The I Hate to Housekeep Book

by Peg Bracken

1960s-era humorous advice on how to clean your house without losing your mind.

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor, Self Help, Reference, Adult

161 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1963

Reviews

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book way back in the 1970s. My mom had gotten this as a wedding present in 1968, along with Bracken's I Hate To Cook Book.

Even though this book is almost 50 years old, it still has great advice on cleaning (and better yet - how to make cleaning solutions that don't have the harsh chemical makeup of a lot of modern cleaners), how to stretch your household dollars, how to have a dinner party and what to serve without losing your mind, why you shouldn't kill yourself on house upkeep, and in general, how to keep up a household without wanting to shoot yourself in the head.

Over the years, I have found myself using advice from this book and Bracken's dry humorous prose is fun to read.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Its hard not to like a book, as outdated as this is, which features charming illustrations by Hilary Knight. The premise is that being a housewife is hard work, but the kind authoress has some tips to make it easier. I imagine this is the type of book that was given at bridal showers by well-meaning mother-in-laws-to-be. The book has an overall cheerful tone, and some tips and quips that I have used.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't think this book is all that *practically* helpful in this day and age (things have thankfully changed since 1958!) but it sure is fun and feels like a long chat with an eccentric aunt. I just love how anti-perfectionistic she is in her messaging.

[Sushant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this at one of our airbNb stays on a getaway weekend and was pleasantly surprised to find that the author managed to make house hold chores sound more fun and practical. Once you get past the idea that housework was more of a woman's only deal back in 1950s when this book was written and men only contributed to doing the repairs around the house, its a fun read and actually provides some pretty good tips which have stood the test of time. Fast forward another 50 years and you will still have someone like me who is contemplating about that pile of laundry in my second bedroom while he reads this book on a weekend getaway in a cabin by the stream.

[Jean Bowen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always laugh out loud reading a Peg Bracken book! A little outdated but I still find outdated household advice interesting in its own way, makes you think of things you never really think about, helps you see the state of the current culture.

[Yuvaraj kothandaraman · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title "The I Hate to Housekeep Book" is deliberately honest and self-aware. Peg Bracken named the book this way because she wanted to speak directly to women who feel the same way she does about housekeeping: they don't enjoy it, find it tedious, and would rather be doing something else. The title is a declaration of rebellion against the perfectionist housekeeping books of the 1950s and 1960s that assumed every woman wanted an immaculate home and endless organizational systems. By saying "I hate to housekeep," Bracken gives permission to women everywhere to stop pretending they love housework. She's writing not for the obsessively clean homemaker, but for the "random housekeeper" [someone who cleans sporadically and without a fixed routine] who just wants to get by without feeling miserable about the messy house. The title is both funny and honest: it's a book about housekeeping written by someone who honestly dislikes housekeeping.

This is a practical yet humorous housekeeping guide from 1962 written for women who want to maintain a reasonably clean home without driving themselves crazy with rigid schedules and perfectionism. The book rejects traditional housekeeping advice that demands immaculate perfection and instead offers quick shortcuts, psychological tricks, and a forgiving attitude. Bracken divides housekeepers into three types: the spotless housekeeper [someone who cleans constantly and obsessively], the spotful housekeeper [someone too lazy to start cleaning], and the "random housekeeper" [the occasional cleaner], and this book is written entirely for the third type.

The book contains 12 chapters covering everything from basic cleaning principles and stain removal to memory tricks, entertaining guests, cooking quick dinners, personal appearance, and how to afford a nice life on a limited budget. It's filled with practical advice, quirky household tips, old-fashioned remedies, dozens of easy recipes, party planning strategies, and most importantly, a continuous thread of humor and self-compassionate encouragement. The book includes illustrations by Hilary Knight and was a bestseller when published.

Strengths of the Book :

Radically Honest and Liberating (for its time)
Published in the early 1960s, the book was shockingly honest. When society glorified spotless homes as a woman’s moral duty, Bracken openly admitted that housekeeping is dull, repetitive, and never truly finished. This gave women emotional permission to stop feeling guilty about imperfect homes,an unusually liberating message for that era.

