A review by erine
Anastasia on Her Own by Lois Lowry

3.0

Keeping house is super simple, when you are not the one executing all of the tasks. Anastasia and her father decide to whip the household into shape, creating a housekeeping schedule for her mother. In the process, they notice areas where they could help out a bit more, but even that little bit isn't enough. Anastasia's mother -- Katherine -- is a freelance artist, but her workday continually gets interrupted by getting the kids organized, doing laundry, ordering groceries, talking to telemarketers, forgetting to plan for dinner and then having to prepare dinner, and she never gets ahead. But one day, Katherine gets an invitation to consult on an animated movie based on her art, and the rest of the family will be left alone to fend for themselves for a week.

Anastasia, Sam, and their father -- Myron -- quickly dissolve into chaos. Sam gets chicken pox, Myron gets strongarmed into a dinner date with a former flame (I know, right?), Anastasia has her first date. They all realize that keeping the family on track is rather a larger task than they anticipated. And Katherine realizes that all she needs is a microwave. So, you know, she can defrost dinner.