The Art of Not Having It All: True Stories of Men, Sex and Other Disasters - Hardcover

Melissa Kite's book makes me feel sane as a fellow woman who doesn't want it all and only dreams of remarrying when I need help carrying the groceries. You'll devour this book in one sitting stopping only to laugh at the way Melissa makes being ambivalent to yet obsessed with love hilarious. You'll want to make her your new best friend. And although she shies away from the word, Kite is brave for writing this book because even though it's the 21st Century, being a woman who doesn't have or want it all is still seen as a shame, shamefully. "Jen Kirkman, New York Times bestselling author of I Can Barely Take Care of Myself"

A humorous memoir...laugh-out-loud material...A smart, entertaining and woefully funny take on being female and single "Kirkus"

A cut above the rest of this genre, thanks to her caustic wit, making this entertaining and strangely cathartic. "Glamour (UK)"

An endearing modern-day Bridget Jones. "Easy Living Magazine (UK)"

An exasperatingly funny memoir. "Daily Mail (UK)""

Melissa Kite's book makes me feel sane as a fellow woman who doesn't want it all and only dreams of remarrying when I need help carrying the groceries. You'll devour this book in one sitting stopping only to laugh at the way Melissa makes being ambivalent to yet obsessed with love hilarious. You'll want to make her your new best friend. And although she shies away from the word, Kite is brave for writing this book because even though it's the 21st Century, being a woman who doesn't have or want it all is still seen as a shame, shamefully. Jen Kirkman, New York Times bestselling author of I Can Barely Take Care of Myself

A humorous memoir...laugh-out-loud material...A smart, entertaining and woefully funny take on being female and single Kirkus

A cut above the rest of this genre, thanks to her caustic wit, making this entertaining and strangely cathartic. Glamour (UK)

An endearing modern-day Bridget Jones. Easy Living Magazine (UK)

An exasperatingly funny memoir. Daily Mail (UK)

Melissa Kite's hilarious and honest memoir draws readers in to her exploits in not having it all in the world of leaning in—complete with dating misadventures, heroic plumbers, and clinically obese fish.

Does a great weekend for you mean scrubbing all the grouting in your bathroom with a toothbrush? Do you fantasize about the handyman who in three days brought you more happiness than your useless ex-boyfriend did in three years? Do you write to-do lists that need paginating, and include items such as "re-mortgage house, get pregnant, climb Kilimanjaro"?

Welcome to Melissa Kite's life and her uproarious, no-holds-barred memoir, The Art of Not Having it All, about the adventures of not having it all as a single lady in your prime. For a long time, Melissa had no idea there was anyone else out there remotely like her. Nearly every other woman she knew seemed to be valiantly juggling work and family life. By contrast, Melissa felt as though, in the fluttering mass of yellow Post-it notes on her fridge there was one that read, "Don't forget to get married and have kids," which had got covered in shopping lists, dry-cleaner receipts and trash collection schedules.

If not having it all (the white picket fence, the kid, the job, the Mr. Right who helps you free your chubby angelfish who has wedged himself into a plastic log) means having just enough for you, then get ready to fall in love with your new best friend...