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My Mess Is a Bit of a Life: Adventures in Anxiety
Multi-award-winning television writer and producer Georgia Pritchett knows a thing or two about anxiety. From worrying about the monsters under her bed as a child (Were they comfy enough?), to embracing womanhood, (One way of knowing you have crossed from girlhood to womanhood is that men stop furtively masturbating at you from bushes and start shouting things at you from cars. It's a beautiful moment) worry has accompanied her at every turn.
This memoir is a joyful reflection on just how to live - and sometimes even thrive (sometimes not) - with anxiety.
This memoir is a joyful reflection on just how to live - and sometimes even thrive (sometimes not) - with anxiety.
4 pages, Audiobook
First published June 17, 2021
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12115 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 816 reviews
June 18, 2021
For those of you who are unaware of who Georgia Pritchett is, she is the talented award winning writer on shows such as Miranda, The Thick of It, Veep, Smack the Pony, Have I Got News for You, and The Real McCoy. Finding herself weighed down by anxiety and depression, she found herself unable to speak of or express her worries to a therapist, who advised her to write them down instead. This original, fun, smart, comic and witty memoir is the result, it is largely in the form of anecdotes, vignettes, and thoughts, covering her childhood, where her anxious nature is apparent, family, school, college, personal relationships and her stellar professional career. The vignettes can appear random and difficult to pin down in terms of when the events related happened.
Her father is referred to as The Patriarchy, and her mother, The Witch, as a 4 year old Georgia thought God was Jimmy Osmond, and all the stories she was writing featured baby budgies falling from their nests and unable to find their way home. Her shyness made speaking problematic, became familiar with writing haikus at her offbeat school, and went to Scotland on family holidays so that their West Highland terrier, Flo, could get back to her roots. Georgia invented a superhero alter ego and had an imaginary friend, Samantha, who was never keen on spending any time with her. She got in with the wrong crowd at teacher training college, Christians, prior to dropping out! After getting her foot in the door as a writer of jokes on BBC Radio 4's Weekending, she never looked back, Georgia had found her place in the world. She gives an eye opening account of the male dominated and misogynist world of her profession.
My favourite parts of this fabulous memoir are the emotionally heartbreaking miscarriages, the health scares of her partner, The Moose, and giving birth to her sons, the Speck and the Scrap, and the joys and challenges of raising them. This is one of the most wonderfully warm, hilarious and riveting memoirs that I have ever read, of an anxiety ridden Georgia Pritchett making her way through life, personally and professionally, blessed with all the funnies, self deprecating, in the tradition of so much British humour. It will have you gripped and laughing your way through from beginning to end. I am not going to lie, not all of the humour hit its mark with me, but the vast majority did. Absolutely brilliant, not to be missed and highly recommended. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.
Her father is referred to as The Patriarchy, and her mother, The Witch, as a 4 year old Georgia thought God was Jimmy Osmond, and all the stories she was writing featured baby budgies falling from their nests and unable to find their way home. Her shyness made speaking problematic, became familiar with writing haikus at her offbeat school, and went to Scotland on family holidays so that their West Highland terrier, Flo, could get back to her roots. Georgia invented a superhero alter ego and had an imaginary friend, Samantha, who was never keen on spending any time with her. She got in with the wrong crowd at teacher training college, Christians, prior to dropping out! After getting her foot in the door as a writer of jokes on BBC Radio 4's Weekending, she never looked back, Georgia had found her place in the world. She gives an eye opening account of the male dominated and misogynist world of her profession.
My favourite parts of this fabulous memoir are the emotionally heartbreaking miscarriages, the health scares of her partner, The Moose, and giving birth to her sons, the Speck and the Scrap, and the joys and challenges of raising them. This is one of the most wonderfully warm, hilarious and riveting memoirs that I have ever read, of an anxiety ridden Georgia Pritchett making her way through life, personally and professionally, blessed with all the funnies, self deprecating, in the tradition of so much British humour. It will have you gripped and laughing your way through from beginning to end. I am not going to lie, not all of the humour hit its mark with me, but the vast majority did. Absolutely brilliant, not to be missed and highly recommended. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.
December 2, 2021
My Mess is a bit of a Life adventures in anxiety by Georgia Pritchett is an absolute HOOT!!! The written word hasn’t made me laugh out loud like this for ages – and you all know how funny words can be. A truly funny passage can be read, read again and re-read and one can be guaranteed to throw up a guffaw each time. It really gets the good hormones pulsing.
Ms Pritchett is an obscenely talented comedy writer who has written for shows such as VEEP, Succession, Smack the Pony and Miranda to name only a few. Succession, just happens to be one of my favourite shows, I have always thought “this is so brilliantly written” – well now I know who to credit.
This book contains a series of vignettes depicting and inflating (no doubt) some of the most absurd elements of Pritchett’s life. These short stories range from 5 lines to 2 pages in length, most being only a paragraph. So it’s a quick, punchy read.
Pritchett is self-deprecating to the maximum – For example, I love the way she describes her shoulders as “Muppet Shoulders”. She also deprecates her loved ones, such as her partner “The Moose” and her two little boys “Scrap and Speck”. I’ll share with you some of the most memorable moments for me, only a small samples you understand – as I don’t want to spoil the whole book, in case you read it (…..and you need to!)
I loved him so much (when writing about her baby boy) I thought I might pop. I missed him when he was asleep and waited impatiently for him to wake. I kissed him so often I worried he might erode
Eventually my doctor referred me for some tests, I was sent to the INFERTILITY CLINIC. That seemed harsh. We didn’t know yet. It’s like calling the eye clinic the BLIND CLINIC. Or the cancer ward the DEATH CLINIC……….yes there is some wonderful Dark Humour here too!
…..my toast popped out of the toaster and, simultaneously, a flaming mouse was catapulted out of the other side. It was both spectacular and deeply upsetting
But there are times Pritchett reaches into more serious themes such as her own mental health, the me too movement, suicide ideation and the time her school friends made a teacher cry (that was sad). So, after all the laughs, you get a sober smack in the face. A good reminder that perhaps that life isn’t all beer and skittles and rivers of chocolate, regrettably.
I am so thankful to Ebba who, suggested this book for me and also for the buddy read!!
4-Stars
Ms Pritchett is an obscenely talented comedy writer who has written for shows such as VEEP, Succession, Smack the Pony and Miranda to name only a few. Succession, just happens to be one of my favourite shows, I have always thought “this is so brilliantly written” – well now I know who to credit.
This book contains a series of vignettes depicting and inflating (no doubt) some of the most absurd elements of Pritchett’s life. These short stories range from 5 lines to 2 pages in length, most being only a paragraph. So it’s a quick, punchy read.
Pritchett is self-deprecating to the maximum – For example, I love the way she describes her shoulders as “Muppet Shoulders”. She also deprecates her loved ones, such as her partner “The Moose” and her two little boys “Scrap and Speck”. I’ll share with you some of the most memorable moments for me, only a small samples you understand – as I don’t want to spoil the whole book, in case you read it (…..and you need to!)
I loved him so much (when writing about her baby boy) I thought I might pop. I missed him when he was asleep and waited impatiently for him to wake. I kissed him so often I worried he might erode
Eventually my doctor referred me for some tests, I was sent to the INFERTILITY CLINIC. That seemed harsh. We didn’t know yet. It’s like calling the eye clinic the BLIND CLINIC. Or the cancer ward the DEATH CLINIC……….yes there is some wonderful Dark Humour here too!
…..my toast popped out of the toaster and, simultaneously, a flaming mouse was catapulted out of the other side. It was both spectacular and deeply upsetting
But there are times Pritchett reaches into more serious themes such as her own mental health, the me too movement, suicide ideation and the time her school friends made a teacher cry (that was sad). So, after all the laughs, you get a sober smack in the face. A good reminder that perhaps that life isn’t all beer and skittles and rivers of chocolate, regrettably.
I am so thankful to Ebba who, suggested this book for me and also for the buddy read!!
4-Stars
May 19, 2023
This is quite a unique memoir. It's a vulnerable and impactful collection of essays.
Full review at LucyKnowsThings.com.
Full review at LucyKnowsThings.com.
March 20, 2022
"One way of knowing you have crossed from girlhood to womanhood is that men stop furtively masturbating at you from bushes and start shouting things at you from cars. It's a beautiful moment - there should be some kind of ceremony." - from the essay titled 'Rite of Passage,' on page 91
My Mess is a Bit of a Life - the title courtesy of the author's malapropism to her physician when describing her anxiety - was a uniquely humorous and occasionally dramatic vignette-styled memoir by a screenwriter who is best known in the U.S. as an Emmy winner for her work on the wonderfully cutting HBO political sitcom Veep. The British-born Ms. Pritchett speaks of her childhood (mother is referred to as 'The Witch' while father is 'The Patriarch,' but are otherwise nurturing parents), her difficult years of schooling, her failed stint as a teacher, and finally breaking through as a TV comedy writer . . . where she was often the lone female voice on the staff, and also faced sexual harassment in that era before the #MeToo movement. While she achieves professional success her personal life still throws her more curveballs - miscarriages, eventually having two sons (nicknamed 'The Speck' and 'The Scrap') who are diagnosed as being on the Autism spectrum, and then her life partner experiencing a potentially fatal health development. To Pritchett's credit she bypasses sounding too maudlin and steadily keeps the tone breezy and succinct, with her sharp essays or chapters usually only one or two pages in length. The book also features what is possibly the most unexpectedly heartwarming segment that I've read this year, featuring the author taking her eldest son (who is undemonstrative by nature and does not like loud noises or crowds) to a large wedding reception for one of his beloved teachers. What ultimately transpires there will induce smiles or happy tears.
My Mess is a Bit of a Life - the title courtesy of the author's malapropism to her physician when describing her anxiety - was a uniquely humorous and occasionally dramatic vignette-styled memoir by a screenwriter who is best known in the U.S. as an Emmy winner for her work on the wonderfully cutting HBO political sitcom Veep. The British-born Ms. Pritchett speaks of her childhood (mother is referred to as 'The Witch' while father is 'The Patriarch,' but are otherwise nurturing parents), her difficult years of schooling, her failed stint as a teacher, and finally breaking through as a TV comedy writer . . . where she was often the lone female voice on the staff, and also faced sexual harassment in that era before the #MeToo movement. While she achieves professional success her personal life still throws her more curveballs - miscarriages, eventually having two sons (nicknamed 'The Speck' and 'The Scrap') who are diagnosed as being on the Autism spectrum, and then her life partner experiencing a potentially fatal health development. To Pritchett's credit she bypasses sounding too maudlin and steadily keeps the tone breezy and succinct, with her sharp essays or chapters usually only one or two pages in length. The book also features what is possibly the most unexpectedly heartwarming segment that I've read this year, featuring the author taking her eldest son (who is undemonstrative by nature and does not like loud noises or crowds) to a large wedding reception for one of his beloved teachers. What ultimately transpires there will induce smiles or happy tears.
April 25, 2022
Listening to this audiobook, I wanted to give Georgia Pritchett a hug. My Mess Is a Bit of a Life: Adventures in Anxiety is a compilation of her concerns, written down in response to a suggestion by a therapist, whose help she sought to address her anxiety.
Georgia has always had some anxiousness, even from a young age, some worries naturally more daunting than others. She has suffered some serious loss and faced several challenges but brings humor to sharing many of her experiences. In particular, the stories she shares about her young sons are very funny and also touching.
While not read by Georgia herself, Katherine Parkinson did a good job as narrator of this audiobook. I wasn’t familiar with Georgia prior to hearing about this recent release — She is an Emmy award winning writer and has worked on Veep and Succession (2 great shows, IMO), among other projects. Even if you don’t share the exact same concerns or level of anxiety as Georgia, it’s likely you’ll find some relatability in her story.
Georgia has always had some anxiousness, even from a young age, some worries naturally more daunting than others. She has suffered some serious loss and faced several challenges but brings humor to sharing many of her experiences. In particular, the stories she shares about her young sons are very funny and also touching.
While not read by Georgia herself, Katherine Parkinson did a good job as narrator of this audiobook. I wasn’t familiar with Georgia prior to hearing about this recent release — She is an Emmy award winning writer and has worked on Veep and Succession (2 great shows, IMO), among other projects. Even if you don’t share the exact same concerns or level of anxiety as Georgia, it’s likely you’ll find some relatability in her story.
September 26, 2021
Pritchett’s series of short, sharp anecdotes are like particularly hilarious and insightful contributions to a conversation over cocktails. But it’s more than just a few laughs; Pritchett is very frank and honest about the highs (working on Veep) and the lows (two young sons on the autism spectrum) of her life, all navigated while managing her own intense anxiety. I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t find My Mess Is A Bit Of A Life relatable in some measure.
My full review is up now on Keeping Up With The Penguins.
My full review is up now on Keeping Up With The Penguins.
April 22, 2023
Georgia Pritchett is a British screenwriter, best known in America for Veep and Succession. In My Mess is a Bit of a Life she tells us about her life in short vignettes. At times, she made me laugh out loud, and I especially enjoyed her account of parenting her sons and her efforts to deal with anxiety. Katherine Parkinson of the IT Crowd is the perfect narrator for this book, she truly acts the role she is portraying.
August 4, 2021
Aggressively average, not the sort of book about anxiety which should be coming out in 2021. It came across less like a memoir of one’s experiences with mental health and their methods of dealing with it, and more as a therapy journal which was published via the author’s prestige, rather than her talent. It is doubly disappointing that I found out later that she was a writer on many shows which I feel are brilliant, so I have no idea how this came out so one dimensional and lacking in detail
August 14, 2021
Little bite size anecdotes of the author's life, funny, and moving at times, an easy book to dip in and out of.
July 21, 2021
I enjoyed this witty and relatable memoir about Georgia's experiences of life with anxiety. Though I don't have the successful career she has had, a lot of it resonated as she talked about her childhood, family, school, college, personal relationships and professional career and anxiety weaving its way through all of those.
I liked the anecdotal style as I felt it was reflective of an anxious overthinking brain so it felt right. I enjoyed learning about her world, and how the anxiety seemed to take over at times. As an anxious person with a love of writing myself, I found it really inspiring that Georgia used the medium to write down her experiences and find some respite from the struggles. I'm sure it was a cathartic experience and hope she knows that she will help many people with anxiety who read this, despite this not being a self help book as such- it's not about advice but it was insightful nonetheless.
I liked the anecdotal style as I felt it was reflective of an anxious overthinking brain so it felt right. I enjoyed learning about her world, and how the anxiety seemed to take over at times. As an anxious person with a love of writing myself, I found it really inspiring that Georgia used the medium to write down her experiences and find some respite from the struggles. I'm sure it was a cathartic experience and hope she knows that she will help many people with anxiety who read this, despite this not being a self help book as such- it's not about advice but it was insightful nonetheless.
July 26, 2025
I am usually drawn to books that explore anxiety, mental health and the intricate realities of living with disorders. these narratives, when well-executed, can offer profound insight, emotional resonance and even a sense of solidarity. unfortunately, My Mess Is a Bit of a Life fell short of these expectations.
the most disappointing aspect was the writing style. while I am generally receptive to short sentences, pared-down syntax and simple vocabulary, especially when used intentionally to reflect a narrator’s mental state, the execution here lacked depth and purpose. rather than creating intimacy or immediacy, the style often felt flat and uninspired, failing to elevate the personal content into something truly affecting. it made the reading experience feel more like skimming through fragmented thoughts than engaging with a carefully crafted memoir.
that said, the content itself was undeniably compelling. the themes of navigating life with anxiety, making peace with mental health struggles and confronting the messy, nonlinear journey of self-acceptance are inherently powerful. these were the reasons I was able to complete the book in just a few hours. I was interested in what it had to say, even if I didn’t particularly enjoy how it was said. the lessons about embracing imperfection and recognizing the shared humanity in our struggles are important, but the way they were delivered lacked emotional weight.
in terms of emotional impact, the book barely scratched the surface. what could have been an evocative, moving portrayal of mental illness instead felt like a collection of loosely connected observations. the potential for vulnerability and connection was there, but it was undercut by the execution, leaving the work feeling impersonal despite its deeply personal subject matter.
ultimately, while the themes and intentions behind this book are admirable, its lackluster prose and shallow exploration of its ideas left me dissatisfied. it was an interesting read, but only that.
the most disappointing aspect was the writing style. while I am generally receptive to short sentences, pared-down syntax and simple vocabulary, especially when used intentionally to reflect a narrator’s mental state, the execution here lacked depth and purpose. rather than creating intimacy or immediacy, the style often felt flat and uninspired, failing to elevate the personal content into something truly affecting. it made the reading experience feel more like skimming through fragmented thoughts than engaging with a carefully crafted memoir.
that said, the content itself was undeniably compelling. the themes of navigating life with anxiety, making peace with mental health struggles and confronting the messy, nonlinear journey of self-acceptance are inherently powerful. these were the reasons I was able to complete the book in just a few hours. I was interested in what it had to say, even if I didn’t particularly enjoy how it was said. the lessons about embracing imperfection and recognizing the shared humanity in our struggles are important, but the way they were delivered lacked emotional weight.
in terms of emotional impact, the book barely scratched the surface. what could have been an evocative, moving portrayal of mental illness instead felt like a collection of loosely connected observations. the potential for vulnerability and connection was there, but it was undercut by the execution, leaving the work feeling impersonal despite its deeply personal subject matter.
ultimately, while the themes and intentions behind this book are admirable, its lackluster prose and shallow exploration of its ideas left me dissatisfied. it was an interesting read, but only that.
Read
February 16, 2022This felt like reading a very chaotic manifestation of someone's thoughts, snippets of memories and emotions over the course of their life. From the earliest recollection, we have feelings of anxiety and fear, as well as a few laughs along the way.
Georgia has a way of bringing the reader into this world she's created in her head, holding your hand and guiding you through this messy life and making you feel everything with them. While at times I was thrown by just how jumbled everything feels, and trying to connect these often disjointed fleeting moments together, I also felt in tune with everything that was written. It feels very personal and honest, and I really liked that - although at times I was desperate for a bit more structure and a widening explanation of things. Sometimes a topic is covered in a handful of sentences, which lessened their impact.
Personal yet scattered thoughts. I read this in one setting, and thoroughly enjoyed my time.
Georgia has a way of bringing the reader into this world she's created in her head, holding your hand and guiding you through this messy life and making you feel everything with them. While at times I was thrown by just how jumbled everything feels, and trying to connect these often disjointed fleeting moments together, I also felt in tune with everything that was written. It feels very personal and honest, and I really liked that - although at times I was desperate for a bit more structure and a widening explanation of things. Sometimes a topic is covered in a handful of sentences, which lessened their impact.
Personal yet scattered thoughts. I read this in one setting, and thoroughly enjoyed my time.
October 4, 2021
the author humorous look at her journey with anxiety
October 13, 2021
What a delectable, adorable read this was. I had no idea who Georgia Pritchett was, but I quickly grew to like her through her very relatable musings in this unconventional memoir.
The book is a series of vignettes of her life, and Pritchett writes with such humor that I laughed out loud many times. Now, if you know me, you will know that is a hard ask - I rarely laugh. ;-) But this book made me chuckle. It made me nod along. It made me want to tear up everything I have ever written wishing I could write like Pritchett. Because everyone can sound morose, but not everyone can take the morose of your life and transform it into muppets of gluey laughter.
The book is a series of vignettes of her life, and Pritchett writes with such humor that I laughed out loud many times. Now, if you know me, you will know that is a hard ask - I rarely laugh. ;-) But this book made me chuckle. It made me nod along. It made me want to tear up everything I have ever written wishing I could write like Pritchett. Because everyone can sound morose, but not everyone can take the morose of your life and transform it into muppets of gluey laughter.
November 18, 2022
giving you a look into the mind and life of one of britain’s greatest scriptwriters whose work includes the thick of it, not going out, and hbo’s veep and succession, my mess is a bit of a life: adventures in anxiety is a fascinating read on georgia pritchett, a woman many of us will be familiar with for her work and wit. the snippets of her life shared within this show us who she is and how she came to attain the success she rightfully does. always hilarious and honest, i loved this.
”one way of knowing you have crossed from girlhood to womanhood is that men stop furtively masturbating at you from bushes and start shouting things at you from cars. it’s a beautiful moment. there should be some kind of ceremony.”
3.5 stars!
”one way of knowing you have crossed from girlhood to womanhood is that men stop furtively masturbating at you from bushes and start shouting things at you from cars. it’s a beautiful moment. there should be some kind of ceremony.”
3.5 stars!
May 21, 2021
This is a memoir with a difference. Full of quirky anecdotes from the author's childhood (which many of us can probably relate to!) to an awkward adolescence and then on to adulthood and all the anxiety-ridden problems that brings, it is both poignant and funny. The author writes openly and honestly about her experiences, from her writing career to her miscarriages, and then her family. Self-deprecating in a typically British way, the book is a funny, touching, and emotional read. Highly recommend.
June 29, 2021
What was this book?! I always love reading books about anxiety and depression, as it makes me feel that I am not alone when I suffer. However, this cannot be called a book!! This is just short random snippets that don't fit together and don't really explain much.
Did not enjoy this at all!
Did not enjoy this at all!
Read
April 23, 2025unbelievably funny and sometimes a bit too close to home
May 1, 2022
I did not think I would finish this book. . . but it was recommended, and I dove in, with the usual, we can always uncheck an hour in. . .well that never happened.
In therapy, in full confession mode, the author free associates her way to the very last lines, and by the time we got there I realized I had laughed out loud many, many times, gotten quiet and reflective a few time, sobbed once with heartfelt love for the beauty of the moment she'd described, and then was gently read out of her book with her last line, full of appreciation for all that she'd shared with me.
A great read. She's got that British humor, she names things, she can be morose and outside the lines. I loved all of it.
In therapy, in full confession mode, the author free associates her way to the very last lines, and by the time we got there I realized I had laughed out loud many, many times, gotten quiet and reflective a few time, sobbed once with heartfelt love for the beauty of the moment she'd described, and then was gently read out of her book with her last line, full of appreciation for all that she'd shared with me.
A great read. She's got that British humor, she names things, she can be morose and outside the lines. I loved all of it.
April 10, 2021
I don't often laugh out loud when I'm reading but this book got a few. It's written in a very interesting way. The chapters are short and to the point. It's quite matter of fact even when talking about strange events. I think that's why it's funny, you don't see the joke approaching, there isn't a long build up. It's the same with the sad parts, they just appear. All the more shocking when they do. It's a really clever way of writing. It also means it's hard to put down because when the chapters are so short you think, just one more. Then you read another ten.
The writer is talking about her life which is simultaneously both normal and not. She just casually drops in who she has worked with as though they aren't huge stars of comedy.
The wedding story was one of the most moving things I've read. Beautiful.
The writer is talking about her life which is simultaneously both normal and not. She just casually drops in who she has worked with as though they aren't huge stars of comedy.
The wedding story was one of the most moving things I've read. Beautiful.
April 18, 2021
Georgia Pritchett's writing exudes warmth and poignancy. She is remarkably efficient with her words, which means this memoir is delightfully moreish and fast paced. The book begins as a recollection of a childhood filled with anxiety and grows into an exploration of the joys and intense challenges of professional and family life (and of course their inevitable intersections). Some of Pritchett's descriptions of her lowest moments were deeply moving and some of the most realistic descriptions of depression that I have ever read.
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June 18, 2025yes, i did just read this in three hours but they are very short essays so leave me alone.
me and nonfiction books have a strange relationship. i want so badly to like them but i feel like i'm reading the wrong ones. this is an essay collection, more like vignette collection, about this womens career, childhood, and children. all the c's. its sorta interesting and she's funny but i feel nothing about it. research is going to need to happen so that i can find a nonfiction book that works for me, its not actually that deep but sometimes i want to be a nonfiction girlie and i don't know what to read...
(no rating because its a memoir)
me and nonfiction books have a strange relationship. i want so badly to like them but i feel like i'm reading the wrong ones. this is an essay collection, more like vignette collection, about this womens career, childhood, and children. all the c's. its sorta interesting and she's funny but i feel nothing about it. research is going to need to happen so that i can find a nonfiction book that works for me, its not actually that deep but sometimes i want to be a nonfiction girlie and i don't know what to read...
(no rating because its a memoir)
June 8, 2022
You can tell Georgia Pritchett is a comedy writer because this book is written as a series of short sketches on anxiety. Very funny, not so light at times. Although the sense of humor is on point, it sometimes feels claustrophobic to put yourself in the author's shoes.
June 23, 2021
My Mess is a Bit of a Life by Georgia Pritchett is probably the most fantastic memoir I have ever read.
Told with warmth, pace and humour, it touches on dark areas while remaining both engaging and touching throughout. Georgia is a writer on many of the best comedy shows of recent years. Georgia is a woman in a typically male profession. She suffers from anxiety and depression. She had miscarriages before having her wonderful neuro-atypical sons. Through musings, vignettes, observations and recollections, Georgia takes the reader on a journey that is impossible to put down. I read it in one sitting and would emphatically recommend it (and had to keep reading bits out loud to someone else it was so good).
With many thanks to Faber & Faber and Netgalley for the ARC.
Told with warmth, pace and humour, it touches on dark areas while remaining both engaging and touching throughout. Georgia is a writer on many of the best comedy shows of recent years. Georgia is a woman in a typically male profession. She suffers from anxiety and depression. She had miscarriages before having her wonderful neuro-atypical sons. Through musings, vignettes, observations and recollections, Georgia takes the reader on a journey that is impossible to put down. I read it in one sitting and would emphatically recommend it (and had to keep reading bits out loud to someone else it was so good).
With many thanks to Faber & Faber and Netgalley for the ARC.
October 6, 2024
Georgia is a child after my own quaking heart. I started off finding her childhood stories very annoying, but going over my earliest diary entries, I quickly put aside my annoyance. Her adult life is one I can sympathize with. I have adventures in anxiety as well. If she has more books out there, I think I will give them a go.
4.5 stars.
4.5 stars.
May 13, 2022
A quick easy read. Had me laughing out loud at times!
January 25, 2022
Thanks to Netgalley and HarperOne for the ARC of this!
This was at times funny and relatable, I can definitely see the comparison to Jenny Lawson, and the description that drew me in felt delivered on. Some of the stories were not particularly funny at all and were instead sad and serious, so if you were looking for something to cheer you up about anxiety, something that holds funny the entire time, this might not be the right collection for you. I found, though, that the moments of humor helped to temper the more serious stories to make them more palatable. I also learned, that while teeth things in books are triggering for me, someone anxious talking about their teeth problems and scary situation only heightened that feeling, so if you have anxiety around some of the main topics of the stories, they might be harder to take. That isn't, like, surprising, but it is something to be cognizant of going in, and stay safe! Overall I am glad I read this and feel like it helped to see anxiety so clearly understood by someone else, as it helped me feel less alone in my anxiety.
This was at times funny and relatable, I can definitely see the comparison to Jenny Lawson, and the description that drew me in felt delivered on. Some of the stories were not particularly funny at all and were instead sad and serious, so if you were looking for something to cheer you up about anxiety, something that holds funny the entire time, this might not be the right collection for you. I found, though, that the moments of humor helped to temper the more serious stories to make them more palatable. I also learned, that while teeth things in books are triggering for me, someone anxious talking about their teeth problems and scary situation only heightened that feeling, so if you have anxiety around some of the main topics of the stories, they might be harder to take. That isn't, like, surprising, but it is something to be cognizant of going in, and stay safe! Overall I am glad I read this and feel like it helped to see anxiety so clearly understood by someone else, as it helped me feel less alone in my anxiety.
October 21, 2021
Have you watched Succession? Veep? You might still not have heard of Georgia Pritchett. She is the multi-award winning (BAFTAs, Emmys, you name it) writer behind hit shows like these. She is also the author of the poignant yet comical memoir “My Mess is a Bit of Life.”
Beginning with memories from far back in her childhood through her teenage years up to the present, Pritchett strings together anecdotes and musings about her life. When I started reading the book, I had no idea who she was. I went into it without reading anything about the book simply because Smitha Murthy suggested it. There’s so much humility and modesty in her writing that my impression throughout the book until the last few chapters was that she was a writer who was struggling in her profession, getting bad reviews but still sticking to it spiritedly.
Pritchett writes with great candour about the problems of being a painfully shy kid (I can so relate!), building a career for herself in a deeply misogynistic industry, managing high levels of anxiety since childhood, and dealing with parenthood later on. She addresses all these different aspects of her life with self-deprecatory humour balanced with emotionally charged moments. Here, she describes how critics saw her work on the movie “Spice World”
“They went on to describe it as ‘thin and entertaining’. Something I would rather like to have on my gravestone.”
And on her chronic anxiety
“When I was little I used to think that sheep were clouds that had fallen to earth. On cloudy days I used to worry that I would be squashed by a sheep.”
In the end, you get a picture of a woman who is, in many ways, like you and me with her shortcomings, stress, joys, and everything in between. Vulnerable yet walking through life braving everything it throws at us. That’s how Pritchett makes us see her beyond the glitter and glamour of celebrities she met or the awards she won. She is incredibly grounded and very relatable.
This was a wonderful, time-blurring read. I raced through it.
Beginning with memories from far back in her childhood through her teenage years up to the present, Pritchett strings together anecdotes and musings about her life. When I started reading the book, I had no idea who she was. I went into it without reading anything about the book simply because Smitha Murthy suggested it. There’s so much humility and modesty in her writing that my impression throughout the book until the last few chapters was that she was a writer who was struggling in her profession, getting bad reviews but still sticking to it spiritedly.
Pritchett writes with great candour about the problems of being a painfully shy kid (I can so relate!), building a career for herself in a deeply misogynistic industry, managing high levels of anxiety since childhood, and dealing with parenthood later on. She addresses all these different aspects of her life with self-deprecatory humour balanced with emotionally charged moments. Here, she describes how critics saw her work on the movie “Spice World”
“They went on to describe it as ‘thin and entertaining’. Something I would rather like to have on my gravestone.”
And on her chronic anxiety
“When I was little I used to think that sheep were clouds that had fallen to earth. On cloudy days I used to worry that I would be squashed by a sheep.”
In the end, you get a picture of a woman who is, in many ways, like you and me with her shortcomings, stress, joys, and everything in between. Vulnerable yet walking through life braving everything it throws at us. That’s how Pritchett makes us see her beyond the glitter and glamour of celebrities she met or the awards she won. She is incredibly grounded and very relatable.
This was a wonderful, time-blurring read. I raced through it.
November 2, 2021
I liked this memoir for the humor and the charming personality of Pritchett herself, though it still managed to leave me a little lukewarm. At times I felt a bit lost as to what the ultimate objective of the book was; it posits being about anxiety but I didn’t really glean much of that from the author - she doesn’t do feelings as she says and doesn’t really reach any conclusions about said anxiety, it’s sort of just the punchline (which is fine, but then what is the book trying to achieve?). It didn’t really work as a memoir either, as it’s so fragmented as to not really give the clear picture of a life, more so a paraphrase of a life. Maybe I just went into it with different expectations as to what I would receive. Despite that though it is an enjoyable book, readable, and funny - it just ultimately won’t leave me with a lasting impression.
May 28, 2022
Didn’t know who the author was when I got the audiobook from the library.
I thought most of the snippets were trying too hard to be funny (NOT succeeding), trying to be offbeat or trite (worrying about being single, dying alone, finding her body weeks later with her cat …).
And, reading other reviews, people seem to think the author’s names for parents, partner and kids are hilarious, I thought the opposite. But, to each, their own. This is why I get books from the library.
Oh, and a note to younger women, if you get on an elevator and your much older idol comes in to kiss and fondle you, and to your chagrin, he does it again the next night. I suggest to take the stairs. Also, don’t answer the hotel room phone. And why don’t you name names?
I thought most of the snippets were trying too hard to be funny (NOT succeeding), trying to be offbeat or trite (worrying about being single, dying alone, finding her body weeks later with her cat …).
And, reading other reviews, people seem to think the author’s names for parents, partner and kids are hilarious, I thought the opposite. But, to each, their own. This is why I get books from the library.
Oh, and a note to younger women, if you get on an elevator and your much older idol comes in to kiss and fondle you, and to your chagrin, he does it again the next night. I suggest to take the stairs. Also, don’t answer the hotel room phone. And why don’t you name names?
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