It’s hard to believe that a book this funny could also deal with some very serious modern-day problems, or as she says, “I don’t know why no one says “problems” anymore, except maybe problems have to be solved, and they can’t be, and issues sound important but don’t demand solutions.”

And Kate is nothing if not a problem solver. Her marriage is stale, her husband is in training for a new career so isn’t working, she needs to return to the work force after a seven-year hiatus at the age of 49, her teenage daughter has fallen in with a destructive crowd and her son just wants to play video games all day. When she’s faced with employment competition from a much younger crowd, she has to take steps to turn back the clock. “That’s how I ended up being a liar in the office and a liar at home. If MI5 were ever looking for a perimenopausal double-agent who could do everything except remember the password (‘No, hang on, give me time, I’ll come to me in a minute’) I was a shoo-in. But believe me, it wasn’t easy.”

Let’s see, what else? Her mother-in-law has Alzheimer’s and since her husband is in retraining, doesn’t have time to help with her care. Oh yeah, her mother has taken a fall, her nearby daughter has to taken care of her and resents it, resents Kate. Kate tries to understand Julie’s position, “I try to be understanding, but since when could the power of reason unpick the knots of sibling rivalry? I should call Julie back, and I will, but I need to get Emily sorted out. Emily first, then Mum, then prepare for my interview with the headhunter this afternoon. Anyway, I don’t need Julie’s help to make me feel guilty about getting my priorities wrong. Guilt is where I live.”

All of these problems and more fall to Kate to resolve. One situation after another crops up and meanwhile I’m laughing my head off. Wait, menopause isn’t funny, hahaha, and age bias in the workplace is serious, hahaha, and on. I can’t wonder at Kate’s tolerance for Richard’s mid-life crisis since I had such a marriage myself once up a time. The good news is that this is a sequel.

I read the author's hugely successful debut I Don't Know How She Does It many years ago, but sadly my only memory is of 'the mince pie episode'. Another inevitable sign of ageing, which is the key topic in this follow-up. Kate Reddy is fast approaching the Big 50, but with all the reluctance of a dog going to the vet. With husband Rich going all New Age, teenage children and elderly parents causing her sleepless nights and the early onset of the menopause wreaking havoc with her mind and body, Kate is a woman on the brink. Throw in a blast from the past could-have-been lover and her return to the workplace (involving some economy with the truth regarding her birth date) and you have a hugely entertaining read. The author's style is witty and observant, with many lines making me laugh out loud (or cringe in recognition). 'Each month, each week, each day it gets slightly harder to retrieve the things that I know. Correction. The things that I know I knew. At forty-nine years of age, the tip of the tongue becomes a very crowded place.' Having said that, I found Kate's in-built 'memory assistant' Roy to be a tad irritating, and I did feel the book took longer than necessary to reach its conclusion. Nevertheless, it kept me entertained and I now know what a 'belfie' is (and promise – hand on heart – never to post one.)

I loved this author's previous book "I don't know how she does it" and really looking forward to reading this. It definitely didn't disappoint!! The main character Kate is approaching the big five zero, is menopausal trying to juggle everyday life with teenagers, ageing parents and is job hunting, finding it difficult and lies about her age! The book is really well written with the main character trying to please everyone while trying to hold down a job coupled with all of life's daily problems. I think a lot of women of a certain age can identify a lot with Kate and what she is going through in her daily grind. I laughed out loud in some places, nearly shed a tear in other parts - honest, powerful and funny!. Brilliantly written! Five stars.....

Fantastic sequel and so enjoyable. And more importantly, the dry wit, and human characters. Bravo Indeed.

Approaching her 50th birthday, Kate Reddy finds it necessary to re-enter the workforce after a seven-year break to concentrate on her family. It's a real juggling act to prove herself among her younger co-workers, deal with the angst of her teenage children, handle the challenges of an aging mother and in-laws, and try to keep her sanity during perimenopause. The author did a great job of capturing the essence of "the sandwich generation". This novel was a sequel to I Don't Know How She Does It, which concentrated on Kate's earlier years when she juggled motherhood with her career. I am hoping a future novel will continue to follow Kate as she enters the next chapter of her life. Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

A sequel to her first novel "I Don't Know How She Does It", "How Hard Can It Be?" from Allison Pearson is completely stand along and hits on some truths that make you laugh - and cry - and thank goodness that we women of all ages have one another to help us get through the days. Men are fine - necessary - but though they may not be from Mars, many men certainly don't spend a lot of time on the same Earth women are tied to by love and responsibility for the children, the older generations, the rest of woman and mankind.

