When I'm Not Myself

Once again, with astonishing truth and refreshing humor, Deborah J. Wolf brilliantly depicts a woman's real joys and sorrows during love, loss, and starting anew. . .Sometimes a marriage is over long before it officially ends. When Cara's husband packs a bulging suitcase and leaves her for a younger woman ironically named Barbie, Cara can only say, "e;That's it?"e; before the tears begin. Now Cara has lost three dress sizes while picking up the pieces of her life with four kids and no man, and a mother whose idea of support involves detailing how Cara didn't do enough to save the marriage. But she is surviving with the help of her best friends: Melanie, aka Mel-the-fixer-of-everything, who feels that faithless Jack's departure is the best thing that could have happened; Leah, solid as a rock, who is always there to lean on; and Paige, the casserole queen, who shows up with mac-n-cheese and sympathy. Despite frustrations and self-doubts, Cara is learning to hope and heal as she transforms from a long-suffering wife to the vibrant, self-assured woman she was meant to be. But the road to Cara's brighter future is strewn with complications, especially when the "e;other woman"e; asks for a favor. . .and Cara's path takes a poignant twist on the road to happiness.