Practical, Time-Saving Advice
Instead of perfection, Bracken promotes efficiency: doing something quickly is better than not doing it at all. Her rules,like avoiding unnecessary covers, using a central “clutter depot,” and acting immediately with whatever tools are available are realistic and reduce total housework.

Humor That Makes It Readable
The book is genuinely funny, not preachy. Bracken uses wit, exaggeration, and anecdotes (over-covered furniture, eccentric households, social survival tricks) to make practical advice enjoyable rather than instructional drudgery.

Wide Range of Useful Information
It functions almost like a household encyclopedia: stain removal, cleaning methods, organizing, memory tricks, clothing advice, basic repairs, child management, pantry-based cleaning, and even full dinner menus and quick recipes,very valuable in a pre-internet era.

Self-Compassion as a Core Message
Remarkably progressive for the 1960s, Bracken argues that a woman’s worth is not measured by housekeeping standards. She reframes cleanliness as something done for mental clarity, not social judgment, and warns against obsessive neatness as unhealthy.

Weakness:
Dated Gender Assumptions
The book is a product of 1962, and while it's relatively progressive for its era, it assumes women are the ones doing housekeeping and sees housekeeping as primarily a woman's responsibility. Bracken addresses readers exclusively as women and never imagines a situation where men would be the homemakers or split housework equally. She jokes about husbands getting involved but treats female housekeeping as the default and inevitable situation. Modern readers might find this limiting or frustrating, though the book's liberating message (you don't have to be perfect) transcends this dated assumption somewhat.


CHAPTER 1: MOUSING AROUND THE HOUSE

Bracken establishes her core philosophy by categorizing three types of housekeepers. The spotless housekeeper is always cleaning and calls it "Not Letting the House Get Away from Her." The spotful housekeeper never starts because it all seems overwhelming. The random housekeeper (her target reader) cleans sporadically, gets distracted easily, forgets where she put the dust mop, and often tears her manicure on things while her mind is elsewhere.

She emphasizes that the random housekeeper shouldn't aspire to become spotless. She argues this is more psychologically healthy because women naturally grow neater as they age anyway, so fighting it by becoming compulsively clean only leads to nervous old age.

The chapter then presents five fundamental principles that underpin all of Bracken's housekeeping philosophy:

Don't cover things unnecessarily. Every cover creates additional items to clean and maintain. For example, don't put throw rugs on linoleum floors just to protect them, because now you have to clean the rug instead of just wiping the floor. Similarly, don't cover toasters or copper pots decoratively because they'll just get dusty. The only exception is chair and sofa arms, which deserve protection.

Keep cooking pots and pans out of sight in cupboards. Decorative copper pots look pretty but require constant polishing (which "makes as much sense as washing the tires every time you drive the car"). Hang a beautiful picture instead, something that makes you feel good when you see it, rather than something that creates extra work.

When giving the house a deep cleaning, rotate which room you start with. This ensures that when you inevitably peter out after a few hours of work, you at least peter out in a different place each time. If you always stopped in the same spot, you'd eventually "have to saw off" that room.

Establish a "clutter depot," a central closet, drawer, or chest where all misplaced items go. There's a distinction between "artful clutter" (like a first edition book on an antique love seat) and "honest clutter" (like a ski sock on the mantel). The random housekeeper tends toward honest clutter. Instead of items migrating around the house and becoming invisible, they all go to the depot, and family members can retrieve their belongings when they notice them. Bracken recommends giving each person "one inviolate [sacred, not to be violated] place he may keep as messy as he wants" so they don't feel too controlled.

Act immediately on housewifely impulses using whatever you have at hand. Don't wait for special cleaning products. If you notice jam on the woodwork, wipe it off immediately with a damp dishrag or a simple soap cake. Waiting for the special product you've been meaning to buy means the jam stays there indefinitely.

