The Last Time I Was Me

I loved this book. It's got some 'language' in it, but coincidentally, they're words I (ahem) usually use in similar circumstances. I laughed so hard I nearly cried at certain points.

Jeanne Stewart has been working 60 to 80 hours a week hocking products for an advertising firm in Chicago. Alcohol and a boyfriend she names "Slick Dick" seem to balm the effects, but one day when "Dick" is caught cheating(with several women) and she can't lie about the merit of one more useless commodity, she rages out. Coating Slick Dick's condoms with peanut oil,(of which he is allergic) she escapes to Portland, Oregon to find solace with her brother, Charlie, and family. But on a drunken binge she decides to stop in Weltana, OR about 100 miles short of her goal. Here she meets a myriad of elcectic characters that aid her in finding a new start. She buys a dilapidated wreck of home and hires a Mexican family fleeing from a migrant farm to reconstruct it. Meantime she lives in a boarding house with germ phobic Rosvita, dines at an Opera Pancake House, and runs naked by the river at night. Hilarious moments ensue as well as sadder ones in Weltana, but Jeanne begins to heal. Don't find Jeanne a pathetic, soft spoken soul.....contraire, she is a FIRECRACKER with a mouth that explodes a bit too often. Mandated into an eclectic anger management class(due to the condom incident) she befriends another set of dynamic folks who take her under their broken wings. Going to work for her brother Charlie to re-elect the governor, Jeanne creates more messes than a cow with diarrhea. But through it all she is spitfires her way to redemption. Cathy Lamb has to have a most incredible sense of fun, yet she never just leaves it at humor. She knows how to write emotion. She also knows how to compose a story that keeps you flowing along so entrenched in her characters you wouldn't dare put down the book. I am truly excited about this new author. Having read and loved "Julia's Chocolates" her first endeavor, I look with great anticipation for her next book.

I LOVED this book! Parts of it were heart-wrenching; parts were laugh out loud funny! The hilarious parts reminded me of some of the funnier Stephanie Plum scenes and commentary. I liked all the different characters and the anger management class descriptions were priceless. All in all, a great read - very entertaining1

Cathy Lamb's strength as a writer is her ability to create a wonderful cast of colorful, eccentric characters in her stories. The Last Time I Was Me is the story of Jeanne Stewart, a successful career woman who suffers a nervous breakdown over the loss of her mother to cancer and the discovery that her live-in boyfriend is an unscrupulous Lothario. Facing assault charges for retaliating against her boyfriend, Jeanne moves to Weltana, OR, to rebuild her life while taking court-ordered anger management classes. The people she befriends in town and in her anger management class will keep you highly entertained.

I work in a bookstore, and when a customer called to ask whether we had Cathy Lamb's first book, she Would. Not. Stop. talking about how much she enjoyed The Last Time I Was Me. As the line of customers approaching my register grew, the woman on the phone nearly pleaded for me to read this book. "You'll LOVE it!" She carried on for so long that I finally conceded. Sheesh. Despite my best intentions to *Not* enjoy a book I initially dismissed as probable Chick Lit, this is one of the most entertaining and enjoyable reads I've come across in a long while. The protagonist, Jeanne, is a woman you'd want to move in, become your Best Friend, enjoy a good mutual nervous breakdown, then be there to back you up when you find yourself in a tight spot. She, as well as the rest of Lamb's characters, are boldly drawn in bright, colorful splashes of high and true color. Yet they are amazingly warm and down to earth. That balance is not an easy task for a writer to accomplish. And because the characters are true-to-life, you'll find that they'll make you laugh, cringe, wince, and smile between squeezing out a tear or two. I wish I knew who that anonymous phone customer was. I'd thank her for the recommendation. My only problem is that I now sound a whole lot like she did. And here, despite all of my best intentions, I find myself writing a review so that I can recommend it to You. Just don't blame me if you love it too.