The Blackberry Tea Club: Women in Their Glory Years

by Barbara Herrick

Mid-life crisis is not a crisis-it is a passage into joy. This was the essential truth discovered by the four women of a certain age, founding members of the Blackberry Tea Club, which began as late-night conversations while sipping blackberry tea with a little kick added. Those conversations about children, men, jobs, weight, clothes, food, travel, gossip, politics, medicine, healing, spirituality, adventure, and books grew slowly, beautifully into the Blackberry Tea Club and the discovery of the Glory Years."The Blackberry Tea Club" weaves together essays, stories, and poetry, celebrating mid-life in all its silliness, sorrow, and glory. Bottom middle age is much more than menopause. These are the Glory Years for women, years that bring about the expansion and reorganizing of the mind, heart, and spirit, and the birthing of a larger self of immense compassion, intellect, will, spirit, love, and capability.Divided into five parts, each one explores different 1. Seeing mid-life crisis as an adamant search for joy; 2. Discovering opportunities for women to appreciate their bodies; 3. Exploring multiple facets of love; 4. Letting go of the bad stuff to relish what light there is."The Blackberry Tea Club" offers stories of adventure, food, spirit, and the community of women in their Glory Years.

Genres: Nonfiction

164 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2004

Reviews

[Linda Hart · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing book. The writing is poor, so I'm guessing the publisher/editor came up with the great title. Don't bother with this one because there are so many other rah! rah! books for the 50+ age woman that are actually fun rea and insightful, 2 qualities lacking here.

[Ginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I see this book got a lot of poor reviews. All I can say, as my own recommendation, is that I started and stopped it several times - and each time I picked it back up, I wondered why I'd stopped. Not even the library wanted it. (I purchased it at a used library book sale.) But the author was writing from the same place my spirit has been stuck in, for the past couple of years, and so I really enjoyed the journey. I think you have to be "ready" for this one. I was.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apparently, I liked this a lot more than most people.

[Sherry Cooper · Rating 1 out of 5]

this book is so trite and boring. I picked it up at a Spa Weekend thinking it would be like the YA YA Club. Nothing could be further from the truth. There is not plot line--just a never ending number of rambling stream of consciousness comments about growing fat in middle age and trying to love it.

[Zjourney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed it - & I found it a little crazy making all at the same time. She uses so, so, so, so, so many superfluous words to say a few beautiful, moving things. Sometimes it reads like a long, long version of the song "My Favorite Things". ... & I can't wait to share it with my best girlfriend.

[Nancy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I would not recommend this book it was very disappointing. It was poorly written, with random thoughts presented haphazardly.

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating book. Once I got over my shock in learning that women's glory tears are their forties and fifties, I was able to relax and enjoy. I love the intertwining of narrative and poetry. Some of the poetry reminds me of a church litany, listing all the saints and their glory. These are of women and their experiences. There was enough nature to ground me. Being in a new frame of mind in this time of Covid, I saw things differently than I would have before now. For instance, the women and their adventure travels seemed mythic rather than real. Yet the issues that are laced through the book are ones women face, such as healthy eating no matter the circumstances. A saitisfying read.

Either I will have to wrest the title "glory years" from Herrick and pin it to the sixties and seventies or invent a new vocabulary for those of us who are young old.

[Missyjohnson1 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the beginning of this book. It seemed to be a story of glory years exploration with a group of women. the raft trip in Idaho with beautiful young and fearless raft guides. then after that first part, not so much. Then the rest of the book seemed to be a lot of repetitive thoughts of the author. everything was a metaphor. I like metaphors, but this was too much. (leaving out the corny metaphor example that I could have made)
the best parts of the book where when the author was talking about a friend or family member or niece or nephew. Her descriptions of them were sweet and lovely without repetition. When the story was just about herself,(majority) I did not like it so much. I do know how much that she likes chocolate, men, cooking and poetry.

[Anne Egbert · Rating 2 out of 5]

If this were not a library book club pick I would not have finished it. I appreciated the fact that the author lives in my home town. It was fun to find references to places in town and throughout the state that I recognized. However, the book itself seemed disjointed. There were some parts I liked but overall a 2 star is the best I can do. At the end of the discussion about the book at the book club, not a single person said they would recommend this to others.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super quick read. It's been on my to-read list for a long while. The time was right to read and appreciate it now. Several of the of the author's experiences with entering midlife were familiar and a comfort to read about. I especially enjoyed the chapter about the matriarchs and the codependency salad. It made me smile and cringe.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was kind of strangely formatted...not a strong flowing beginning to end kind of story, though I always felt peaceful when I was reading it...kind of a magical mix of words at times.

[Super Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four stars for the name and the jokes I’ve been able to get out of it!!

