It's a JENaissance! The New York Times bestselling author of Pretty in Plaid gets her culture on. Readers have followed Jen Lancaster through job loss, sucky city living, weight loss attempts, and 1980s nostalgia. Now Jen chronicles her efforts to achieve cultural enlightenment, with some hilarious missteps and genuine moments of inspiration along the way. And she does so by any means necessary: reading canonical literature, viewing classic films, attending the opera, researching artisan cheeses, and even enrolling in etiquette classes to improve her social graces. In Jen's corner is a crack team of experts, including Page Six socialites, gourmet chefs, an opera aficionado, and a master sommelier. She may discover that well-regarded, high-priced stinky cheese tastes exactly as bad as it smells, and that her love for Kraft American Singles is forever. But one thing's for certain: Eliza Doolittle's got nothing on Jen Lancaster-and failure is an option.
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"As I've found with all of the other books that I've read by Jen Lancaster she certainly didn't disappoint. She is hilarious (I was laughing out loud by page 17, which is hard for a book to make me do), blatantly honest, self-deprecating, and completely entertaining. As I flew through this one, laughing at her mishaps and flubs, I started to realize that beneath the sarcasm, biting wit, and fun, there was a real mission to improve oneself. If a book can make me laugh my ass off, provide an escape, AND give me actual, viable ways to improve MYSELF, I'd call that a winner."
— Christine (5 out of 5 stars)
" Light, amusing quest to find cultural enlightenment. Lancaster explores good food, classic literature and experimental theater all the while dropping pop culture references at every turn. "
— jen8998, 2/17/2014" If you're a fan of Jen Lancaster, her latest memoir won't disappoint. If you like not-too-heavy, snarky memoirs but you've never heard of Jen Lancaster, start with Bitter is the New Black and work your way through her repertoire. She is at the top of the genre, in my opinion. "
— Ashley, 2/8/2014" Her books always make me laugh out loud. "
— Naomi, 2/6/2014" These audiobooks rock! I love the voice of the narrator as well as the author. "
— Courtney, 2/3/2014" Jen Lancaster is one of the authors who turned me onto memoirs. Her latest book, My Fair Lazy, was excellent as expected. I laughed out loud on the the plan several times. I don't care for/watch reality television, so I was afraid I wouldn't get the inside jokes, but I never felt lost or left out. "
— Carmen, 1/31/2014" Her best book to date! "
— Keely, 1/29/2014" Jen Lancaster does it again, creating a piece of work that leaves us laughing so hard we almost pee our pants *and some of you actually did, but that will just be between us ;-)* We take a journey with Jen in her effort to get "cultured" reading her take on various plays some even including n-a-k-e-d people, her attempts of eating the world, and the hunt for a house. Some of my favorite chapters include RATINMYHOUSE! and of course the Thundercats. With her snarky wit, her footnotes, and her partners in crime, Jen Lancaster is a must read for everyone who loves to laugh. "
— Jessi, 1/26/2014" Perfect beach read. One of Jen Lancaster's best! "
— Allison, 1/19/2014" Man I am reading so much non-fic!! Liked it but not looooved it. Light and funny but not those deep glimpses of soul like Sedaris or Sloane. But I do kinda want to read the diet one. "
— Coki, 1/12/2014" Lancaster's quest for self-improvement is entertaining, but when she slips into the cheese-and-wine-snob vocabulary, she loses the self-deprecating and sarcastic humor that makes reading her so lovely. Quick and mindless read, great summer lit. "
— Jillian, 12/10/2013" Great book. It was a very quick read and very enjoyable. I can't wait for more! "
— Jonelle, 11/24/2013" "Bright Lights, Big Ass" is still my favorite, but this book had be laughing out loud. "
— Carey, 11/22/2013" She is hilarious! Just discovered her books "
— Jamie, 11/13/2013" Too much navel gazing. Bloggers aren't story tellers. Back to novels. "
— Dara, 9/20/2013" Jen Lancaster's books never fail to make me laugh out loud...I want to have her over for drinks. "