I think you will love these ladies, as did I. Kate of course, her 16 year old daughter Emily, her mother-in-law Barbara, her mother Jean, her sister Julie, her old American Friend Candy, her new best friend Sally - new co-worker Alice - this is the world we are invited into on these pages.

I received a free electronic copy of this novel from Netgalley, Allison Pearson, and St. Martin's Press, General Fiction, Women's Fiction in exchange for an honest review. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me.

A laugh out loud book! I thought enjoyed reading this from page one. It's very much in touch with the lives we live today and challenge of balancing technology and the freedoms that we let out kids enjoy.

Sometimes hilarious, sometimes sad this was an interesting read for me. Not the type of literature I'm used to, but I enjoyed it. It's mainly about a woman approaching fifty and freaking out - a major midlife crisis going on. She'd been staying at home with her children, but when her husband decided to stop working and enrolls in some kind of mindfulness education, she goes looking for a job in a culture that doesn't really want to hire anyone her age. Her marriage is not what it used to be and her children are having their own crises.

This book deals with everything that happens to a woman in mid-life - teenagers, husbands, peri-menopause, age discrimination, ageing parents, body changes. You name it, Pearson deals with it with hilarity and an in-depth understanding of the things women feel at this age.

This is my first book by Pearson and I was surprised by the writing style and the author's understanding of all the issues facing a woman near fifty years old. I was totally immersed.

Thanks to Allison Pearson and St. Martin's Press through Netgalley for an advance copy of this book.

I tried really hard to get into this book, but after 3 weeks and only 60 pages I had to give up. I may set it aside for a while and try again later, but for right now this book just wasn't for me.

Thank you Netgalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I will start with the caveat that I haven't read I DONT KNOW HOW SHE DOES IT, so HOW CAN IT BE HARD is my first Allison Pearson and my first Kate book. I had both things I liked and didn't like, but I'm not sure how my opinion would be different if I'd read the first book.
Things I liked: The stark honesty about menopause and what older women go through in the work force while still running a household basically on their own. Also the cute British humor.
Things I didn't like: How half her sentences didn't have a subject only a verb? Is this a British thing I'm unaware of? Also the infidelity plot line was sooo cliche and it bothered me and sometimes made me not like Kate. Also, maybe I'm a jerk, but I just wanted her to get her life together and stop being an idiot sometimes. Pay attention! Your husband is cheating on you and your daughter is cutting herself! Also what happened to disciplining your children? Also if you know you can't remember anything write it down, put a reminder in your phone, stop telling Roy! It's hard to read a book that makes you feel so much unnecessary stress.
Maybe in some ways this book was a little too real to feel enjoyable at some parts, but I also think her husband and children felt like two-dimensional cliches and horrible people for most of the book and it made you wonder why she bothered. I think giving them more depth would've helped a lot.

An amusing, poignant story of the life of Kate Reddy a woman of the sandwich generation trying to balance the needs of her family and aging parents while negotiating the perils of menopause and the difficulties of reentering the workforce. Allison Pearson is spot on with her observations of the indignities facing the middle aged woman as she “gracefully” ages. She also is in tune with the perils facing teenagers today in a world that stresses social media.

I really enjoyed this book, although the ending was perhaps a bit too perfect!

I really enjoyed this coming of middle age book. I laughed (a lot!) and sympathized with a lot of life's happenings. I highly recommend this book!

It took me a little while to get into this book but I eventually grew to really like it. Kate is a hilarious character and it is impossible not to root for her!! I loved all of her self talk and "Roy" and her friends. I loved how British this book is too :)

This book is hugely relatable and really funny at the parts, however I just didn’t get fully into it and could have easily given in on it when I was 50% through. That being said, I’d still give it a solid 3 stars.

Kate Reddy, from Pearson's I Don't Know How She Does It, is back. After many years of not working, Kate has to return to the workforce (at almost 50 years old) due to her husband's desire to take a break and find himself. As a 50+ year old, I found this book very humorous and highly relatable to my life.

How Hard Can It Be is the sequel to How Does She Do It. I never read the first novel, so I didn't realize until the end this was the second book in the series. Although I do want to go back and read the first story, I didn't feel like I missed anything by reading the second story first. How Hard Can It Be is completely a stand-alone novel. I found it very relatable, and incredibly funny. There were many times I laughed out loud. However, there were some parts that I found a bit slow. But all in all, a very enjoyable read.

Can it Be?” by Allison Pearson St. Martin’s Press June 5, 2018

“How Hard Can it Be” by Allison Pearson is the book that follows the bestselling book by Allison Pearson “I Don’t Know How She Does It”. This can be read as a stand alone. The genres for this book are Fiction, and Women’s Fiction. This novel also has some humorous parts, and some parts where you want to laugh and cry at the same time.

The colorful cast of characters are complex and complicated. In this sequel, it is seven years later and Kate Reddy is now a “Returner”. Kate is approaching fifty, and has to re-enter the job market. She is in the sandwich generation, with teenage children, and parents that are needy. Kate’s husband is going through some kind of mid-live crisis, after losing his job, and trying to find himself.

Kudos to Allison Pearson for discussing such contemporary subjects as abuse of the media for teenagers, Alzheimers, menopause and other related female issues, being part of the sandwich generation, peer pressure and cutting, mid-life crisis, inequality in the workplace between men and women, and problems with youth and aging.

The author mentions the importance of self- worth, growth, family support, love and hope, forgiveness and acceptance. I would highly recommend this intriguing and captivating novel for readers of Women’s Fiction. I received an ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.
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I had high hopes for this book but it wasn't as deep or meaningful as I'd hoped, more a bit of fluff that I couldn't care enough about. It's about turning 50 and feeling invisible, a mix of comedy and drama, dealing with menopause, aging parents, teenagers, a husband having a midlife crisis, and trying to stay relevant in today’s business world. I wanted to like it more than I did.

It turns out that this is a sequel to another book, which I’d never heard of, I Don't Know How She Does It. That’s a fact I discovered after I read this book, which functioned perfectly well as a standalone.

This one attracted me because there are so few books about older women that promise to be fun instead of dreary Problem Novels. I know what the problems of being old are, thank you. I don’t need to read fiction about it.

So Kate Ready is 49, almost fifty (which seems young to me, but still props to the author). She’s married with two teens, and an unemployed husband who has decided to become a mountain bike rider, and then a counselor of some sort, very New Age sounding. Right to the expensive cost.

So Kate has to give up freelancing and get a job. To prepare for it, she made her family move closer to London. While she’s gearing up for competing against much younger people in what seems to be to be hedge fund banking (getting rich people to invest to get richer), meanwhile her daughter’s toxic “best friend” somehow oopses the wrong sort of selfie of the daughter onto the Internet, and makes sure it goes viral. The daughter goes ballistic, of course.

Other weird stuff happens before and after Kate lands the job by whacking years off her life. Which she has to remember in the office, or she’ll be outed by her abusive boss and his toady. Because ageism is alive and well in hedge-fund land, especially for women.

So we get family as well as work disasters, as she tries to deal with her daughter’s emotional traumas with flagrant lack of success, her always-absent spouse, school expectations, and the issues of aging parents—bother her mother and her spouse’s parents, who never liked her.

The book was funny, but that first half tended to be a bit smug. Kate has opinions on everything, and at times some of the incidents seemed to be plot triggers for long opinions. For example, quite a few pages were dedicated to Kate analyzing her own face for flaws and pluses. Then, she has an inner voice she calls “Roy,” which I found distracting rather than entertaining.

When everything seems to be at its worst an amazing guy shows up in her life again—someone she had hit it off with so well that it spooked her, and she’d ended the friendship. But has not stopped thinking about him for several years.

Then he turns up, not just in email, but in person.

Meanwhile, dementia, class expectations, menopause, self-harming teens, and the stresses that can break a marriage get dealt with . . .and the book finds a balance between compassion, insight, and wish-fulfillment that finally pays off splendidly.

For a while in the first half I wasn’t sure I could finish, and it took me several days to plow through, but the second half I read in a single night.

I don’t know that I’d look out for the first book, but I finally enjoyed this one quite a bit.

It was a cute enough novel, but despite being relatable on several levels if you're either on the other side of 40, have teenagers navigating the pitfalls of a social media induced world, or trying to re-enter the working world, I still felt like I couldn't get into the characters lives. I wasn't bored but I wasn't racing to get back to the story when life interrupted.