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How to Be a Grown-Up  By  cover art

How to Be a Grown-Up

By: Emma McLaughlin,Nicola Kraus
Narrated by: Tara Sands
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Publisher's summary

Rory McGovern is entering the prime of her life when her husband loses his dream job and announces he feels like "taking a break". Rory was already spread thin and now, without warning, she is single-parenting two kids, juggling their science projects, flu season, and pajama days, while coming to terms with her disintegrating marriage. Without Blake, her only hope is to accept a full-time position working for two full-time 20-somethings.

A day out of b-school, these girls think they know it all and have been given the millions from venture capitalists to back up their delusion - that the future of digital media is a high-end "lifestyle" site - for kids! Rory must adapt to this hyper-digitized, over-glamorized, narcissistic world of millennials...whatever it takes.

©2015 Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus (P)2015 Dreamscape Media, LLC

What listeners say about How to Be a Grown-Up

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Performance

I did not like the reader's voice for this story. It was whiny and annoying and took away from the story.

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5 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Love, love, love!

The story is so light and easy. I didn't want to get out of the car and kept turning it on while in the house (which I never do). I love that it is simple and realistic. A story that you can relate to and doesn't seem so fairytale. The parenting rants made me laugh out loud and feel connected to Rory as if she was a girlfriend. Worst part is that it ended.

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4 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I loved it!

I really thought Rory was going to lose her shit! I'm sure I would have!

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

So fun

Just a great story about the reality of parenting alone during your break- up, and the pluses afterward

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great read!

Really captures grown up life and I loved listening to this story. I hope there is a sequel!!!

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

I truly wanted to like this book...

… But I did not! It was supposed to be about a couple's marriage breaking up but it was filled with too much of what I consider fluff and filler that really wasn't helpful. There were too many untold questions of why... I never understood the main character's job; I couldn't understand who the men in her life were and there was no clear definition. This book was a waste.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Really really disappointing.

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Well, where to start. Yikes. A story that ... I have a pretty decent reading and listening comprehension level, and I had no idea who was where for 70% of the time. There were pretty fully developed characters who existed for no reason, and the opposite was true.

I also had a hard time understanding the reader a few times - at least once because she just pronounced a word wrong (That has to be key when reading an audiobook - please be sure you have all the words correct!). I feel like I should like this, it is about people my age, etc, I was so impressed by the main characters Super Mom-ness, but it just didn't click. Maybe because it is only fun to "visit" this Other World that NYC can feel like to we who live in the sad sad flyover states. (I'm being sarcastic, I love the middle of this country. Kind of all of it, actually)

If anyone can tell me what the 80k was for, will you let me know? (Trying to avoid any spoilers, also not a fan of that)

What could Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Better explained where things were taking place, what time of year it was. Not having characters suddenly be standing right behind the protagonist, leaving me doing the unattractive "Huh?!" face. "Huh? How did Jennifer/Jessica even get here??" I have literally never had to think "Who the heck is that guy/lady/person at work this often, and I have been reading since I was 3. So, a while :) I am still not sure if there was a James and a Josh. But I sort of don't care. Throwing more time at this is not a great idea.

Maybe it's post-holiday duh's, but I just kept hoping for something that never happened - just a more cohesive book.

How could the performance have been better?

Better enunciation, not differentiating young New York women with accents better suited to The Valley... in California. How do two ditzes run a company that is in any way successful?? (Maybe this just doesn't lend itself well to audio)

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

I love how Rory loves her kids. That was beautifully written - just exactly right. I appreciate the fact that she does have a flukey day and says something she regrets later, but that we have all done in life.
I'm still not exactly sure who Rory is, what she looks like, but she is a really good, not too good so as to be ridiculous, mother!

Any additional comments?

I appreciate that all men were not lumped together as the Bad Guys/Guys Suck. We see a lovely example (two, actually - see, so confused at times! One character seemed to just disappear) of a really good Dad too. That was nice to see, parents in a book set in NYC who were hands on, raising their kids.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Just okay ...

Any additional comments?

Meh, this book was entertaining but forgettable enough that I had to reread the summary before I wrote a review. In my opinion the narrator's voice didn't fit the main character at all so maybe it didn't translate well for me. A good light listen and not awful, but just not great.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Just "ok"

What did you like best about How to Be a Grown-Up? What did you like least?

I enjoyed the realistic portrayal of a working single mom in today's society trying to provide it all for their children; however the character development was lacking and it was difficult to really engage with the characters.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

missing something

I'm not sure what exactly what it is but it's missing diverging to pull it together. I think the main character needs to be developed more.

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