The chapter concludes with an important reminder: you're not keeping house for friends (who won't love you more if your windows are shinier), for children (you keep house "in spite of them," not for them), or even primarily for your husband. You keep house for yourself, so that if things get too cluttered, you can think straight and focus on your interests (like learning Conversational French). Husbands only want a "modest modicum of order" and actively hate the sound of vacuum cleaners. The key is maintaining this balance. Bracken ends with a Herman Melville quote suggesting everyone has troubles and we should all rub each other's shoulder blades and be content with differences.

CHAPTER 2: THE BRIDES OWN ABCS

This is an alphabetical guide to various household organizational principles. Bracken suggests organizing canned goods alphabetically (Applesauce to Zucchini), medicine cabinets (Aspirin to Zinc Ointment), herbs and spices, and books. She notes one friend organizes books by color, which creates "improbable shelf mates" like The Rubaiyat next to The Complete Dog Book. It works for her visual memory, and the color blocks look pretty.

She recommends using the alphabet as an insomnia cure: playing the "Minister's Cat" game (an Ardent cat, a Bellicose cat, etc.) until you fall asleep.

The chapter then offers miscellaneous alphabetical tips: B is for "Burn Ointment," which should be kept near the stove, not the bathroom medicine cabinet. C is for "Code," establishing secret couple signals to rescue each other from boring situations (if he uses an unexpected term of endearment, it means he's desperate to leave; if you use an unexpected term of endearment, he knows you need rescuing). They should also establish a permanent place at home for leaving messages so they can easily find notes from each other. Additionally, they should agree beforehand on who will stay put and who will search if they ever get separated while shopping at a department store or waiting in an airport.
Additional practical household items are covered alphabetically

Chapter 3 - Stains, Spots, Blots, Scars, and Dueling Wounds
This is an exhaustive guide to removing stains from various fabrics. Bracken provides specific instructions for removing:

Candle wax: Chip off excess, place a paper towel over remaining wax, use a hot iron to melt it into the towel

Chocolate: Act quickly while wet; use cold water on cotton, alcohol on wool

Coffee: Immediately soak in cold water; sugar may help

Fruit stains: Try hydrogen peroxide or sunlight (with lemon juice for natural bleaching)

Grease: Use absorbent powder first to lift oil, then soap

Gum: Chill with ice to make it brittle, then chip off

Heat rings (water marks on wood): Use cream or oil

Ice cream: Cold water first, then appropriate treatment based on residual stain

Ink: Use alcohol or special ink removers depending on ink type

Jelly: Act quickly before it sets

Leg makeup (spray-on leg coloring from the era): Use solvent appropriate to the makeup base

Lipstick: Alcohol or special lipstick remover

Liquid rings (water marks from wet glasses): Similar to heat rings; oil or cream work

Mercurochrome (an old antiseptic): Requires special treatment

The chapter explains that fabric type matters tremendously. Cotton and linen respond differently than wool or rayon. She emphasizes acting quickly and knowing whether to use hot or cold water (cold water for protein-based stains like eggs or blood, hot water for grease-based stains).

She also covers furniture damage: scratches and dents can sometimes be masked with crayon (using a color matching the wood), shoe polish, or furniture polish. Specific instructions are given for different types of damage.

Chapter 4 - Don’t Just Do Something, Sit There
Admits housework is not fun; aim for tolerable, not perfect. Partial wins: clean the bathtub ring, not the whole bath; wipe as you cook to reduce sink chaos. Skip needless chores: constant window washing, frequent waxing, under‑sofa vacuuming no one sees, duplicate sheet sets.
Psychology: create shortcuts, reward yourself, and practice Housekeeping on the Half‑Shell, do the visible bits and move on.
Chapter 5 - Dinner Will Be Ready as Soon as I Decide What We’re Having
Cooking makes mess; separate cooking and cleaning. Keep a stand‑by meal you can make fast. 17 quick recipes (eggs, beans, simple meats),
e.g.:
Eggelweiss, Mr. Panelli’s Eggs, Clammond Eggs
Beanerinos, 1000 Beans and a Meatball, Chicago Chowder
Basic Chicken/Beef, Uninspired Casserole
Kids eat better with novel breakfasts (her example: one woman switched to applesauce with oatmeal cookies instead of traditional breakfast, and the children "ate like lambs"),; salad hack (inverted saucer to keep oil from pooling); peaches peel easier after milk+hot water; onions: peel root‑end up; corn stays hot by standing in hot water.

