Good book with a solid story. Took me a minute to get into it. Not one that kept my interest fully but one that you will probably finish.

This was one of the more interesting self-help books I've read in the past year. I liked the very straightforward chapters, and the fact that there wasn't a lot of woo-woo stuff in it. You might say it was no-nonsense.

I requested and read this book because I used to follow the author on her blog. She is an amazing triathlon and I couldn't figure out how she did it all. Well, according to this book, she wasn't doing it all. Seriously, that was one of the most comforting things to find out! I felt a whole lot less like a failure knowing that she struggled too. And, yes, this is another pitfall of social media, which was part of my own personal Nonsense. Ms. Atwood reminds people, though only in a footnote, that she is not a therapist or medical professional. While I know this, I am not sure any reader would be and I wish it were more prominently stated. (I read a galley and maybe something was added later?) However, I feel like the advice she gives, the outline for peeling your own Truth Onion, and the examples from her own life are all very understandable and relatable. Regardless of whether you feel you have big or little challenges to face, this book provides a warm and supportive, but still demanding and tough, way to approach making those changes.

This book seemed like a really useful step by step guide for anyone who needs to make major life adjustments! I enjoyed the no nonsense tone of the author!

the Year of No Nonsense is a good book that reminds us to focus on what is important. Some of the information is not new and there is some repetitive information. Overall it is a good book.

A guide to getting rid of the nonsense in our daily life.Learning to say no when we want to leading a real valuable life making yourself a priority.Told in a real intimate style enjoyed the authors raw real honest writing.#netgalley#hatchettebooks.

3.5 stars rounded up for many reasons.

I have a lot of thoughts about this book. First thing I will say is that I generally try to read a book without reading the reviews. Sometimes, in the middle of the book, I'll go and see what others wrote. In this case, I was a bit surprised at the unequivocal positive reviews. This is a good book, but in my opinion the reviews feel a bit slanted. I am pointing this out because it might be that I am reacting to this as I sit down to write mine and I am moving to the middle a bit more to course correct. So please take this with a grain of salt.

I like the premise of this book and how she focuses on your digging deeper to get to the crux of the matter instead of fixing the surface issues or the outcomes of the actual problem.

"Paradox is a very helpful tool for me, which is why I mention it here. We are not required to be black-and-white about our lives—we can be all the colors of the rainbow and every shade in between."

One of the things I loved most about this book was how honest it was and how it didn't make things sound simple as some of the books can.

"During my Year of No Nonsense, I learned that seeing what is and what was is a fundamental requirement for change."

A very hard distinction at times.

"My job (as a parent) is to be a support for my children. The children are not here to fulfill my needs. They are not here to reflect my own “greatness” (or lack thereof). I am here to support them in their journey of growing up—not dictate how their journey goes."

This resonated with me so much. I don't usually worry about this but I do see it creeping in now and then and I love the way she put it. I am here to support them in their journey. So well put.

"But as a starting point, we might want to take Numbers like body weight and social media followers and put them in the box where they belong—a box of data points that can be charted, not a box of soul points that describe who we are."

So much to unpack in this one, too. We anchor on numbers cause they are easy. I do a lot of rock climbing now and it has numbers and levels and I was telling my husband the other day how I wish the routes had no numbers so I couldn't have any preconceived ideas of which routes I could and couldn't do. Then I'd have to try each and I'd probably learn so much more. Numbers can help but they can also hinder so much.

"Stepping into beliefs, therefore, can be powerful or destructive. So when a belief has a negative or destructive power, like “you will never be a runner,” true Grit and growth happen when we question or challenge that belief."

I've written and thought about this concept a lot. Identity can help or get in the way of how we move forward so much. And shifting one's own identity can be so hard.

"The challenge is to Live each day as the best version of yourself. To make room for your own light and Purpose for your Life. To do the best you can and accept that you are doing so; to assume the Other People are doing the best they can, too—if not because it’s the right thing to do, then because at least they won’t drive you crazy."

In the last week, I've been reminding myself to do this again and again and again. It totally works. It helps keep your sanity and it reminds you to focus on what you can change (your thoughts and actions) and the truth (which you never fully know so just assume the best because it's so much more uplifting.)

So there was a lot of gold in this book, a lot of food for thought, a lot of honesty. I will say that there was also some repetition and the last 30% took me forever to get through and I was so tired of the word nonsense by then. It was too overused and I was feeling annoyed. There were a lot of ideas I'd already read before or seen but it was woven well together. I also felt like I could have used more help with guidance around getting to the root issue myself. Finding my true nonsense. Because much of the book makes the case for it (sold. i believe i need to get to the real heart of the matter before I can change things.) and then she talked about now that i know it what do i do (Except I still wasn't sure I knew mine. Sometimes the cause and outcome can be so intertwined and I just felt lost.) I would have loved some examples of how others (along with her) peeled that onion.

As with most good books that are about working on yourself, nothing changes unless I do the work. This book was a good reminder that it's possible and it highlighted the value of calling yourself on your own bullshit if you'd like to make positive change in your life. I will take what works for me and leave the rest. There was enough gold in here to keep me thinking, moving and focused.

With thanks to netgalley and hachette books for an advanced copy in return for an honest review.

Much of the information here is not new, but it is presented in a new way with a narrative that feels like memoir (sort of).