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bubblewombat 's review for:
A Clean Mess: A Memoir of Sobriety After a Lifetime of Being Numb
by Tiffany Jenkins
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Having read Tiffany's first book a couple of days ago, I knew what to expect with this one, but I still ended up being surprised at every turn.
In High Achiever, Tiffany covers her years as an addict, her time in jail and the rehab facility she went to, and in A Clean Mess we get a follow up, what happened after she left rehab, met her husband and got pregnant in record time.
Much like the first memoir, this one has chapters that end with mini cliffhangers so you can't help but say "one more chapter", because you want to know what's going to happen next.
There's a dual timeline, the present day (which is what hooks you initially) and the past. I was insanely curious about what happened in the present, and I'm STILL curious because we didn't get a proper resolution.
We did get something, like a hint, but it wasn't totally clear, and I don't want to assume the worst, you know? But at the same time I get that maybe Jenkins wasn't able to say all of it publicly for one reason or another.
I agree with another review that said maybe that scene should've been left out of the book, if she couldn't sum it up in one sentence.
Anyway, I liked this better than book one, it felt more honest. Tiffany described her struggles with staying sober while being a wife and mother, how she had to learn to deal with anxiety after dulling her senses for so many years, and postpartum depression which doesn't discriminate.
There's an obvious growth in between the two books, I'm sure some of that is due to everything she experienced here.
At the start of the book (in the past timeline) you can see she's still a bit insecure, unsure if she can stay on the right track with everything moving so fast, but she does!! She did that!! Even with so many things going wrong, she managed to stay sober.
The thing that surprised me the most was the ending, I really wasn't expecting that to happen, but it makes sense.
You can read this memoir without the other, but I'd recommend reading them in order so you'd have the full context. I wouldn't mind reading a third memoir somewhere down the line, if Jenkins decides to write one.
*Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*
In High Achiever, Tiffany covers her years as an addict, her time in jail and the rehab facility she went to, and in A Clean Mess we get a follow up, what happened after she left rehab, met her husband and got pregnant in record time.
Much like the first memoir, this one has chapters that end with mini cliffhangers so you can't help but say "one more chapter", because you want to know what's going to happen next.
There's a dual timeline, the present day (which is what hooks you initially) and the past. I was insanely curious about what happened in the present, and I'm STILL curious because we didn't get a proper resolution.
We did get something, like a hint, but it wasn't totally clear, and I don't want to assume the worst, you know? But at the same time I get that maybe Jenkins wasn't able to say all of it publicly for one reason or another.
I agree with another review that said maybe that scene should've been left out of the book, if she couldn't sum it up in one sentence.
Anyway, I liked this better than book one, it felt more honest. Tiffany described her struggles with staying sober while being a wife and mother, how she had to learn to deal with anxiety after dulling her senses for so many years, and postpartum depression which doesn't discriminate.
There's an obvious growth in between the two books, I'm sure some of that is due to everything she experienced here.
At the start of the book (in the past timeline) you can see she's still a bit insecure, unsure if she can stay on the right track with everything moving so fast, but she does!! She did that!! Even with so many things going wrong, she managed to stay sober.
The thing that surprised me the most was the ending, I really wasn't expecting that to happen, but it makes sense.
You can read this memoir without the other, but I'd recommend reading them in order so you'd have the full context. I wouldn't mind reading a third memoir somewhere down the line, if Jenkins decides to write one.
*Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*