[Wendy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book wasn't really what I was expecting. From the title and cover, it seemed like it was going to be a tale of female friendship in those middle/glory years. It was more just short little musings from the author's point of view.

I got bored and quit reading several times-- pursued other books. But there are compelling parts. The messages are good. Ultimately, I was just a bit confused. I would have liked it to be more cohesive, more clear in the point it was trying to make.

I would be curious to read this again when I reach middle-age to see if I find it more compelling.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

borrowed from library
SUGGEST FOR Brenda

this book just doesn't compete with the other women's books I am reading....didn't finish
as I scan now the later chapters I find more weighty material

I am reading more academic material and this is light reading-fluffy
some of it is silly- nothing wrong with that-just not in the mood
and some of it is even poetic
slightly autobiographic

p 93 SKYCRACKING she recommends: Maya Angelou
SARK
Clarissa Pinkola Estés
Anne Wilson Schaef
Julia Cameron
Joan Borysenko
Terry Tempest Williams
Candace Pert

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really what I was expecting. Here is a quote:

"I wasn't the only woman making this journey into the depth of stories, both cultural and personal... As Glory Years women crossed into deep, we all began to understand the world differently."

"This is what I learned: Politics are tricky and peculiar, more often about vested interest than common good. History was written by the victors; the victimized and the silent might have had another story altogether. Economics is a shared illusion based on assignments of worth that might not be valid. Healthy competition respects the competitors; but healthy collaboration achieves a success competitors envy. War resolves nothing. Most of what happens to us is preventable by staying away from junk food and junk living, taking a walk in the mornings, paying our bills on time and saving a little money, hugging our children and snuggling our mates. Our lives grow simpler as we grow more complex."

[Kate · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Each of us is more than merely beautiful.
Our bodies are worthy of the tenderest of touches,
worthy of the emerald days, amethyst dusks, and ruby dawns,
worthy of rambles in beautiful places,
worthy of white silk,
worthy of dark chocolate. worthy of pearls and violets,
worthy of belly laughs and cries in the night,
worthy of the long slow dance."
~~ from the Blackberry Tea Club
"Women in our glory years, aka women of a certain age, will recognize themselves and their cohorts in this wild ride of a memoir-cum-guide to forming one's own Blackberry Tea Club."
~~back cover

While I agree with the premises of this book, it was written from a place that didn't resonate with me. And that quote should be centered, but GoodReads doesn't accept the center command.

[Douglas Lord · Rating 2 out of 5]

Herrick (Boise: A Global Community in the West) celebrates the collective joys and hard-learned wisdom of femininity in lush, poetic prose that often borders on precious. Although confident ("I am nothing but adrenaline and exuberance"), she does not provide how-to. The final chapter should have come first, as it explains that Herrick can't have children. Marginal.

Find reviews of books for men at Books for Dudes, Books for Dudes, the online reader's advisory column for men from Library Journal. Copyright Library Journal.

[Carrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think The Last Girls is a better book dealing with a similar demographic.

This is combination poetry/essay, and while I found much of the language powerful, I was under the impression that it was going to be a novel, not an essay on women in their glory years. There are snippets of biography, elements of poetry, insights and wisdom, and definitely parts that are quite humorous. I can see that this might be a book to reread when I am 50 rather than 30, though the woman's voice -- the writer-- seems less like a 50-something than it does an older woman.

[Dundee Library]

A collection of thoughts, memories, poems, and ideas gathered and discussed by a group of four women in their "Glory Years." The author takes note of the fact that women in their midyears are powerful and still up to the joy of discovering new things and realizing that they are in fact in a good, peaceful place in life. I thought the book would be funny and uplifting. It was not. However, it gave me many ideas to ponder about life and the situations we all encounter along the way. I enjoyed it even though it was not at all what I expected it to be.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I liked it! It's an autobiographical telling of the author's experiences and take on being in her 50s, and yes, it rambled a bit, and yes, she's wordy, but her heart came through as quite clearly compassionate and empathetic, a Glory Years woman who has been through the ringer and lived to not only tell about it, but to encourage others through their journeys as well. Not a 5 star book, but certainly not less than a 3, either.

[Connie T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book so much I bought a copy! I can definitely relate to all the author has to say.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting read about women in their Glory Years - 50s and on. It was relaxing for me and comforting at the same time. I could have finished it in a day but for the Christmas holidays.

[Lee Ann]

Random thoughts published in biographical form. I am not sure how I felt about this book. I enjoyed some parts, but don't really understand the tthe point of the book.

[Carrie]

non-fiction. A woman's story in prose and poetry.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

some parts i really enjoyed. some i did not.

[Karissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Would not recommend...poorly written. It was short enough that I got through it in two evenings though.