore God hath joined together, let not Chad put asunder. This book is the story of the author’s journey to save his marriage. When wife Lauren wants to bail for leaf-blowing Chad, does he arm himself with five smooth stones and a sling? No, he has three choices: flee, fold, or fight. The memoirist pulls the veil aside and exposes the real facts and raw feelings of infidelity. He is bold, far beyond what I could ever be. What a book—a war guide, a marriage manual, and a devotional all rolled into one. Yet his words read like a comedian’s monologue, pithy without being preachy.

Affairs and divorce are so common in our society today, but the underlying truths woven throughout Key’s writing are not often heard. There is value in community, in friends, and in church. Redemption is always possible. Mercy just might be the better answer. And most of all, I want to remember that God likes to fix broken things. “And God saw that it was good.”

When I heard about this book, I thought it sound like and interesting story of a marriage in trouble. And it was. That is definitely what it was about. But I had no idea it would be so funny. And speak so deeply and honestly about faith, the Bible and the local church! I loved it! It was such a surprise and such a beautiful book. I highlighted so many parts that were on one hand funny, but on the other had deep and thoughtful reflections on faith and life and working out all of the messy stuff about being a human on earth. I love how pro-marriage the book is without sugar coating it and the challenges it presents. This will certainly be a top book of the year for me.

Thank you to the author, Avid Reader Press and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was not familiar with this author, but was hooked by the mention of him being a winner of the Thurber Prize. His writing is humorous, but this book is not. I found large stretches of it sad and the author too self-absorbed. Much of it felt as though the author was holding a comedy monologue, and had put that down on paper. While I understand the concept of looking at the hardship of life - or in this case the disintegration of the author's marriage - through a humorous lens, this book did not work for me. In addition, I had a hard time with the religiosity pervasive throughout the book.

I enjoyed the premise of this book a bit more than reading it. I was slow through about 30% and I think the amount of church and praying just wasn't my cup of tea. There were several funny moments and funny observations, but overall, I felt it was a bit of a chore to read all the religious parts and that made it hard to want to pick it up.

As someone who is often described by friends and loved ones as "brutally honest", I very much appreciated this book. At times uncomfortably close and too personal, you couldn't ask for anything more raw than this account of tragedy and redemption. I had no prior exposure to the author, Harrison Scott Key, but I can be counted as a fan going forward!

A story so honest it might hurt. Somethings are universal, and seeing a man hurting because of his love for someone else is something every adult can relate to. Key does a great job keeping the emotional turmoil present but in the background, because no matter how hurt you are, the kids still need to get to practice and someone has to chase the dog in the rain.

Harrison Scott Key delivers a heartfelt and honest memoir in How to Stay Married which reminds me of books such as Group.

Key allows readers to laugh and get emotional as he explains the experience he felt as his marriage crumbles and we see how it affected him.

I enjoyed the book and am excited to see what he writes next!

The title grabbed me because if you're in a season of difficulty why wouldn't you be curious how others do it? But then when I started reading I was like, Is he really spilling the tea here? All of it? Apparently se's still married and he's literally telling this deeply personal and tragic and sad and OH SO REAL story of the demise of his marriage. His wife's adultery. And the title isn't hyperbole. You get to the halfway point and are thinking what more could you possibly say and then you get to the next chapter and are like, well then.

Indeed there is lots to say. Harrison has made a living by expressing himself. He likes to talk and tell jokes and tell his stories about his life. After all this is his 3rd memoir. And he married a woman named Lauren and Lauren has had some grievances but she doesn't open up about them. She just handles it in her own dysfunctional terrible way. You will probably hate her in this book. But woven throughout are the basic tenets of Christianity and taking a good hard look at yourself before you judge others. And we might not be Lauren, but we are not perfect.

I really appreciated this story. As someone who is in a very fragile marriage that has come to the edge of divorce and I still fear it may, this was a book of hope. But it takes two people. Two people have to be willing and to be willing to work. And forgive. And also get over yourself and stop thinking it's about you because it's never just about you.

But also because Harrison can't help himself he tells this story with some side eye. He makes it humorous. I enjoyed that too and it works because humor is the one thing these two have in common in how they deal with life.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle ARC. Since I've not read any books by Harrison Scott Key, I wasn't aware that he is a Christian humorist. I'm not affiliated with any religious organization but I still found How to Stay Married very humorous and brutally honest. When Harrison's wife of many years tells him that she is in love with a neighbor and has been conducting an affair for quite some time, Harrison is determined to make sure he doesn't lose his wife. His ponderings about how the affair could have happened, what happens in the course of the affair and what he plans to do about it are hilarious. It is an admirable quality - being able to keep one's sense of humor in the face of potential catastrophe.

Harrison Scott Key, a Christian humorist, describes the impact of his wife's infidelity on his marriage and its subsequent near-collapse. And in some ways this book is very successful; he thoughtfully conveys the effects of a marriage breakdown--especially on the "wronged" party, the ways traditional gender roles and organized religion can be hard on a marriage, and the self-examination and self-improvement that a partner's cheating can promote. And his reflections on marriage and his own situation are funny, poginant, and self-aware. That said, the way he lays bare the behavior and flaws of his wife made me uncomfortable for her even if she did give full approval to the contents of the book and Key is open about his own foibles and role in the crisis.

His story is a hopeful one. My hope is that his hope is well-placed; while I appreciate the author's right to examine his marriage on his own terms, I had reservations about the book's conclusion; I'm frankly not sure that enough time has passed since the events he describes to declare his story's ending definitively happy, sad, or otherwise. That said, marriage is tough, and none of us can predict the future.

An interesting read. Very raw, real & stripped bare. About marriage and separation. I must admit I found the writing style a little odd. Maybe it was just me. But overall a good read.

This book was a quick read about a difficult topic. It was a bit like someone was letting you see all of the terrible and embarrassing things happening in their life. I felt bad for the couple, but the book ended on a positive note.

This is a heart wrenching story the author shares details of his marriage and his religious beliefs.He is a comedian so there is humor but the minute his wife tells him she wants a divorce she is in love with another man you feel his anguish and the shock of who the man is ,a devastating reveal.#netgalley #howtostaymarried