Books like I Don't Know How She Does It — picked by fans

This is such an insightful glimpse into what happens when an artist—in this case, an architect—stops creating, that’s both hilarious and heartbreaking.

Describing the price of privilege, but without preciousness, Maria Semple illustrates the decline of a mother and professional, doing what seem like the right things while producing disastrous results that really ring true.

Fatigued by the priorities of high-tech Seattle, Bernadette loses her confidence and misplaces her trust. Then it’s her daughter who has to pull her back from the brink. Their love withstands the tests of culture, community, and commodity, reminding us of the remarkable symbiosis between mothers and daughters while showcasing Semple’s irrepressible, satiric wit.

Bridget turns private humiliation into public comedy without ever giving up on her bruised heart.

I like to kid on that I read the classics, and Fielding's book is a true modern classic. Bridget Jones is the uber-loser turned winner. I remember reading this and feeling that delicious shock of recognition: my terrible choices, my doomed self-improvement plans, the way one bad decision always blossomed into five.

What I still love is how Fielding catches the gap between who Bridget thinks she ought to be and first-rate hopeful hot mess.

It’s hard to match Nora Ephron’s wit and wisdom. In this novel, which mirrors events from the novelist and screenwriter’s real life, cookbook writer Rachel Samstat learns that her husband is cheating on her while she’s pregnant. Even as her life is falling apart, Rachel maintains her sense of humor while dropping the “everything is perfect” routine and speaking her mind.

In this tale of love and loss, Ephron serves up hilarious and heartbreaking moments in equal portions alongside mouthwatering recipes.

When Alice hits her head at the gym, she awakens, believing she’s a decade younger than she actually is. In the aftermath of her accident, Alice must try to figure out how she went from a happily married new mom to the brink of divorce. In other words, she’s lost a lot more than her memories.

This story makes you take a long, honest look at your life and consider all the people and things you’ve taken for granted. With a little mystery, a bit of romance, and a lot of humor, this novel tops my favorites list when it comes to Moriarty’s engrossing tales.

Given my interests in nature and nurture, what I find especially fascinating is “the nature of nurture”. By this I mean how Darwinian natural selection has shaped the way our species rears its children and the effects such care has on them.

This book by a world-famous anthropologist beautifully, informative, and insightfully reveals how evolution has made us who we are as parents, people capable of unconditional love but by no means always dispensing it, sometimes the exact opposite—and why that is the case.

West has authored three books that I’d consider parenting fiction, but this one is my favorite. The main storyline follows a mom as she struggles to parent her teenager through his impulsive decisions and public failures. It also explores how a child’s behaviors or actions can often feel like a reflection on their parents. West is an expert in writing multiple POV novels, so readers get to understand these issues from every angle. 

Have you ever had children around while trying to work from home? Thanks to the pandemic, many working parents have had to juggle even more than usual over the past couple of years. Help Mom Work from Home! is a brilliant ode to that frazzled, sometimes-humorous often-hair-pulling juggling act. Formatted as a step-by-step guide from the kid’s perspective on how to ‘help’ mom while she works from home, it includes tips such as bedazzling her business cards and helping her relax with some yoga moves. This adorable book had my kids and me in giggles and is a lovely way to recognize and show appreciation for all that working moms juggle. ⁠ 

This vulnerable collection of essays drew me in with the words, “Our mothers are our first homes, and that’s why we’re always trying to return to them.” As I continued to read, I had the eerie feeling that the author had read my diary (although I don’t actually have a diary), had met my mother, and had lived my life in so many ways. And while this book contains stories from many authors, the single thread of longing for mothers who’ve loved and hurt us ties them together seamlessly. They are beautifully expressed, sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes humorous, but ultimately worthy of savoring. 

I love this book because it took me on a surprise adventure through the life of a black boy (and young man) raised in the South. I met Laymon at a writing workshop a few months prior to this book’s release date, and I heard him read an excerpt from it.

I was immediately hooked on his storytelling ability. The language is so authentic to him and his experiences, and he holds nothing back. I love the vulnerability that saturates each page as I follow him through his addictions and struggles. While his life is so different from mine, the idea of finding one’s identity in society could not be more relatable.

The Hen Who Dreamed She Could Fly is a fable, and as with all good fables, you’re going to find yourself commiserating with an animal. Sprout is a hen who is past her childbearing years. There is no rooster around. Well, there’s one. But he’s got a partner. Childlessness is an unplanned journey for some, and the book shows the grief that many people in this situation might deal with. Just as we’re feeling there is absolutely no hope for our infertile, partner-less, hen, she ends up becoming a mother. But now another unplanned journey pops up. Well, decisions and sacrifices have to be made. 

There are so many reasons why I like this book. After my son was born, I was suddenly on an unplanned journey. I didn’t expect my son to be sickly and developmentally delayed and even now I still pray for a miracle for him. The… show more.