I'd Rather Wear Pajamas Paperback – October 7, 2015

Light is usually not a word to describe memoir. Neither is funny. Whimsical is also rare. So it's refreshing to read one that makes you laugh-out-loud and lighten up yourself! For our stress-filled lives, what a welcome to cast our eyes on a tale that focuses on the fun of life!I really enjoyed Chelsea Walker Flagg's memoir about a woman's journey into motherhood and domestic life while along the way discovering her true self and the meaning of the word strength. Flagg ultimately gives up her career aspirations to stay at home with her three daughters and chronicles this journey. Her pages remind me of the memoirists, Anne Lamott, who is known for her dry humor, Elizabeth Gilbert, whose quest for the true path knows no limits, and Kelly Corrigan, who writes so poignantly about domestic life.Flagg begins with Joseph Campbell, “We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” She then divulges her own sage advice for finding one’s true path, “Regardless of which path you take, if it’s truly your path, you’ll find your super powers there.” Super powers! It made me think of Grey’s Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes’s own funny memoir Year of Yes where she encourages women to go arms akimbo, Wonder Woman-power style when they need a surge of strength.Flagg doesn't take herself too seriously and is laugh-out-loud funny. She takes the lighthearted approach in her quest for discovering her own strength. We follow her own path to finding the right career, man, house and ultimately her right self. In the end, she discovers the meaning of strength after giving natural childbirth to her daughter Quincy (all women who deliver drug-free in their homes should be crowned “Strong!”). Along the way she also learns how to battle bats, rabies, and kitchen sinks. She even sews, quilts and bakes rhubarb pies from the rhubarb grown in her own vegetable garden. It’s all great fun and Flagg’s take on domestic life makes me think of the playful quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The earth laughs in flowers.” It’s refreshing to enter the world of an author who sees the world in such an enchanting way!

I mean, this name! Who can't relate to this!?This is a memoir about finding your own "strong". What is a "strong" woman? What defines that? Through crazy stories and silly metaphors Chelsea finds her "strong".This book had me laughing silently, out loud... You know, holding in the laughter so the people around me don't think I'm crazy. And cringing at her sometimes annoying, ever-changing mind. But, I thought this book was quite funny. Her writing is very conversational. Some people don't like that, but I do. (that's how I write) There were a few editing mistakes, but not many and I could forgive her for that. It was a short, relatable read. And happy at the end. She found her "strong"."Most importantly, be true to yourself, find your own flow, and own your own strong."

This is funny, light reading. I have enjoyed the book but it generally feels a little self-serving. The author makes you believe that you're going to read a somewhat motivational book about "finding your strong," but it's mostly full of humorous stories about her life and the decisions she has made along the way. Even that sentence makes it sound like there's more for the reader to glean from its pages than there actually is. Once in a while she weakly references back to "finding your strong" but pretty much spends the pages recording memories that she and her family and friends value more than a stranger (i.e. 99.8% of her readers) will.

I enjoyed the read. Written like you were talking to her. I laughed with her and related to some of her struggles.

My book club selected this for March 2017. It was a well-written, quick read. The book reviews highs and lows from the author's life from high school graduation to post-marriage. The author does a good job of recounting the special memories from her life. Although it took me a little bit to get into the book, once she met the man who would become her husband, it picked up and I felt compelled to keep reading right through to the end. I'd definitely recommend this book to others.

These are selected autobiographical stories from some unknown person . If that is what you enjoy, then this is a good choice. It was like reading the Facebook page of a random stranger.

What prompted me to read this? Got me! BUT I thoroughly enjoyed it!It is fun to chat with someone who is wanders down the path of life and handles the curve balls that are part of the game. Who deals with the mud puddles and the pot holes with which that path is strewn. Who learns that the definition of the word "strong" contains more variables than an algebraic equation. And most of all, while her rendition of the story is told from a gal's view it applies to us guys as well.Thanks Chelsea for a good yarn, well told, and universally applicable.

I chose this title hoping for some introspective fodder. What I read, instead, consisted of the author recounting capricious decisions and hamming up personal experiences. While there is some humor to be found, the majority of the book contents were literally in-one-ear-and-out-the-other type material. A lighthearted read, yes. But otherwise nothing terribly inspiring.

I absolutely LOVE this book! Like love it. I laughed out loud repeatedly, forced the words upon my boyfriend (who tolerantly listened the first time and then realized that he, too, was amused), and intend to share this review on Facebook, making everyone else pay attention too. As a writer, I am constantly trying to achieve the same voice Chelsea has managed here - personable, down-to-earth, and relateable (What? It's a word!). I started this book around 7 am this morning and finished it around 1, including a time out for lunch and tea. Chelsea's depiction of her life - her addiction to cats; her dating mishaps; the moves from one place to another without warning or notice; everything - is well done. It is imminently readable and so worth the time.I have been trying to find my own strength for some time now and there have been many "Oh, well, that's not it" paths. Some of them have been altered due to sheer lack of effort on my part, some through the varying health issues I live with, and some simply because they were not right. It's encouraging to see that there are others who make the same kind of mistakes (and the same lack of effort). Thank you, Chelsea, for sharing so much of yourself.

nice

That books truly lightened my heart. I can relate to the author - having tried numerous times to fit into the wrong box designed either by the society, your parents, influencers or your own twisted mind. The moral of the story is that we're all unique and great for those different strengths. A very sweet book, hope to see more from the airport.

Totally relatable even if, like me, you hate women who love being pregnant (only end of book). I don't usually read anything even vaguely biographical or self-helpy but this was free and I thought it was chic-lit by the cover. Started reading one evening and didn't stop until the end. Read through laughing-tears and tired-tears. The author doesn't write about anything that could be deemed extra-ordinary but her wit and humour endear her every-dayness to the reader and make this a very special nugget. Wishing there was more where this came from.

Sorry, just didn't work for me. But honesty, I only read to Chapter 4. I couldn't see any point in reading further, cutesy humour yes but any point the author was trying to make was lost on me. Maybe the rest of the book is terrific and worth a five star review but I will never find out. I have too many other books on my Kindle and figured at the end of Chapter 4 it was time to give up and move on to something else.