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Shooze
Posted July 8, 2010
Hot (news) Flash: We Are Not Alone
I ordered it, eagerly waited for its arrival and when it came I devoured it. Michelle Churchill's "I Thought I Grew Up" is a sophisticated story of one smart, funny and very honest woman's journey through the taboo subject of menopause and the highly entertaining world of internet dating. Her candor and consuming thoughts of men (and sex!) while holding the "m" word accountable, was as though I was reading my own reverie with each turn of the page. At last! There are other women out there who are struggling with similar experiences. I laughed. I cried. I wanted to buy her a drink. And thank her for sharing such an intimate and sincere story.
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Christy19
Posted August 23, 2009
I Thought I Grew Up!
I Thought I Grew Up had me hooked from the start. The book takes us through the author's quest to find Mr. Right through her series of internet dates while also experiencing the affects of menopause. Ms. Churchill maintains a good sense of humor as she tells us about those hot flashes and recounts some of her interesting dates. At times, I found myself laughing out loud. Other times the book was both touching and sad. As a result, I had a difficult time putting the book down. I must admit, I was a little disappointed once I finished the last chapter since I didn't want the story to end. Overall, I would definately recommend this book!
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Anonymous
Posted July 20, 2009
I Thought I Grew Up As Well
Whatever the specific circumstances, we have all on occasion found ourselves mired in life. Coping with the march of time, the storm of hormones and the primal need for partnership, Michelle Churchill is an audacious adventurer. Her candid explorations are startling, comical and heartfelt as she examines life and discovers more of herself.
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I Thought I Grew Up allows the reader to be the 'fly on the wall' during her trek through the challenging terrain of internet dating. Whether she is accepting the largess of Lady Stetson, the heartbreak of lost love or the realization that the past affects the future but doesn't have to define it, Churchill's voice remains buoyant emboldening us all. -
Steamy and absorbing
Who says romance and an active sex life are the province of the young? Michelle's honest account of searching for 'Mr Right' is the substance of 'Rom-coms' and fairytales for the middle aged, who are no less sensitive and in need of a 'soul mate' than the Sex and the City twenty/thirty-something.
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KHM
Posted June 19, 2009
Hot Flashes Big Bangs and New Beginnings
I THOUGHT I GREW UP, was a total departure from my normal book-reading experience. As the slowest reader on the planet, most books sit next to my bed for months, even years, while I slog my way through the psyche and sensibilities of the author. This was different. I finished this book in two days.
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In fact, I don't remember reading Michelle Churchill's memoir. I remember only a direct experience. A touching, scary, exciting, sad, insightful and ultimately liberating experience.
Michelle talks to us as if we're her best friends. She tells us everything, or so it seems. She talks about menopause, men, dating-services, dates, family, career. I particularly liked the fact that the chapters are short. In most cases, one date comprises one chapter.
I found myself nervous before each date, as if I were the one primping and prepping myself. Each date was exciting. After a good one, I breathe a sigh of relief and look forward to date #2. Some dates are over before they start. Some are scary. Some are disgusting. Some are breathtakingly exciting, warm and intimate. Many are laugh-out-loud funny!
Every date is an opportunity for Michelle to reflect candidly about herself and the age-old search for true love. Her reflections are poignant, witty, economical; never precious or sanctimonious. Over the course of this book, she comes through a lot. She dates the widest variety of men you can imagine and lets herself feel everything that each date brings up: memories, feelings, confusion, clarity. She stops looking for answers and settles on honesty--honesty with herself, her dates, her readers.
This is the practical advice from Michelle's book that I will take with me into my own menopause. Keep searching. Keep experiencing. Let yourself feel what you feel. When possible, KNOW what you feel and trust your friends to help you in this.
While moods swing back and forth and weight goes up and down and Mr. Right seems elusive, the heart keeps beating a path right back to its own door. -
TMangne
Posted May 8, 2009
"Men O'Pause" - Not In This Case
Menopause will always remain a mystery to the male of the species. As much as he may say he understands, a man just can't go there. Yes he knows that hot flashes and mood swings are involved, but the interior mental life of a woman in the throws of "the change" remain mostly terra incognito. In addition, the subject of menopause has tended to be a private issue and discussed only among women - if discussed at all.
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That is until now.
Michelle Churchill's forthright, touching and, at points, laugh out loud odyssey through this phase of her life offers a seldom seen view of what a woman experiences. To be clear, this is her journey; it is not generic, but most women will find elements of commonality with her and be reassured that they are not going through menopause alone.
Finding herself almost fifty and having crashed up against the male corporate glass ceiling, Michelle changes careers, gives up smoking and caffeine, and enters menopause. All of this at once? Battle hardened generals would weep at less. Michelle's almost immediate emotional and physical response to the situation is to discover herself thrown into a form of adult adolescence. All she can think about is men and sex, and her libido kicks into super drive. This is supposed to happen to teenagers not women nearing fifty. Thinking about men is not enough, she takes action and burns up internet dating sites to get her hands (literally) on the men. She details her dating and sexcapades with great humor, candor and frustration at just how much some men can be deluded about themselves. In the process she is runs the spectrum of emotions - happy to sad and hurt, and yes the hot flashes are there. At the same time her path takes her on a much more personal adventure to rediscover who she really is and how incidents in her past have helped form her.
Her writing style is idiosyncratic and gives a personal flavor to the vignette chapters of the book. "I Thought I Grew Up" shows that a woman can get through menopause, and it's not all sadness and tears. Some of it can be hot, earthy fun.