More than a woman

Much has happened in the humbling almost-decade since English journalist and novelist Moran published her essay collection, How to Be a Woman (2012), "a straight, white, working-class woman's experience in a mere 89,000 words." For one, now in her mid-forties, Moran lauds the effects of Botox in relaxing her "Sad Widow Surveying Her War-Ravaged-Village Face," despite the "Botox Police hat" she wore in that book. Much more seriously, Moran's daughters have grown into teenagers, and her essays on parenting them are some of this collection's strongest pieces. The harrowing experience of her daughter's eating disorder, for instance, leads to a meditation on how we can promise young women a better world. Corresponding to hours in the day--"The Hour of 'The List'" at 7:00 a.m.; "The Hour of Missing the Children" at 1:00 p.m.--her chapters expand into topics reflected on over years, like maintaining a marriage, balancing work and family, and acknowledging men's place in feminism. Moran handles weighty topics with lightness and a welcoming spirit, delivering straight talk with empathy, humor, and hope.

British author Moran (How to Be a Woman) takes on the fraught topic of being a modern woman in this realistic, sometimes funny, and occasionally heartbreaking essay collection. With an empathetic and supportive tone, Moran covers a variety of subjects, including housework, married sex, aging, body acceptance, parenting teenagers, and overcoming rough spots in marriage (even when that means leaving). While some of Moran's essays are downright funny--as when she wryly muses about reconciling using Botox while being a feminist--many others focus on tough topics, such as second-guessing herself for impulsively offering to house her younger brother during their parents' divorce; her daughter's battle with cutting and eating disorders; and the difficulties of simultaneously juggling working and motherhood and never feeling truly accomplished at either. Moran wisely counsels readers to stop being self-critical and enjoy the various phases of their lives, and not to badmouth others' spouses; she also recommends the healing powers of yoga ("But the best way to get high is to take something out of you. To drain away a lifetime of hunching, cringing, tongue biting, and fist clenching. You're too old to carry those things around with you anymore"). Readers will find comfort and humor in Moran's heartfelt and deeply honest musings. (Sept.)