— Robin, 3/28/2013" Love, Love, Love Jen Lancaster. But this book felt repetitive and I didn't LOL as much as when reading previous books. Maybe b/c I feel like her writing is now so formulaic? Recycled stories? Hmm. Pretty in Plaid still my fave. This was an easy, fun read nontheless. "
— Amy, 12/9/2012" chic lit funny at its best. "
— Christine, 10/12/2012" This was a really funny book. I wasnt sure who she was when i first put this book up on the New Releases Table at work, but on my lunch breaks I read it and found myself laughing almost all the time. Sarcastic, fun, and smart.. this is abook that I have reccomended to customers.. "
— Alisa, 6/2/2012" Another hysterical book from Jen Lancaster, my memoir writing hero. I love a book that gets me to laugh out loud. Her's always do and I can relate on so many things. Can't wait for the next one! "
— Erin, 4/30/2012" I'm learning I'm not the only one who like cheese from Aldi. "
— Steph, 4/12/2012" I only read about 40% of the this book. I couldn't get through it. I simply don't like her style of humor. It's not a bad book, it's just not for me. I'm sure plenty of readers find it humorous. "
— Spideygirl, 12/4/2011" I've loved all her books, but I laughed out loud in several places. Jen is trying to "better" herself, and her journey is fun and hilarious. She could easily be a friend of mine-wine, tongue and cheek, and a slam to Alec Baldwin. Yep, it's a good one. "
— Kelly, 11/5/2011" Jen seems to be running out of material a bit at this point, but it still has the same sassy wit. "
— Andrea, 7/11/2011" Jen seems to be running out of material a bit at this point, but it still has the same sassy wit. "
— Andrea, 5/20/2011" I'm a huge fan of Jen Lancaster and I firmly believe that she and I would have a blast hanging out. That being said, I totally identify with her quest to become more cultured and I applaud her for taking a hard look at herself and trying to improve. "
— Sarah, 5/3/2011" Definitely not as good as her other memoirs. "
— Melanie, 4/18/2011" Author's worst book by far. There was no clear cut theme and the book was all over the place. I was really disappointed as her other books have been so funny/good. "
— Sara, 4/13/2011" A lit funny memoir about openning yourself up to new things.<br/>This book follows Lancaster through her cultural Jenaissance.<br/>Lancaster is fun, lovable and quirky.<br/>This is a quick enjoyable book that makes you want to try new things.<br/> "
— Lindsay, 4/10/2011" Mostly amusing, but I probably wouldn't want to hang out with her in real life. Not that I always measure books by "would I want to hang out with the author or not?" but she kind of puts herself out there as an affable buddy. "
— Erin, 4/7/2011" It was okay. Not great. A lot of footnotes which is hard to look up on a Kindle. "
— Maureen, 4/7/2011" It was funny but not as funny as her previous books. I enjoyed it and it was a quick read. "
— Jennifer, 4/7/2011" I don't know why I'm reading this book. Someone keeps giving them to me and I keep reading them. It's exactly like getting sucked into watching The Real World. "
— Dawn, 4/7/2011" As with all of the Jen Lancaster books I've read, this book made me laugh til I cried. I love all of her books. Everybody should try them out. "
— Jesse, 4/2/2011" I love how Jen Lancaster's style of writing makes the reader feel like they are having an actual conversation with her. "
— Lacy, 3/30/2011Jen Lancaster is the New York Times bestselling author of several novels, nonfiction works, and memoirs, including I Regret Nothing, which was named an Amazon Best Book of the Year. She has sold well over a million books documenting her attempts to shape up, grow up, and have it all—sometimes with disastrous results. She has also been seen on The Today Show, as well as CBS This Morning, Fox News, NPR’s All Things Considered, and The Joy Behar Show, among others. Visit her website at www.jenlancaster.com.
Jamie Heinlein is a frequent stage actress whose roles include Natalie in The Weight of Water, Doris in Victor, the title character in Penny Penniworth, Susan in The Secretaries, and many others. She has also narrated various audio books including Hidden America by Jeanne Marie Laskas and Jennifer Lancaster’s series of memoirs from Bitter is the New Black to If I were Here. In her spare time, Jamie sells residential real estate in New York City for Douglas Elliman.