Why am I passionate about this?

I started my motherhood journey when I was barely out of my teens. For the next two decades, I only knew myself as a wife and mother. As my brood of five children grew into adults, I found myself poorly equipped to parent independent Gen X and Z’ers. Then, at 46 years of age, when perimenopause hit me like a hurricane, I found myself evolving into another woman altogether. The good news was – I really liked her! I hope you enjoy these books about mid-life women parenting adult children and rediscovering themselves in the never-ever-done-aftermath of motherhood.


I wrote...

The Self-Made Saint

By Alexandra Addams ,

Book cover of The Self-Made Saint

What is my book about?

"Best get on with it before you go under it.”

When well-meaning curmudgeon, Judith Drainger, moves from London to Australia…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of More Than a Woman

Alexandra Addams Why I love this book

This book is a poignant and very funny examination of the ridiculousness endured by and perpetrated on women cruising through midlife.

I’d never read such a bald exploration of the dark side of parenting adult children. It opened my eyes and made me feel seen at the same time.

By Caitlin Moran ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked More Than a Woman as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

THE SUNDAY TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER

'Exceptionally brilliant and powerful' Marina Hyde

'This book is a hilarious memoir, a passionate polemic, and a moving manifesto on how to be a decent person and try, in the face of countless stresses, to live a full open-hearted, joyous life' Sunday Times

A decade ago, Caitlin Moran thought she had it all figured out. Her instant bestseller How to Be a Woman was a game-changing take on feminism, the patriarchy, and the general 'hoo-ha' of becoming a woman. Back then, she firmly believed 'the difficult bit' was over, and her forties were going…


Book cover of The Wren, The Wren

Alexandra Addams Why I love this book

Enright’s middle-aged main character is richly drawn and every bit as gorgeous as her beautiful and troubled adult daughter.

This is a story about mothers and adult daughters building each other up and tearing each other to pieces at the same time. I laughed, I cried, and I read it all over again.

By Anne Enright ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Wren, The Wren as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

**LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2024**

Carmel had been alone all her life. The baby knew this. They looked at each other, and all of time was there. The baby knew how vast her mother's loneliness had been.

'A magnificent novel' SALLY ROONEY

Nell is a young woman with adventure on her mind. As she sets out into the world, she finds her family history hard to escape. For her mother, Carmel, Nell's leaving home opens a space in her heart, where the turmoil of a lifetime begins to churn. Over them both falls the long shadow of…


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Book cover of Flashes of a Dying Hour

Flashes of a Dying Hour by Lynda Allen,

What if menopause gave you a superpower?

Menopause unlocked a previously unknown superpower for Liv Wilde – psychic visions during hot flashes. While her visions rarely have life and death consequences, for the first time Liv sees a dead body in a premonition. When she comes face-to-face with the man…

Book cover of The Thursday Murder Club

Alexandra Addams Why I love this book

This was one of the first books I read in which the older women were not just the main characters but were the kick-butt heroes of the day.

I read it while in the middle of a messy draft of my own book and felt inspired to stop diluting the age-related experience of my own main character.

By Richard Osman ,

Why should I read it?

34 authors picked The Thursday Murder Club as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A New York Times bestseller | Soon to be a major motion picture from Steven Spielberg at Amblin Entertainment

"Witty, endearing and greatly entertaining." -Wall Street Journal

"Don't trust anyone, including the four septuagenarian sleuths in Osman's own laugh-out-loud whodunit." -Parade

Four septuagenarians with a few tricks up their sleeves
A female cop with her first big case
A brutal murder
Welcome to...
THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB

In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet weekly in the Jigsaw Room to discuss unsolved crimes; together they call themselves the Thursday Murder Club.

When a local developer is found dead…


Book cover of A Room of One's Own

Alexandra Addams Why I love this book

I came late to this book, only having read it recently because one of my kids needed help researching for an IB school project.

It blew my mind. Woolf gave words to so many of the feelings that I had shoved down deep about being a woman and an artist. 

By Virginia Woolf ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A Room of One's Own as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.


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Book cover of Flashes of a Dying Hour

Flashes of a Dying Hour by Lynda Allen,

What if menopause gave you a superpower?

Menopause unlocked a previously unknown superpower for Liv Wilde – psychic visions during hot flashes. While her visions rarely have life and death consequences, for the first time Liv sees a dead body in a premonition. When she comes face-to-face with the man…

Book cover of Sandwich

Alexandra Addams Why I love this book

Newman delicately explores the tumultuous journey of mothers going through the rigors of menopause and how this affects the way they deal with their adult children.

I thought she handled that awful sense of “what is happening to me?” while at the same time her main character needs to be the same woman she’s always been to keep her family together.

This is a beautiful story.

By Catherine Newman ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Sandwich as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Discover the joyful summer read from the bestselling author of WE ALL WANT IMPOSSIBLE THINGS, perfect for fans of Marian Keyes and Nora Ephron

'Sandwich is joy in book form. I laughed continuously, except for the parts that made me cry. Catherine Newman does a miraculous job reminding us of all the wonder there is to be found in life.' ANN PATCHETT, New York Times bestselling author of Tom Lake

'A holiday reading gem for summer' STYLIST

'Funny, wise, poignant and beautifully written' NINA STIBBE, author of Love, Nina

'If you are after a book to pack on your next…


Explore my book 😀

The Self-Made Saint

By Alexandra Addams ,

Book cover of The Self-Made Saint

What is my book about?

"Best get on with it before you go under it.”

When well-meaning curmudgeon, Judith Drainger, moves from London to Australia to reunite her family, yet finds it impossible to wedge herself into the busy life of her estranged daughter, so when an accident sets them even further apart, she is forced to endure some tough lessons before finally learning how to get out of her own way and back to the family that needs her.

Book cover of More Than a Woman
Book cover of The Wren, The Wren
Book cover of The Thursday Murder Club

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