Chapter 6 - How to Be Tightfisted Without Having It Show
This chapter addresses money-saving on household expenses without appearing cheap or sacrificing dignity. Bracken makes a distinction between pointless penny-pinching (like emptying cheap liquor into good bottles to deceive guests) and smart economizing.

Her recommendations include:

Serve something first as a separate course to make the main course stretch further. She cites the historical example of Yorkshire pudding served before roast, which filled people up and allowed families to eat less beef, extending the meat to another day.

Serve salad first (with croutons for substance)

Make soup from canned tomato and consomme combined

Use affordable proteins in interesting ways (beans, eggs, chicken)

Buy seasonal produce and sale items

Use pantry staples creatively

Don't waste money on single-use kitchen gadgets

Buy good quality basics rather than disposable items

Make use of leftovers creatively (stale bread as croutons, etc.)

She recommends against false economy that creates more work or embarrassment: don't try to stretch expensive ingredients too thin (nobody will be fooled), don't send mail without stamps (the post office will return it for postage due, costing you more), don't try to fool people about liquor quality (the empties will tell the truth).

The philosophy is: smart saving comes from eliminating unnecessary spending and maximizing what you buy, not from false economies or deception.

Chapter 7 - Salt, Soda, Vinegar, Lemons, or Aunt Lucy Done Tole Me
Pantry‑chemistry toolkit:

Salt: faster whipping cream; better grapefruit; cracked‑egg control; perspiration stains; color‑setting; winter ice; slug control; sore‑throat gargle; drains with hot salt water
Vinegar: cut fish/cabbage smells; window cleaning; bottle cleaning; poached‑egg cohesion; foot soak
Baking soda: chrome polish, oven door clean, aluminum brighten
Lemon: marble polish (with borax), nail whitening, rust removal on linens (sun), simple mouthwash
Bacon grease: cook with/strain; chill with cold water in disposal; store in tins
Plus labeling, magnetic strips, DIY holders—low‑cost hacks.

Chapter 8 - The Rest of the Pea‑Patch
Electricity basics: know the fuse box; consider circuit breakers; test outlets before blaming appliances. Save manuals. Freezers: odd comforts (cool sneakers, chilled undergarments). Notes on dishwashers, disposers, bath/bedroom routines, pet care, furniture maintenance- practical odds and ends.

Chapter 9 - How to Be Happy When You’re Miserable
Coping stance: don’t self‑criticize; avoid comparisons; accept bad days; create small comforts. Housework is a means to mental peace; avoid obsessive neatness creep with age.

Chapter 10 - How to Remember and How to Remember to Remember
Two tracks: physical cues and mental systems.

Physical: notes on hand, pin to bra (poke = reminder), timers, strategic item placement.
Mental:

Four Key Word method (Flagpole=1, Red Bloomers=2, Tricycle=3, Pig=4) with vivid imagery
Magic sentences (first letters → steps: e.g., baking order)
Rhymes (“Cooking Rice, Water’s Twice”)
Location mnemonics (street initials)
Personalize systems; use body cues (e.g., a freckle for left hand).



Chapter 11 — How to Look as Good as the Lord Intended
This chapter covers clothing, makeup, and personal appearance advice reflective of 1960s standards. It includes guidance on choosing flattering clothing types, understanding hemlines and proportions, selecting colors that suit your complexion, and applying makeup correctly.

The advice is dated from a modern perspective but would have been helpful for the era. Recommendations include: avoid vertical lines if you're pear-shaped, choose horizontal lines if you want to broaden narrow shoulders, select colors that enhance your skin tone, match your hemline to the current fashion but above all to your leg shape, and apply makeup to enhance your features rather than create an obvious mask.

Personal hygiene and care sections recommend:

Proper nail care and filing techniques

Cuticle maintenance using lemon juice or oil

Hair care appropriate for different hair types

Skin care routines

Proper lip-color application

Eye makeup placement to flatter your eye shape

Chapter 12 - The Hostess with the Leastest
This chapter covers entertaining and party planning, which Bracken treats as just another housekeeping challenge. She makes the radical suggestion of throwing two dinner parties on successive nights rather than one. This seems counterintuitive but makes sense: you do the planning once, the shopping once, and can double the recipes without anyone noticing. The flowers and garnishes stretch across both nights. The psychological burden of the massive preparation is also split.

She provides extensive advice for giving parties:

Pre-Party Preparation:

Clean only the spaces guests will see (live with minor chaos in back rooms)

Prepare as much food as possible the night before

Set the table the day before

Choose menus where most items can be prepared ahead and just heated before serving

During the Party:

Don't clean up everywhere while guests are there (just in the visible spaces)

Drink a jigger of salad oil before the party to prevent alcohol from irritating your nerves

Remember to make a frozen ice pack from a rubber glove if you don't have a proper ice bag

Use paraffin in flower bowls to keep flower frogs in place

Choose apron styles that look elegant rather than obviously functional (Japanese happi coats, French smocks, or homemade sarongs)

Cocktail Service:
She provides cocktail recipes and warns that hosts can get overzealous with refilling drinks. She suggests serving cocktails that require effort (like fresh-lime Daiquiris) to naturally slow the pace, or announcing dinner strategically to interrupt the drink-serving impulse.

10 menu sets include: Lamb Stew + Syrian Pecan Salad; Curried Chicken + Sambals; 1000 Beans and a Meatball; Spinach with Crab; Sesame Sole/Halibut; Black Forest Beef; Baked Ham + Curried Fruit; Fried Chicken; Deep‑Sea Spaghetti, etc., with complete recipes.

The chapter and book end somewhat abruptly with a note that one eventually puts the house back together again "in your own random fashion, which works pretty well for you, at that, when alls said and done. Though when is all ever said and done? And, in putting houses back together again, there is no end. Yes, one of these days. But not now. Not tonight . . ."
This ending is both humorous (acknowledging that housework never truly ends) and slightly melancholic, recognizing that being a housewife is a never-ending cycle.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This arrived in the mail today and I'm halfway through. I'm not sure what I was expecting. I knew it was going to be a humorous book from the reviews, but it is actually a how-to book on housekeeping. Some of the stuff doesn't apply to me, but I still get a laugh off it anyway. I have to admit I did skip the recipes section. I am trying to live a whole-food, plant-based diet, so all the meat, cheese and canned goods kind of throw the recipes out the window. But for the "random housekeeper", like me, they are good quick throw together recipes.
What most touches me about this book is that I can identify with many of her insights and observations even though it was written in 1962. I don't know about anyone else, but I had this image in my mind of nothing but sparkling clean houses back then. I guess that comes from the media and the homemaking books of that time. I feel not so alone in my lack of focus on housekeeping now. It is something that has been around a long time.
A couple quotes from the book that I love, but there are so many, are ones that keep things in perspective.

At the end of the first chapter:
"Before we press on: never think unkindly about someone else's housekeeping, nor speak unkindly either.
You don't know what she may be up against. Perhaps she gets dizzy spells whenever she thinks about woodwork. And don't be too critical if you consider her too neat. Perhaps you don't really know her husband. Perhaps she married one of those grim exceptions, and maybe little Napoleon turns purple if the window blind is one-quarter inch out of line.
There are many things we can't know, that's all, and as much as we all have our troubles, it behooves us all to hold our tongues."

page 49 (under the section "Things you needn't do at all and Things you needn't do half so often as the experts would have you believe":
"Also, I know a lady who lives in a perfectly lovely house and doesn't wax her kitchen linoleum. It isn't the kind the manufacturer tells you not to, either. She just sweeps it every day and damp-mops it once in a while...
...Although her system is heretical, we must remember that this lady has an equal chance of salvation with the rest of us and she does some interesting things with her free time, too."

