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This Side Up: The Road to a Renovated Life
This Side The Road to a Renovated Life is a home and garden editor’s story of a life constantly under construction, none by design. Written with candor, humor and grace, Amy Mangan shares her own home tour, but this one deftly sheds light on job loss, financial shame, home displacement, marital discord, illness and caregiving. Faced with one crisis after the next, Amy discovers how to cope, hope and rebuild, finding a new way home to a stronger way of life.
209 pages, Paperback
Published July 26, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 29, 2018
It's incredible story about one shitstorm after another. I never really thought in depth about how it is to write something like this, although I always enjoyed other people's life stories.
But now that I do, I realize there's real giving going on. I mean, writing about past hardships must be kind of like going through the same shit again, isn't it? At least, that's how I would feel, and part of the reason I still didn't do my own "share". I'm probably pussy, maybe selfish, possibly both.
So thank you, the author.
For me as non-American, some questions inevitably come to mind. Which will sound like judging, which it isn't. I just don't comprehend some things about American way of life, or market conditions, or prices over there.
For instance, if the money is tight, and there's financial crysis going on, and you live from paycheck to paycheck, and you were forced to sell your dreamhouse, why do you keep renting the houses, only to having to move after a while because you can't afford it? And do all those houses really need to have pools, of all things? Isn't it a luxury in those circumstances? Why do you need 4 bedrooms? Why not rent some normal apartment, until you're at least floating, financially?
Or are the prices of renting a house (with a pool) similar to renting apartment in America?
There's also one other thing I don't get, which obviously can be ascribed to different mentality. Author, or maybe people in USA in general, seem to set for themselves the right for mortgage as their ultimate goal. It's pakt with a devil, and yet, it's somehow a dream. How? Why? And according to what logic is a house under a mortgage - "your own"? Isn't it belonging to a bank for next 20-30 years, and the bank can take it away from you any time if you're behind with payments? How, then, is it "your home"?
Why is it so hard to give up on so called "American Dream"? Which somehow seem to include the slavery arrangement called mortgage.
Lots of questions, but the book is still great and honest read.
But now that I do, I realize there's real giving going on. I mean, writing about past hardships must be kind of like going through the same shit again, isn't it? At least, that's how I would feel, and part of the reason I still didn't do my own "share". I'm probably pussy, maybe selfish, possibly both.
So thank you, the author.
For me as non-American, some questions inevitably come to mind. Which will sound like judging, which it isn't. I just don't comprehend some things about American way of life, or market conditions, or prices over there.
For instance, if the money is tight, and there's financial crysis going on, and you live from paycheck to paycheck, and you were forced to sell your dreamhouse, why do you keep renting the houses, only to having to move after a while because you can't afford it? And do all those houses really need to have pools, of all things? Isn't it a luxury in those circumstances? Why do you need 4 bedrooms? Why not rent some normal apartment, until you're at least floating, financially?
Or are the prices of renting a house (with a pool) similar to renting apartment in America?
There's also one other thing I don't get, which obviously can be ascribed to different mentality. Author, or maybe people in USA in general, seem to set for themselves the right for mortgage as their ultimate goal. It's pakt with a devil, and yet, it's somehow a dream. How? Why? And according to what logic is a house under a mortgage - "your own"? Isn't it belonging to a bank for next 20-30 years, and the bank can take it away from you any time if you're behind with payments? How, then, is it "your home"?
Why is it so hard to give up on so called "American Dream"? Which somehow seem to include the slavery arrangement called mortgage.
Lots of questions, but the book is still great and honest read.
August 30, 2018
I am so overwhelmed by the generosity of spirit Amy Mangan exhibits while exposing the human toll of the Financial Crisis. I appreciate her candor, her humor and the conversational style with which she writes. While at times an uncomfortable read, This Side Up always read as truth, in all it's highs and lows. I think this book would make an excellent book discussion selection. The opportunities for discussion, debate, research and discovery are plentiful.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews