I requested a copy of this book from the publisher after viewing the book trailer. Based upon that and the comic strip type illustrations I found throughout the book, I was thinking this would be a humorous glimpse into one woman's leap into online dating after being married for many years. It wasn't.
What this reader found it to be is something similar to sitting down with your girlfriends at a coffee shop and commiserating over the quirks of the guys you've dated. Not that it's a bad thing, just that in written format I'm not certain it's the best way to approach this topic. Family and friends know you--all of you--which means when you sit down for a "Why me?" type of conversation, that's tempered by all the wonderful characteristics about you that they know and love. Having a pity party with strangers is a different gig altogether; and while I don't get believe this was the author's intention, that's kind of how it came across to me. She spoke of being passionate about writing this book, and I feel her intention was more to share what to be wary of when you enter the online dating world than to say, "poor me". She did, after all, include some tips at the end. Unfortunately, I think this book missed the mark. Even though Earley claims that finding a guy and being attracted to him enough to want to be intimate with him is not being shallow, the lack of humor in the book and how she portrayed all the men in What Was I Thinking? makes her come off as full of herself. I understand what she's saying and I totally agree, but without more humor and a more unbiased glimpse into her dating experiences, the reader is left feeling a bit alienated instead of satisfied.
We've all had horrible dating experiences. Maybe sometimes we were even the horrible date. Told with a heavier dose of humor, I think this book would be a winner. Another book with a similar title, What Was I Thinking?: 58 Bad Boyfriend Stories was written by multiple authors, which also helps to keep the reader from feeling the author is too biased to share her story.
The reviews on Amazon for What Was I Thinking?: How Not to Date have been mixed, so I encourage you to check them out and decide for yourself if this book is right for you.
Title: What Was I Thinking?: How Not to Date
Author: Annie Earley
Publisher: Tribute Books
ISBN-10: 0979504589
ISBN-13: 978-0979504587
SRP: $14.95
