The Overdue Life of Amy Byler by Kelly Harms is funny and relatable. It’s about making yourself a priority and rediscovering who you are, which makes it a perfect choice for the January Virtual Book club.
Amy, an overworked and stressed out single mother of two, is living in survival mode, focusing all of her attention on caring for her children and making ends meet. Her life gets overhauled when her absent ex-husband shows up after three years and wants to spend a week with their kids. So, she dusts off her mom jeans and heads to New York for a conference and to see an old friend.
While she’s there, she gets a makeover, goes shopping, eats in fancy restaurants, and stumbles her way through the dating scene. She rediscovers the person she was before she martyred herself in motherhood. Before she can figure out what to do with this new freedom, a family emergency calls her back home. She has choices to make when her old world collides with her newly discovered one. Although it reads like a predictable rom-com movie, it’s well written, engaging, and really funny. There were several times where I laughed out loud reading it.
The Overdue Life of Amy Byler Discussion
- Could you relate to Amy’s inner struggle and constant mom guilt? Would you want to go on a “momspringa”? Where would you want to go?
- What did you think of her ex-husband? I sympathized with him. Yes, he’s a self-centered, mid-life crisis kind of guy, but he knew he was wrong and wanted to do the right thing. I might be in the minority on this. Did you think he was basically a good guy who made bad choices or did you think that leaving his family for 3 years made him unredeemable? What did you think of their relationship?
- What did you think of the teenage daughters in this book? Were they believable? I ask out of curiosity because I only have boys. To me, Matt’s daughter and Cori seemed too mature to be teenagers.
- Amy: “I get now that you can love what you have, love your kids and your life and your friends, and still want more. I get that it’s ok to go out and get more—more love, more friendship, more fulfillment—and still be a wonderful mom.” I think those things are necessary to be a great mom. Discuss.
Random Thoughts
- How awesome is Lena? I would be down for a Lena spin-off.
- This book proved what I’ve always suspected. That being a librarian is the most awesome, exciting job.
- With the wit and snappy dialog, it kind of had a Gilmore Girls feel to it.
“I only know that in this month, when I have gotten time with friends, time for myself, positive attention from men, and yep, a couple of nice new bras, parts of me that were asleep for far too long are starting to wake up. “
Kelly Harms – The Overdue Life of Amy Byler
Did you read The Overdue Life of Amy Byler? What did you think of it? Drop a comment and let me know.