Confessions of a Forty-Something F##k Up is such a funny book. And this statement had to be at the start. It was really the pick me up book I didn’t know I needed.
Written by Alexandra Potter and released in 2020, Confessions of a Forty-Something F##k Up was received very well by the public and it’s been continued in a sequel which is expected to be released in July this year, called simply More Confessions of a Forty-Something F**k Up.
The story of the book is quite simple. Nell is a 40-something old lady who moves back from America to London after breaking up with her fiance. She finds herself single, without a career, money, or even a place to live, and she is confessing all of this in the 500-something-pages of a book that doesn’t make you wish it was shorter. I usually turn pages very quickly if I’m reading a good thriller or an action packed book, so I was surprised to see how easy and fun Confessions of a Forty-Something F##k Up was to read. I even wanted to take the book with me and continue reading while nipping out in a quick car ride to the grocery store. The book was translated and published in over 20 languages, including Romania, by Corint under their inprint Leda Bazaar and you can find it here.
Alexandra Potter lived in LA for several years before settling back to England with her Californian husband and their rescue dog. She has been a published author since 2000 and her books are quite popular. The author has sold the rights for adaptation for a few of her books, including the one we are talking about today. ABC’s-inspired TV show called Not Dead Yet, starring Gina Rodriguez, premiered earlier this year in America. The show is now also available on Disney+ and I encourage you to check it out.
Thanks to Gina Rodriguez’s new comedy show because that’s how I even found out about this book that made me laugh out loud a good number of times. I fell in love with Gina Rodriguez since she took the lead of Jane the Virgin, another very good show which also brought her the Golden Globe for the Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy category in 2015 (highly recommend, especially if you grew up watching telenovelas/Latino soap operas).
Not Dead Yet premiered in February 2023 as ABC’s latest sitcom and was created by David Windsor and Casey Johnson. The show doesn’t follow the book completely, it goes “off-script” a lot, but the main idea is there. The creators made this more of a comedy than the book was (and the book was funny enough in my opinion, but what do I know, right?). It’s not a bad thing, the cast has chemistry and the jokes land – well, most of the time, but for 20-minute-long episodes it works and makes this a great show to watch on your way to work or even on your lunch break. Same as the book, it’s a good-feel story that can easily bring a smile on your face. The cast is completed by Angela Elayne Gibbs, Hannah Simone, Lauren Ash, Rick Glassman, and Josh Banday.
I related to this story even though I am not forty-something. And that’s what surprised me, that it’s truly just an inspirational book for any age. Somehow it’s that lifestyle book with 10 steps on how to be happy, but without the boring part. It’s down to Earth, uplifting, relatable, #nofilter book that will also make you laugh. I cannot wait to find out what happens in the sequel when it comes out this Summer! The show has also been renewed for a second season.
Often, the most terrible of things turn into the most amusing through the lens of time.
Not Dead Yet trailer: