Too Much of a Good Thing Is Wonderful

by Barreca, Regina

• ISBN13: 9780939883066
• ISBN10: 0939883066
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-05-01
• Publisher: Bibliopola Pr

Summary

In her newest book, Regina Barreca writes of growing up in an urban Italian American household under the watchful eyes of her aunts. She shares stories of an adult pajama party, her own hysterectomy, and adventures (and misadventures) with her many friends. She describes learning about her mother's French Canadian relatives, her husband's love of too-fast cars, and her "talent" for remembering lyrics to vintage rock 'n 'roll songs. Always warm and humorous, Barreca, who was deemed a "Feminist Humor Maven" by Ms. magazine, has a knack for voicing the thoughts and concerns of ordinary Americans. First published in Northeast Magazine and the Chicago Tribune, her columns have attracted a wide readership. Her many fans eagerly await this new collection.

Author Biography

Editor of The Penguin Book of Women's Humor (1996), REGINA BARRECA's numerous books include Sweet Revenge: The Wicked Delights of Getting Even (1995), Fay Weldon's Wicked Fictions (1994), Perfect Husbands (and Other Fairy Tales) (1993), and They Used to Call Me Snow White, But I Drifted (1991). Very popular on the media circuit, including "20/20," "The Today Show," and "Oprah," with speaking engagements throughout the country, she is Professor of English Literature and Feminist Theory at University of Connecticut.

Table of Contents

Family
My Italian Aunts Taught Me to Dance	3	(8)
The Other Half	11	(4)
In All Honesty	15	(6)
Dialogue	21	(4)
On Being A Stepmother	25	(4)
Saying ``Uncle''	29	(4)
Dreams of My Mother	33	(4)
Found and Lost	37	(4)
Radio Voices	41	(4)
Mea Culpa, Mom	45	(4)
A Love Story	49	(4)
My Brother	53	(4)
Big Days	57	(4)
Eat Before You Go	61	(4)
My Grandmother, A Chicken, and Death	65	(6)
Friends
Other People's Moms	71	(4)
All-Time Friends	75	(4)
How Old Are You, Really?	79	(4)
Do You Like What You Like?	83	(4)
Who Wants to Date Norman Bates?	87	(4)
It's a Girl	91	(6)
Desire
I Always Feel Rich When I...	97	(4)
Quest for the Lost Book of Childhood	101	(4)
Writing	105	(4)
To the North	109	(8)
Envy	117	(6)
Lust	123	(6)
In My Next Life I (In No Particular Hierarchical Order) Will	129	(4)
Out Of Focus	133	(4)
Vice	137	(6)
Greed	143	(8)
Pride	151	(6)
Sloth	157	(8)
Romance
Anatomy of an Affair	165	(6)
Post Valentine s Day Review	171	(4)
Knock on Wood	175	(4)
Division	179	(4)
After The Fall	183	(6)
It's My Party....	189	(4)
Romance on the Rocks	193	(8)
The ``C'' Word: ``Commitment''	201	(6)
Education
My C Minus	207	(4)
In Love With Libraries	211	(4)
School Work	215	(4)
Money and Luck	219	(4)
A Dangerous Woman	223	(4)
Lessons from School	227	(4)
Excess Baggage	231	(4)
What's A Nice Girl Like You Doing In a Place Like This?	235	(4)
Leaving Hanover	239	(8)
Culture
Confessions of A Recovering Catholic	247	(4)
Over Bored	251	(4)
It Even Smells Big	255	(4)
Just Don't Do It	259	(4)
No More Dead Heroines	263	(4)
Les Temps Perdue... Or, Confessions of a One-Chicken Woman	267	(4)
Family-Style Dining	271	(4)
Days of Whine and Roses	275	(4)
How Do You Solve a Problem Like Medea?	279	(12)
Fear and Feminism	291	(10)
Confessions	301	(10)
Have Yourself a Postmodern Little Christmas	311	(4)
Just Like Home	315	(4)
Synopses	319	(4)
Faking It	323	(4)
Gender Quiz	327	(4)
See? America?	331	(4)
Happiness	335	(8)
What Makes You Mad?	343	(10)
Growing Up
Childhood is Not Kid Stuff	353	(4)
The passive Voice	357	(4)
Child's Play	361	(4)
Highway 40 (Revisited)	365	(4)
Stuff I Didn't Think Would Still Bother Me At My Age (But Does)	369	(4)
Reading Secrets	373	(4)
The Big, Really Big Book of Memories	377	(4)
Ask Me How Old I Am	381	(6)
Body
A Womb With A View	387	(10)
Shades of Grey	397	(4)
Picture This	401	(4)
Will My Seat Become a Flotation Device?	405	(4)
Skin Deep	409	(4)
Coloring Inside the Lines	413	(6)
Domesticity
House Porn	419	(2)
Arguing About Money	421	(4)
Coming Clean	425	(4)
How to Argue Bitterly Even When Nothing Is Wrong	429	(4)
Snore Queen	433	(4)
Lassie Stays Home	437	(4)
The Woman Who Keeps Our Marriage Together	441	(4)
Scratch and Sniff	445	(4)
Picture This	449	(6)
Anxiety
The Holiday Impaired	455	(4)
Guilt-Edged	459	(4)
Miss(ing) Manners	463	(4)
Sleepless in Storrs	467	(4)
Dial ``N'' for ``Nervous''	471	(4)
The Next Bus Home	475	(4)
What You Fear = Who You Are	479	(10)
Stop Trying to Tie the Perfect Bow	489