Review of Operating Instructions

I finished the book, in under ten days! I can't believe it. With life the way it is, it usually takes me weeks, even months for one book. I have started reading her 'Bird by Bird' and am enjoying it as well.

The book flowed like water. We also know that water cut the Grand Canyon. It was so easy to read and still so profound. I can completely relate to the colic, of having love for your child and yet wanting to do something very bad, and feeling horrible for having those feelings. I could also relate to the "Please let Sam outlive me" chain of thought. I have it often, and it always makes me cry.

I really enjoyed her sense of humor. I have been through similar moments with my babies, and I wish I had read the book then so I could enjoy them through her lens. A lot of specifics escape me now, and there is this little orange glow inside my head where the book is stored.

I am amazed how "confessional" (in her own words) she is. She admits to stuff about herself and others that I never would. She talks about having this worm inside that needs to be fed. I have known that worm too. I also felt very jealous of her "tribe", people she could lean so completely on, for help and support. I would like a tribe, but what little I have is scattered all over the globe.

One thing I couldn't relate to was her relationship with God. It doesn't bother me that she has faith, but because I don't, at least not the kind she has, I couldn't relate to the moments when she describes feeling the presence of God.