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The Men's Guide to the Women's Bathroom: A Hilarious Romantic Comedy About Starting Over and Falling in Love in Texas
The Men's Guide to the Women's Bathroom strives to answer life's most imponderable question: What Do Women Really Do in the Bathroom?
When the witty and urbane Claire St. John leaves New York City and returns to Austin, Texas, she realizes that all of the good advice she has ever received has been from strangers in the women's bathroom. If only she'd listened before she'd married the wrong man and wound up on the losing end of a divorce.
Swearing off men, Claire decides to take a big chance—she will quit her life as a lawyer and write the ultimate self-help book—a book detailing exactly what goes on in that most sacred feminine temple: the women's bathroom.
But will the new how-to guru ever learn to take her own advice? While she's discovering the truth behind the bathroom door, re-assimilating to Texas culture by eating "nuclear" jalapeño carrots, speeding down highways through the famed Texas hill country, and even joining an ill-fated booze cruise, Claire St. John is fighting her feelings for Jake Armstrong, a dashing organic food entrepreneur who threatens to throw off the balance of her new life. Will she be able to handle the pressure or will she watch her love life get flushed away?
When the witty and urbane Claire St. John leaves New York City and returns to Austin, Texas, she realizes that all of the good advice she has ever received has been from strangers in the women's bathroom. If only she'd listened before she'd married the wrong man and wound up on the losing end of a divorce.
Swearing off men, Claire decides to take a big chance—she will quit her life as a lawyer and write the ultimate self-help book—a book detailing exactly what goes on in that most sacred feminine temple: the women's bathroom.
But will the new how-to guru ever learn to take her own advice? While she's discovering the truth behind the bathroom door, re-assimilating to Texas culture by eating "nuclear" jalapeño carrots, speeding down highways through the famed Texas hill country, and even joining an ill-fated booze cruise, Claire St. John is fighting her feelings for Jake Armstrong, a dashing organic food entrepreneur who threatens to throw off the balance of her new life. Will she be able to handle the pressure or will she watch her love life get flushed away?
336 pages, Paperback
First published March 27, 2007
15 people are currently reading
294 people want to read
About the author
Jo Barrett
53 books75 followersJo currently resides in North Carolina with her patient and supportive family while she juggles her writing career and her position as a programmer analyst.
She has won numerous awards and continues to write whenever she can.
Someday, she hopes to take off her programming hat and write full time.
So many of her dreams have already come true. What's one more?
For a list of Jo's books, visit The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
Email: jobarrett@jobarrett.net
She has won numerous awards and continues to write whenever she can.
Someday, she hopes to take off her programming hat and write full time.
So many of her dreams have already come true. What's one more?
For a list of Jo's books, visit The Wild Rose Press, Inc.
Email: jobarrett@jobarrett.net
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
November 20, 2008
Hugh Jackman is pimping himself out as a chick lit cover blurb writer. Oh yes, People’s current Sexiest Man Alive had the following to say about this book:
“A great read, and a great laugh – and now we guys know what’s really going on in there!” – Hugh Jackman, actor.
So what’s with this? Is he related to the author? Her lover? Is she Australian? Was blackmail involved? Was he drunk? WTF, Hugh? - So, of course, I had to take it home.
I didn’t finish this book. After 75 pages of yucky one-liners like, “What happens in the women’s bathroom stays in the women’s bathroom” and “Have I died and gone someplace where men actually call when they say they’re going to call?” I could take no more.
Really, Hugh? Did you really read this book? I think you have lost all credibility as a book blurb writer (FYI, in case you were planning on pursuing it as a backup career choice).
Instead of this book, maybe try another book by Jo Barrett titled "This is How it Happened (Not a Love Story)." I read that one a while back and enjoyed it quite a bit.
“A great read, and a great laugh – and now we guys know what’s really going on in there!” – Hugh Jackman, actor.
So what’s with this? Is he related to the author? Her lover? Is she Australian? Was blackmail involved? Was he drunk? WTF, Hugh? - So, of course, I had to take it home.
I didn’t finish this book. After 75 pages of yucky one-liners like, “What happens in the women’s bathroom stays in the women’s bathroom” and “Have I died and gone someplace where men actually call when they say they’re going to call?” I could take no more.
Really, Hugh? Did you really read this book? I think you have lost all credibility as a book blurb writer (FYI, in case you were planning on pursuing it as a backup career choice).
Instead of this book, maybe try another book by Jo Barrett titled "This is How it Happened (Not a Love Story)." I read that one a while back and enjoyed it quite a bit.
March 29, 2017
Well buku ini ringan, lucu dan ala chicklit banget tapi super menghibur. Trus juga mengulik beberapa jurus-jurus dan rahasia di balik relationship. Aku suka dengan gaya bercerita buku ini yang seger dan ga bikin bosen. Trus banternya juga cerdas dan seksi, scene-scenenya nakal dan menghibur, dan joke-jokenya juga nendang banget. Tipe buku ringan bikin ngikik yang bakalan kamu baca pas lagi butuh hiburan.
My rating : 3.5/5
My rating : 3.5/5
August 18, 2007
This book had potential, but to me it fell flat. It's a cute premise that isn't that well executed; narrator Claire sets out to write a book about what happens in women's bathrooms, but the passages of Claire's writing are so tired and cliche. Worse, excepting Claire, most of the female characters are totally repellent: they all spend so much energy cutting each other down. I feel like I should put a sticker on the book that says "NOT ALL WOMEN BEHAVE LIKE THIS!!" I just couldn't relate, I guess; I am not like the women in this book, my friends are not like this, and there's just so much shallow in the book. So, yeah, I'd pass.
Read
September 29, 2010Funny, surprising, entertaining fluff. I liked the book overall, although I didn’t appreciate the author’s (and therefore all the major female characters’) point of view that all women in their 30s and 40s want a man above all other things. Or that women in this decade are ashamed of being divorced. Those two things made parts of the book feel like they were written in the early 1980s, rather than in the present. Anachronistic… unless the women in Barrett’s world really are primarily preoccupied with finding a man. In my world, they are far more balanced and well-rounded, with a partner being a wonderful thing, but not an end unto himself.
July 3, 2009
It's an entertaining book and a light read. Good for the lounging days. Though I was disappointed with the quick ending.
February 11, 2014
I was debating with myself on whether to give this book 2 or 3 stars. It was a good easy read, funny at times, however didn't really keep my interest too much.
February 10, 2021
Como alguém que pretende escrever “O maior Romance de todos os tempos” acaba escrevendo um livro sobre o banheiro feminino?
Claire acaba de se divorciar. Na tentativa de superar a traição e seguir em frente, muda de cidade e cogita talvez largar a advocacia para virar escritora. Seu primeiro livro? “O Maior Romance de Todos os Tempos”.
Seguindo o conselho da sua mãe, uma senhora que está sempre seguindo as maiores tendências da moda e comportamento, Claire embarca num cruzeiro para recém divorciados, no intuito de se encontrar novamente. As expectativas de todos os mergulhos glamourosos vão por água abaixo quando ela percebe um sangramento nada sexy no nariz e se tranca no banheiro de um bar. Lá, escuta uma moça aconselhando a irmã sobre o que os homens realmente querem, e então seu plano de ser escritora dá um passo adiante, embora não na direção inicial.
E é assim que nasce a primeira anotação, feita com batom Caribeijo em um guardanapo, do que se tornaria o guia definitivo para os homens entenderem o que acontece dentro de um banheiro feminino.
═════════•⊱✦⊰•══════════
É um livro bem rapidinho, de escrita leve, que não exige atenção aos detalhes, e poderia muito bem virar uma comédia romântica da Sessão da Tarde, ou coisa parecida.
Os personagens secundários não são muito aprofundados, e alguns poderiam ser mais aproveitados na história, como a mãe de Claire e seu amigo gay Aaron, que sempre são os autores das frases e causadores das situações mais engraçadas e constrangedoras que ela passa. As amigas da protagonista aparecem sempre de forma tão aleatória que é um pouco difícil de saber qual delas está passando qual situação, e mal conseguia lembrar os nomes delas durante a leitura.
Li esse livro pela primeira vez em 2007 e confesso que tinha achado mais engraçado quatorze anos atrás… talvez seja o amadurecimento das idéias ou a progressão de que devemos evitar estereótipos, mesmo que em função de piada, mas dessa vez não me agradou tanto. Não é uma leitura RUIM, mas não me prendeu como da primeira vez.
site: https://www.instagram.com/littera.tour/
Claire acaba de se divorciar. Na tentativa de superar a traição e seguir em frente, muda de cidade e cogita talvez largar a advocacia para virar escritora. Seu primeiro livro? “O Maior Romance de Todos os Tempos”.
Seguindo o conselho da sua mãe, uma senhora que está sempre seguindo as maiores tendências da moda e comportamento, Claire embarca num cruzeiro para recém divorciados, no intuito de se encontrar novamente. As expectativas de todos os mergulhos glamourosos vão por água abaixo quando ela percebe um sangramento nada sexy no nariz e se tranca no banheiro de um bar. Lá, escuta uma moça aconselhando a irmã sobre o que os homens realmente querem, e então seu plano de ser escritora dá um passo adiante, embora não na direção inicial.
E é assim que nasce a primeira anotação, feita com batom Caribeijo em um guardanapo, do que se tornaria o guia definitivo para os homens entenderem o que acontece dentro de um banheiro feminino.
═════════•⊱✦⊰•══════════
É um livro bem rapidinho, de escrita leve, que não exige atenção aos detalhes, e poderia muito bem virar uma comédia romântica da Sessão da Tarde, ou coisa parecida.
Os personagens secundários não são muito aprofundados, e alguns poderiam ser mais aproveitados na história, como a mãe de Claire e seu amigo gay Aaron, que sempre são os autores das frases e causadores das situações mais engraçadas e constrangedoras que ela passa. As amigas da protagonista aparecem sempre de forma tão aleatória que é um pouco difícil de saber qual delas está passando qual situação, e mal conseguia lembrar os nomes delas durante a leitura.
Li esse livro pela primeira vez em 2007 e confesso que tinha achado mais engraçado quatorze anos atrás… talvez seja o amadurecimento das idéias ou a progressão de que devemos evitar estereótipos, mesmo que em função de piada, mas dessa vez não me agradou tanto. Não é uma leitura RUIM, mas não me prendeu como da primeira vez.
site: https://www.instagram.com/littera.tour/
May 29, 2019
This was an amusing book, but not great. However, it's true that women do congregate in the women's room for various reasons. And they do tell all.
I did read two maxims that are worth repeating: "Don't be a welcome mat. Be the door he's lucky to walk through." and the second, "No more one night stands, girlfriend!! You don't want all those men out there to think your body is the neighborhood slip-n-slide." And one that is ick-producing. "Be sweet to him. He doesn't want to hear about your problems, okay? Remember this: Men want the fantasy!!" (What? Are we back in the sixties??) If you're looking for something light with a bit of wisdom and some humorous moments, you will enjoy this book.
I did read two maxims that are worth repeating: "Don't be a welcome mat. Be the door he's lucky to walk through." and the second, "No more one night stands, girlfriend!! You don't want all those men out there to think your body is the neighborhood slip-n-slide." And one that is ick-producing. "Be sweet to him. He doesn't want to hear about your problems, okay? Remember this: Men want the fantasy!!" (What? Are we back in the sixties??) If you're looking for something light with a bit of wisdom and some humorous moments, you will enjoy this book.
May 26, 2025
Un libro ligero repleto de humor, pero también de amistad, de amor y de situaciones en las que más de una podría sentirse identificada. Situaciones, puesto que es más un compendio de pequeños momentos que cohesionan en una trama bastante floja con un final precipitado.
Claire St.John es un personaje cabeza-loca que está pasando por un momento bastante deprimente y lucha por volver a enderezar su vida. Sus amigos entran y salen de la trama aportando más humor y una verdadera solidaridad. Podría darse que Claire tiene un gran desarrollo pero no, realmente hasta el final del libro no comenzamos a ver eso.
