Aren't You Forgetting Someone?

February 24, 2020
TV scriptwriter and producer Lizer, creator of the show The New Adventures of Old Christine, debuts with a rollicking and often hilarious compilation of observations on life after her three children have departed for college. Lizer devotes some space to men and women’s different experiences of the workplace, particularly hers as a divorced, working mom, but devotes most of the text to empty-nest syndrome and its effects on her outlook. Now in her mid-50s, Lizer is “finding my voice... just when I have no one left to talk to.” She lists things she doesn’t want to ever do again (wear high heels or false eyelashes; attend parties where people ask intrusive questions about her career) and the things she does want to do (have “three dogs at all times” with her; not have to worry about her appearance; get more sleep). And despite the obstacles life throws her way—her sister’s death, a breast cancer scare—Lizer soldiers on, cheerily bringing the family dachshund to comfort her father in his nursing home, getting her first tattoo, and with some trepidation, starting “nervous dating.” Readers will enjoy these challenging and sweet stories.

March 1, 2020

In a series of essays, Lizer (creator, The New Adventures of Old Christine; coexecutive producer, Will & Grace) describes the various ways that a midlife crisis impacted her life. Having survived the "double hyphen" years (as a divorced, working mother), Lizer encounters new emotional challenges when her three children begin to leave the curated nest she constructed for them. While the timing could have been better, as her parents were aging and her own health wavering, the tsunami of indignities and annoyances visited on Lizer in her competitive personal and rarified professional environments prove to be hilarious and thoughtful fodder for her reflections on aging, personality, and parenting. Her attempts to create and strengthen connections via game nights and volunteer work go humorously awry in Lizer's retelling, but she doesn't sugarcoat tougher topics of sexism and loneliness. VERDICT Fans of Nora Ephron will empathize and laugh along with Lizer.--Thérèse Purcell Nielsen, Huntington P.L., NY

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