Clementine Crane is ALL women over the age of forty. This book is insanely relatable for all of the women out there who are balancing relationships, parenting, work, and every other aspect of life while feeling overwhelmed and then....boom....the hot flashes hit. I love that women are talking about perimenapause and menopause now, it's refreshing to have some openness about it. I know I'm not the only woman who can relate to what Clementine experienced with her doctor, especially. This book is unrealistic in many ways but it's easy to overlook the eye-rolling bits when the overall story feels so real. I look forward to recommending this book to my friends - this might be the perfect holiday gift for a few of them!!
Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read the free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

📖 Bookish Thoughts
1. I’m officially terrified of menopause—and I’m still a decade out.
2. Clementine is 100% right: no one has prepared us. I had no idea. 😭
3. This book is a 6-star read. No notes.
4. I need a T-shirt (and maybe a sticker) that says “I prefer not to.”
5. I’m still laughing about the real bandit behind the missing green sweater.
6. May everyone have a Georgia in their corner.
7. May the Dr. Sheffields of the world never know peace. May their pillows always be warm and their socks slightly damp.
8. I now inexplicably want a goldfish.
9. I will name said goldfish Hagrid.
10. I was going to write a longer review but… I prefer not to. 😌

Release Date: October 14, 2025
Thank you to Alcove Press and NetGalley for the ARC. All thoughts are my own.

When the blurb described this as “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” hits perimenopause I knew this would be for me. The humor was very reminiscent of Catherine Newman’s book Sandwich which I loved. This delivered on the promise and I found myself laughing out loud as I read. Although I’m not the target demographic for this book I still absolutely devoured it! Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for my ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for this eARC. All opinions are my own.

Publication date: October 14, 2025

Clementine is an overworked, stressed out mom who has entered perimenopause. Bring on the hot flashes and this hilarious story! While I felt like the middle was a little slow, the ending picked up and I was excited to finish it. I loved the strong woman that she became as she built her following of hot flashers.

I would have loved to learn more about her kids. They were named but I didn’t feel like I knew them throughout the story. I also didn’t understand the animal she was hearing outside at night.

Overall a cute book that’s light and funny.

Clementine Crane Prefers Not To will have you wondering about what you prefer not to also do! I laughed and cringed right along with the characters. A fast and easy read, I could not put it down. One of the best books about being a mom, friendships, loyalty, and finding yourself. I absolutely recommend this read and cannot wait to read more by this author. Whether you have started menopause, or will someday, I think this is a story for all age women! Thank you to Net Galley, Alcove Publishing, and the talented Kristin Bair for the early release read! This book will make a great gift for others too!

“I prefer not to.” A phrase taken from Herman Melville's “Bartleby the scrivener”, that would be pivotal to a woman's campaign.

But let's take this from the beginning.

It all started when Clementine Crane began feeling hot. And by hot, I mean, really hot. Perimenopausal, hot-flashing hot. Hot enough to want to strip down and fall face-first into the snow.

No one had warned her about the ways her orderly life would change when perimenopause hit. Also, no one seemed to care enough. Her doctor pretended that it wasn't a serious issue, her husband continued being incompetent to all things that weren't work related, her children continued pressing her and relying on her for everything.

And Clementine's temper ran hot like her body, so she began a revolution. Using the motto “I prefer not to”, Clementine managed to draw lines in her personal life and inspire lots of exhausted, fed up women all over the world to do the same.

This book hit too close. I’m not even close to that stage of life, but I can resonate with Clementine's exhaustion and frustration. And how many women from different walks of life can say the same? Clementine is the kind of woman that's everywhere around us; underappreciated, overwhelmed, gaslighted by spouses and doctors, called insolent or dramatic when protesting about the situation. So this book was bittersweet and wonderful and I ate it up so fast. It's one of my absolute favourite reads of the year so far. It hit the essence of being a woman and a mother just perfectly, and the narrative was whimsical and fun and also very thought-provoking as Clementine attempted to navigate this new state of setting boundaries. It’s inspiring and it might finally inspire me to begin saying “I prefer not to” as well.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you to Netgalley, Alcove Press and the talented Kristin Bair for this gem of a book.

I DNF'd it. There was so much mind numbing conscious thought that it felt like being in someone's head that I didn't want to be in. I realize this isn't what the publisher is looking for, but it is what it came down to when I turned it off.

I related to the premise of the novel, as I am going through perimenopause like Clementine. However, it fell flat for me. I found Clementine's antics were not relatable (most women would not act that way) - however the way the husband doesn't contribute to the family mental load rings true with me. As she is fed up by everything, she starts a viral “I’d rather not” movement on tiktok. I didn't care for the antics nor the characters, as they were all too over the top to be relatable. I didn't find it funny, I found it to be cringe-worthy.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book. It was a great example of and insight into woman/motherhood and highlighted menopause which is (as Clem says) so often ignored. I felt like, perhaps I was not the intended demographic for this book so I didn't fully relate to Clementine, but I did recommend it to my mom and friends who I think would adore it. The first ~40% of the book was outstanding, I got a little muddled in the middle, but I really enjoyed how it all wrapped up and how we saw a realistic "glow up" (for lack of a better term) from Clem. I felt like I wanted to know more about Georgia and Ethan - Ethan seemed to actually really understand Clem and we didn't get to really explore that relationship at all. I didn't really see the need for the fish drama and felt like it sometimes gave me a break to put the book down rather than be locked in 100%.

A wonderful read!
This novel drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked until the end. The characters were vibrant and relatable, the writing was engaging, and the story had just the right balance of heart and humor. Highly recommend!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

Firstly, thank you to the publisher and author for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I am not 100% sure how I feel about this book.. it has taken me a while to get through, mostly because I found the first few chapters quite triggering (as a new mum I desperately don’t want my life to go down the same path Clementine’s did). However, once I got out of my own head, I appreciated the book for the witty, informative, and thought provoking book it is. Some of the scenes had me laughing out loud. The overnight tiktok fame felt a little unrealistic.

Overall I enjoyed this book, however I don’t think I am the target audience so the overall message didn’t really resonate with me at this time. 2.5⭐️

This was a fun and lighthearted story about a women dealing with perimenopause and how it makes her realise she is unhappy in her life- not to heavy, perfect beach reading!

I wanted to love this one so much: the premise spoke to me, the cover -- I LOVE THE COVER! -- spoke to me, but it was frustrating to read and I struggled to finish it.

I'm a mom of three, have kids who play hockey, and feel like I have a running list of to dos playing through my mind on loop at all hours of the day. The problem I have with this book is not Clementine's decision to do less -- its that she has seemingly spent her married and parental life enabling her family and then is flabbergasted when they can't do anything without her. I did love her friendship with Georgia, but that was about it. The stealing of the fish, the weird coup in her doctors office -- no thanks.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

I could not put this book down. It had everything I want in a book: joy, humor, heartbreak, frustration, friendship, and female rage. Also, librarians. It’s a quick, concise read, but not in a way that sacrifices plot or character development.

My only small complaint when I finished was that I wished the book had explored Clementine’s marriage and relationship to her husband further. But then I realized: it’s SPECIAL that this is a book about Clementine and only Clementine. Why should it put her husband at the centerpoint of her life? I could not recommend this book more highly for any woman who has ever been fed up with a man, perhaps eldest daughters (in addition to moms, of course) and anyone who has had a bad gynecological experience most of all.

Clementine Crane hits perimenopause and her entire life goes of the rails. From dealing with hot flashes to her best friend dying, all while carrying the mental load for her family, Clementine was very relatable in many ways. However, her character does some things (steals the library fish? eschews family traditions?) that made her a little over-the-top. My favorite part was the texting from the daughter, Anna. That the author got spot on-it sounded exactly how my daughter texts me from school!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Clementine Crane is frustrated and really fed up. Like so many women, she juggles her daily life with a husband, three children, job and the thousands of tasks she faces every day. She has finally found a best friend in 87 year old Georgia. What shocks Clementine is the onset of perimenopause, particularly hot flashes. She simply cannot handle much more so she sets out to take control and enable all women who are enduring this phase of life. Clementine believes women are not adequately prepared or supported so she becomes a Tik Tok sensation with her “I prefer not to” theme. Much of this book revolves around hot flash symptoms and gynecologists. Her family thinks she is crazy when she disrobes in public and starts refusing all their requests for driving and picking up take-out. It was difficult to connect with much of Clementine’s behavior including her antics at work. This book will not be for everyone. Still the theme is understandable and often relatable, and the texts by her children hilarious. With thanks to Netgalley and Alcove Press for this ARC. My opinions are my own.

This was a fun one, quirky and funny. It fostered pensiveness and I liked the tenacity of the main character. Refreshing for women and women readers everywhere.

I just finished reading this book. The plot was absolutely fantastic! It was quite the page turner, and I could nor put the book down once I began reading it. I cannot wait for it to be released. I will recommend it to everyone I know!

“I prefer not to.” A simple phrase… and Clementine’s brilliantly bold rebellion.

Clementine Crane Prefers Not To is a hilariously honest, refreshingly raw exploration of modern womanhood, told through the voice of a main character who feels like all of us. Clementine isn’t just quirky and overwhelmed—she’s the glue, the lynchpin, the calendar-wielding, errand-running, appointment-booking, family-organising everything-doer. And when she hits her limit (and her first hot flash), it all starts to unravel—in the most gloriously relatable way.

This book had me laughing, nodding, and occasionally yelling, “YES!” at the page. Kristin Bair doesn’t shy away from the emotional toll of invisible labour or the identity earthquake that perimenopause can bring. It’s brutally honest, but also deeply compassionate, and packed with laugh-out-loud moments that make the heavier truths hit even harder.

Clementine’s journey felt like both a breakdown and a breakthrough—and it was such a joy to follow her as she set boundaries, let go of the guilt, and slowly reclaimed herself. The pacing is quick, the tone is spot-on, and the story is exactly the kind of cathartic, empowering read that so many women need.

If you’ve ever felt like the world might fall apart if you stop holding it together—this one’s for you. Honest, hilarious, and long overdue.

This book exceeded my expectations. The author was not afraid to put it all out there and say it all out loud.
It was the ultimate fantasy read for a perimenopausal woman, like me. We whisper to each other about what it would be like to take off for some coveted alone time and just not have to manage everyone else's lives for a while.
I was especially touched by Bair's description of a frazzled wife/mother endlessly stuffing her chest cavity full of all the appointments for everyone in the family, activities, destinations, locations of household items, planning lists for holidays, EVERYTHING. After 40 some years, it takes its toll. And as that mental load starts to hit peek capacity, perimenopause comes along to rip everything you thought you knew about your own body away. It's a unique and dramatic time that is only starting to come into the light.
Clementine Crane is a hero for modern perimenopausal women. I loved that she was quirky, and angry, and exhausted from doing it all for so long.
It's perfectly written and I often found myself laughing out loud or nodding fiercely with the spot on depictions of what it's like.
The decremental extinguishing of a woman's spirit. Amen, sister!
Can't wait to read more by this author.