Es un libro para divertirse, sin más, no tiene un gran fondo y ni siquiera lo pretende ;)
Claire St.John es un personaje cabeza-loca que está pasando por un momento bastante deprimente y lucha por volver a enderezar su vida. Sus amigos entran y salen de la trama aportando más humor y una verdadera solidaridad. Podría darse que Claire tiene un gran desarrollo pero no, realmente hasta el final del libro no comenzamos a ver eso.
Es un libro para divertirse, sin más, no tiene un gran fondo y ni siquiera lo pretende ;)
May 1, 2020
Lectura fluida y bastante divertida. Si eres mujer, probablemente te identifiques con muchas situaciones y experiencias que narra la protagonista, Claire.
Sin embargo, a mi parecer, el libro carece de una historia central relevante; lo cual hizo que al terminar de leerlo, a pesar de las risas, me diera una pequeña sensación de decepción.
Sin embargo, a mi parecer, el libro carece de una historia central relevante; lo cual hizo que al terminar de leerlo, a pesar de las risas, me diera una pequeña sensación de decepción.
June 9, 2020
1⭐
Una historia sin sentido. No había trama, he notado simples explicaciones y una mezcla de situaciones que no tenían sentido. Personajes planos sin carisma y ambientación nula. No le he encontrado sentido, además de aburrirme mucho no me ha gustado la pluma de la autora. Un desperdicio de tiempo muy a mi pesar.
Una historia sin sentido. No había trama, he notado simples explicaciones y una mezcla de situaciones que no tenían sentido. Personajes planos sin carisma y ambientación nula. No le he encontrado sentido, además de aburrirme mucho no me ha gustado la pluma de la autora. Un desperdicio de tiempo muy a mi pesar.
July 16, 2020
Predictable, boring. Filled with tears, ice cream, and mid-thirties angst. Slow start, happy ending, with the good-looking guy admitting unfailing love. If you've bought it already, save it for a boring rainy day.
June 20, 2018
Cute summer read. Perfect for the pool or the beach.
July 25, 2019
I don't want to invest time in pointing out everything i hated on this book.
March 23, 2021
Very cheesy- easy and light with a side of cheese
May 19, 2024
gracioso pero medio bobo. y un poco misógino
September 2, 2024
loved this
December 19, 2025
muy yankee
July 26, 2011
I have no idea how this book ended up on my Nook. Okay, I mean, I know physically how it ended up there (I checked it out from the library, downloaded it to my computer, and transferred it to my computer)...but I don't know why I chose the book...probably because it is set in Austin, and seeing as how I loved living there once upon a time, I wanted to relive those times.
Well, I've read worse books. This was certainly a quick read. The main character wasn't totally reprehensible, although the supporting cast were all really too predictable. I tend to really love my Nook, and read books that I wouldn't otherwise just so I can continue using the Nook. Obviously I didn't love this one, given my two star rating. Certain themes were introduced yet not explored thoroughly. And most irritatingly, it seemed almost as if this book wasn't written by the Austin tourism office...seriously, so much name dropping! Don't get me wrong, an occasional place name here or there makes the story seem real, but when the main character goes to X Restaurant for drinks, then it is perfectly acceptable to say that she later just goes to a coffeeshop (not Y Coffeeshop) after...not every location that our main character frequents needs to be an Austin landmark, thus explained by the author with a guidebook quality positive spin on every location. So yes, I guess one of the main reasons I chose the book is also one of the reasons I didn't love it...but hey, for a library book, I've done worse.
Well, I've read worse books. This was certainly a quick read. The main character wasn't totally reprehensible, although the supporting cast were all really too predictable. I tend to really love my Nook, and read books that I wouldn't otherwise just so I can continue using the Nook. Obviously I didn't love this one, given my two star rating. Certain themes were introduced yet not explored thoroughly. And most irritatingly, it seemed almost as if this book wasn't written by the Austin tourism office...seriously, so much name dropping! Don't get me wrong, an occasional place name here or there makes the story seem real, but when the main character goes to X Restaurant for drinks, then it is perfectly acceptable to say that she later just goes to a coffeeshop (not Y Coffeeshop) after...not every location that our main character frequents needs to be an Austin landmark, thus explained by the author with a guidebook quality positive spin on every location. So yes, I guess one of the main reasons I chose the book is also one of the reasons I didn't love it...but hey, for a library book, I've done worse.
January 10, 2010
Buku ini bercerita tentang Claire St. John, janda cerai berusia 34 tahun yang pindah dari New York ke Austin, Texas. Infeksi sinus gila-gilaan membuatnya tidak bisa ikut menyelam di acara Newly Divorced Scuba Diving Group yang diikutinya di Mexico. Thanks to si hidung yang berdarah sedemikian hebatnya, Claire yang saat itu jobless kemudian mendapatkan ide untuk menulis buku self helpnya tentang apa yang sebenarnya terjadi di toilet wanita.
Jadi sebenernya ini semi self-help.
Membaca buku ini kadang-kadang bikin gue tersenyum. Jujur aja, gaya bahasa terjemahannya kadang-kadang kocak. Tapi entah kenapa tetap terasa kurang pas buat selera gue. Jadi, percayalah, gue ngga tertawa segitu kerasnya membaca buku ini.
Kalau buku ini menceritakan tentang kisah Claire dalam proses pembuatan bukunya, gue jadi bertanya-tanya, mengapa tidak menerbitkan buku self-help ini dalam versi betulannya? Misalnya seperti buku Quidditch through the Agesnya JK Rowling? Gue rasa buku tersebut akan cukup catchy, dan pasti gue mau beli ;)
Jadi sebenernya ini semi self-help.
Membaca buku ini kadang-kadang bikin gue tersenyum. Jujur aja, gaya bahasa terjemahannya kadang-kadang kocak. Tapi entah kenapa tetap terasa kurang pas buat selera gue. Jadi, percayalah, gue ngga tertawa segitu kerasnya membaca buku ini.
Kalau buku ini menceritakan tentang kisah Claire dalam proses pembuatan bukunya, gue jadi bertanya-tanya, mengapa tidak menerbitkan buku self-help ini dalam versi betulannya? Misalnya seperti buku Quidditch through the Agesnya JK Rowling? Gue rasa buku tersebut akan cukup catchy, dan pasti gue mau beli ;)
April 9, 2013
I fluctuated between giving this book 2 or 3 stars. It was entertaining. There were parts that even made me laugh out loud.
But....BUT....
It didn't have any sort of substance. You may say, we'll who needs substance in chicklit? I guess I need a bit more than every woman in her 30s is simply pining away and looking for a man. Here we have the main character who after a messy divorce has dubbed the year the "year of Clair" but spends the year thinking only about men...or the man...or the potential man.
This book was also full of stereotypes about women and men, gay and straight and the men's bathroom guide just perpetuated them all...in a way I found distinctly not funny. The book was also dated...meaning all the pop culture references that just make this book have a shelf life of about a year.
Got this one on a whim at a used book store. Will be taking it back to the same place....
But....BUT....
It didn't have any sort of substance. You may say, we'll who needs substance in chicklit? I guess I need a bit more than every woman in her 30s is simply pining away and looking for a man. Here we have the main character who after a messy divorce has dubbed the year the "year of Clair" but spends the year thinking only about men...or the man...or the potential man.
This book was also full of stereotypes about women and men, gay and straight and the men's bathroom guide just perpetuated them all...in a way I found distinctly not funny. The book was also dated...meaning all the pop culture references that just make this book have a shelf life of about a year.
Got this one on a whim at a used book store. Will be taking it back to the same place....
February 4, 2017
Well… Hugh Jackman did his job and I only read this because he said he liked it. "A great read and a great laugh" (really Hugh??)
The truth is another. This book is written with every existing stereotype about women and how we all desire a prince charming like it's our one and only goal in life. Our two best friends are ice cream and an overly dramatic, fashion guru gay friend. Claire's passages for the book are so cliché and it seems like she is trying to hard to be funny and relatable and, to me, it was not.
The end of the book honestly made me feel like even the author was tired of writing it and she just took the fastest way out. :/
The truth is another. This book is written with every existing stereotype about women and how we all desire a prince charming like it's our one and only goal in life. Our two best friends are ice cream and an overly dramatic, fashion guru gay friend. Claire's passages for the book are so cliché and it seems like she is trying to hard to be funny and relatable and, to me, it was not.
The end of the book honestly made me feel like even the author was tired of writing it and she just took the fastest way out. :/
April 20, 2007
Another beach read. Hmmmm. I seem to be in a rut. This ended up in my book pile because of its connection Austin. I just have a thing for reading about places that I know. The book, however, is definitely not one of my favorites. It contains a lot of book-within-a-book (the main character is an author) that tries too hard to be witty and just kind of.....bleh. I skipped large portions in an attempt to just get done. It is funny and it does have fun bits about Austin but there are so many other light fiction books out there that are so much better.
September 18, 2007
This was an often times amusing book...I liked it well enough I suppose. It wasn't until the end though, in the bonus section, "potty talk" where the author described the various habits and talk of different places round the globe, that I laughed out loud. Its for the bonus section that I added another star.
On a side note, it had an excerpt from her upcoming book, or maybe its already been published? Something along the lines of "Killing Carter". Those pages made it sound like an appealing book and I'll most likely end up reading that one as well.
On a side note, it had an excerpt from her upcoming book, or maybe its already been published? Something along the lines of "Killing Carter". Those pages made it sound like an appealing book and I'll most likely end up reading that one as well.
July 15, 2012
2.5 stars. This story idea had potential but the main character was off putting, she had the potential too. I could barely read the bathroom portions of the book. If you don't like reading about blood and bathroom business, don't read this. The ending was a little too neat and tidy for the rest of the book.
Plus the whole Texas A&M and TU portion of the book - you went to TU but you don't know what Aggies call it TU? That irritated me.
Plus the whole Texas A&M and TU portion of the book - you went to TU but you don't know what Aggies call it TU? That irritated me.
November 6, 2013
Ever so slightly entertaining. Premise was good, but I felt like the author tried to include all the politically correct elements rather than just telling the story. (Ie: bash on Republicans, even if it makes no logical sense in the sentence. And, by all means, don't limit this bashing to just once.) Keep it light, keep it fun! Oh, and I totally didn't get the "meet his family" part. Took Jake in a completely different direction than the one she (the author) had cultivated.
April 14, 2014
This is not the kind of book I usually read. My two year old picked it up at the library and told me to get it because the cover was pink. I didn't really connect with the main character at first, because I'm not a childless, recently divorced 34 year old lawyer turned writer from Texas. However, a couple of chapters in the hilarious promised on the back of the book showed up and I really enjoyed it.
August 9, 2007
What I like about the book?
All the references to Austin spots and light as a feather.
I kept a list of all Austin mentions in my reading journal.
Polvos
Continental Club
Townlake
Claypit
Mozarts
Moonshine
Ruta Maya
Uchi
Kenichi
Little Woodrows
Casino El Camero
La Traviata
Chez Zee
All the references to Austin spots and light as a feather.
I kept a list of all Austin mentions in my reading journal.
Polvos
Continental Club
Townlake
Claypit
Mozarts
Moonshine
Ruta Maya
Uchi
Kenichi
Little Woodrows
Casino El Camero
La Traviata
Chez Zee
March 2, 2008
This book was a good quick read. I started on Friday night and finished it Sunday morning. I don't typically like fiction, but this book is cute and doesn't take any brain power. The main character lives in Austin, so if you are from Austin - it is fun to hear her talk about all the places she goes. All and all, very enjoyable. Must Read!
June 24, 2010
A very quick, easy read that's perfect for summer. I enjoyed the story-within-a-story along with the main fictional story. If there were half star options this would get a 3.5 rating as I liked it but didn't 4 star like it. For me there's way too many gaps in the story and open ended things that aren't addressed.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews