It’s not often that you can use the phrases “heart-breaking pathos”, “wicked humor”, and “knitting patterns” in the same book review, but  Laurie Perry’s book Drunk, Divorced & Covered in Cat Hair: The True Life Misadventures of a 30-Something Who Learned to Knit After He Split is all those things, and more.  A spin-off from her wildly popular blog,  Crazy Aunt Purl, the book takes you through the couple of years in which her dumb-as-lint husband dumped her, she spent far too much time listening to George Jones CDs and drinking wine from a cracked coffee cup, a friend took her to a knitting lesson . . . and gradually life became good again. Part self-help book, part soul-baring confession, part ode to the joy of friends, part guide to the perils of re-entering the dating world, this book is ultimately about being true to yourself. 

As a bonus, there are patterns for various knitted items that will get you through much of life’s little needs: among others, a hat, some scarves, a couple of purses, and a cat tunnel.  Who doesn’t need a cat tunnel?

Laurie is on a book tour now, and the full tour details are here.  She’ll be in Seattle tomorrow, and I have to miss it, dang it!

Full disclosure: Laurie happens to have Jen the Wonder Publicist in common with my husband, and I got a free advance reading copy of the book.