Book Review: Diary of a Mummy Misfit

By Cindy Roesel

So here’s the deali-o! I’m reviewing Amanda Egan’s novel, DIARY OF A MUMMY MISFIT. I must say, Amanda Egan does give quite a good comprehensive chat and after reading both her book and her guest blog post here at Chick Lit Central, I’m at a bit of a loss. Her words are best, but I’ll give it a go! I’ve written and rewritten a half-dozen reviews and they all add up to what I’m about to say...“You must read her novel because she and it are so funny.”

One word of warning for Americans: It’s very heavy in British humor, so I’m sure I missed a great deal of the laughs and that’s unfortunate. Then again, maybe it was just me.

In DIARY OF A MUMMY MISFIT, Libby Marchant is determined to do whatever it takes to make sure her son gets accepted into (and receives the most prestigious education provided by) Manor House Prep School. Now whether or not Libby and her husband Ned can afford it is another question.

Libby Marchant is yummy mummy to her four year-old son, Max. She doesn’t fit in around the vulgar money set "meemies" (all about me, me, me) at Manor House, but once accepted, she ends up finding an ally in Fenella Hunter-Barnes, a rich down to earth rich mummy with a son in Max’s class. Together they make the competiveness, constant striving for perfection against the "mwah mwahs" tolerable. Somehow they are able to navigate the shark-infested school halls where there’s a trademark disregard among the parents for anyone but themselves.

Libby and Fenella remind me of the characters Patsy and Edina in the BBC show “Absolutely Fabulous.” They are so over the top, completely flawed and you love to hate them. They come off the page larger than life and you can’t wait to read what they do next. Libby wakes up in a cold sweat recalling Fenella has volunteered them to oversee the Christmas Fair for 140 children. “I’ll kill Fenella. She caught me at a weak moment. I hadn’t had any chocolate for two days so I was vulnerable.”

DIARY OF A MUMMY MISFIT has an entire prep school full of characters, not to mention all of Libby and Fenella’s friends. There comes a point when one may need to start taking notes to keep up with all the characters and plot lines, but all in all it’s great fun. Like all good chick lit, there are ups and downs, but in the end, everything works out as it should.

Amanda is working on another novel, but in the meantime you can find her on Twitter, Facebook and her wonderful blog, where she even lets Libby interview her, which makes me wonder how much she takes after her character, or the other way around....

You might also like: