Housebroken: Confessions of a Stay-at-Home Dad
From Publishers Weekly
Novelist and journalist Eddie (Chump Change) is living a dissolute bachelorhood of bohemian squalor and interchangeable “sexually forthright, non-rocket-scientific young women” when he finds the love of his life in the form of a family-minded woman. He was wary of the crimp domesticity might put in his literary aspirations, but when son Nicholas comes along, the avowedly unemployable writer decides that he was “born to be a househusband.” He may stay home while his wife goes to work, but he’s not entirely housebroken: he uses the corner bar and neighborhood lingerie shop as day-care centers, longs to join the glitterati, muses about divorce on a hellish family vacation, exists for long periods in a haze of boredom and sleep-deprivation and wears the indelible social stigma of the stay-at-home dad. But he derives an unsuspected degree of fulfillment in a house well-kept, a meal well-cooked and a child well-cared for, and finds that family life give…
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This book is absolutely hilarious! It is warm, funny, smart, and should be read by dads AND moms alike. Ladies, don’t let the title sway you from picking this up.
David Eddie details his days as a bachelor wonderfully, complete with descriptions of his apartment such as putting food out on his “trunk/coffee table in his living/dining/bedroom/study area”. He leaves this swinging lifestyle for Pam, “Ms.Right”, and they purchase a home across from a mental health center. The irony of raising a child, (a job that can be mentally stressful at times as any parent knows), across from an actual mental health center was just too funny for me!
David Eddie and Pam married when she was 5 months pregnant with their son, and due to several lay offs for David and Pam’s growing career, he ultimately becomes the stay-at-home parent to their little boy Nicholas. He talks about middle of the night wake ups, people making unsolicited comments on his parenting in public, and finding adventure in his neighborhood. He gives advice on methods of child rearing that have come to work for him, and commiserates on topics that any parent can appreciate, such as “Nap Time: Your Window to Sanity”.
I love this book because it’s a real life account of a ‘househusband’, but it’s just as touching and funny for me as a woman and mother. I was touched and amused by a father’s point of view on his child coming into the world; as he put it, “he felt anxiety and protectiveness toward him and hoped he would always be warm and dry in the world and find happiness”. His stories about the birth experience, his relationship with Pam before and after baby, vacationing, all ring true and made me laugh out loud. It’s great that he takes over what is usually considered a ‘mother/female role’, and keeps his masculinity in tact. He manages to be nuturing and ‘just one of the guys’ at the same time.
Kudos to David Eddie, personally AND professionally!!
Housebroken is a book about parenting for people who arent interested in books about parenting. Finally, a witty, playful AND philosophical take on the biggest decision of your life, by one of the funniest authors of our day.
Eddies new book is a fresh break from the slightly bitter, bleary eyed assessments of this ancient art: You dont get any sleep? You dont say! Instead of whining about scraping applesauce off the walls for 10 pages, Housebroken explores new ground with the kind of details youve always want to know, especially for lads: Is it possible to still be cool as a Dad? What happens to your mojo? Your sex life? What REALLY changes? What do you actually need to know to be a Dad?
Its all here in Housebroken for the anxious Dad-to-be. Think About A Boy meets Bukowski and youre getting warm. Eddies transition from Cad to Dad is the story for every man who is taking the leap or even just thinking about it. That mysterious gap between the single life and fatherhood is traversed with enough insight and original humor to give the nervous newcomer a very clear idea of what to expect.
Still, its not a dude book exclusively. For all those girls out there wondering about that tormented clown expression on your mans face whenever the subject of children comes up read this!
Whether youre a parent in waiting, just flirting with the idea or sure youre not going to breed, Housebroken is a hilarious and inspiring read, the first of its kind on the topic of domestic Dads.