There was another similar quote to the above but I can't find it.... darn paper books with no search function.

page 102 (a section about decorating):
"For whatever queer things you choose to have around you are nobody's business but your own, and let nobody tell you different."

Well, more quotes in my final update. Hopefully, I will find the one I lost.

Also, a book I now have to look up... Aunt Lucy's Compendium, first published in 1868.
Also, a product I now have to look up... indelible leg makeup.

[Gayle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this in the seventies with great delight, and now still delighted. It's a housekeeping book, a humor book, and nowadays, an insight into what housekeeping used to be. "Ironing" keeps popping up, as well as defrosting the refrigerator. And darning socks. Quick meals, too, involved canned soups and tuna instead of frozen foods and takeout.

My favorite quote, from the chapter "How to Look As Good As the Lord Intended," references trying on a "short-jacketed, short-skirted plaid suit...the little plaid suit turns you into a baby tractor and you move out of that fitting room low to the ground, your gears grinding."

And I still found some clever tips/household hints aka hacks that have not popped up on my social media. In addition to the laughs.

[Katy Koivastik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I inherited this volume from my mother, who bought it new somewhere around 1965. Because I am in the “down-sizing” phase of life, I had planned on passing it on after reading. However, due to Ms. Bracken’s droll writing style and the still-relevant tips she provides here, I’m keeping it! Spinach/ crab casserole, here I come!

Illustrated by no lesser light than Hilary Knight, famed for the “Eloise” series.

[Marilyn Sue Michel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book over Thanksgiving weekend and it is a classic. My mother had a copy and I read it many times starting around the seventh grade. It is amazing how housework never changes, even with all the technology. Entertaining.

[Teresa shaddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great
LOVE

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books that I read when I'm feeling down about my mom and housekeeping abilities. It never fails to cheer me up.

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

So hilarious that even my husband enjoyed it.

[Karin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusingly dated, this book had me chuckling a few times. The recipes sound atrocious.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun illustrations by Hillary Knight accompany the wry, vintage-y housekeeper's manual for those who care but not too much.

[Petalbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Witty and (somewhat) practical, this book makes for great reading on the couch while waiting for your favorite tv show. Picked it up from a free books pile for entertainment value and found myself snickering at the author's "mostly side comments" style of writing. Some of the stuff meant as advice on housekeeping can be discarded as the book is so outdated. Nowadays it's easier to just stop by the nearest all-hours conbini or local grocery store instead of stockpiling on stuff that you'll end up not using or discarding anyway after just one use. Observation with regards to the change in times: Where before (this book was published almost 50 years ago) the main concerns were frugality and conservation, the present is more concerned about convenience. Who has time to clean, cook, launder and whatever? Just drop off your weeklies at the cleaners, pop your dinner in the microwave (or go sup at favorite restaurant), throw away your disposable plate afterwards and there you go. Literally.

[Magda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty much as foreign as my mother's advice, with the added remove of being from the 1950s with all its references.

So, while not being terribly practical, it's still sprinkled with little delights such as this:

"How to Comfort Yourself When You Have Acted like a Jackass
"Everyone does this occasionally, and you shouldn't feel too upset about it unless it happens quite often, such as three times a day, in which case you must simply get used to it."

[lorena boyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nostalgia, This book was written in the 1960's, my mother's era as a young wife and mother. Peg Bracken's sensible and humorous lessons/tips on "housewifery" made me smile and laugh. The best chapter was about the day(s) when the wife/mother just doesn't feel like doing anything and it's ok to stay in bed and read and have your family bring you food.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

So so funny! My roommate and I used to quote this book at one another and laugh ourselves silly.

[hilary]

More nostalgia--if the 50s 60s middle class bourgeoisie [with a surprisingly edgy sense of humor] evokes memories or nostalgia, worth it, if not, not

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny from start to finish, with actually helpful hints and a wonderful sense of laugh out loud humour.

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charming period piece that still has very valid applications today. This book will give you the advice that your mother doesn't think to and make you laugh all along the way.