Sarcastic Mom Tells All

A fun review/giveaway on Sarcastic Mom Reviews which begins: "Anyone who tells you their marriage is *perfect* is either still on their honeymoon, lying, or is stark raving mad.

Interview on Page Readers

I was interviewed by Page Readers host Nanci Arvizu today. Listen in!

Lots to catch up on

Wow, I've really gotten behind in updating this site! Here are some new reviews since my last posting:

Port Arthur (TX) News: Sounds Good

MomGrind.com: Happily Ever After

Mamanista: Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife - review

Project Happily Ever After: Book review - Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife

Even more blogger love

Click on the image to enlarge

A few new and very wonderful posts on Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife from the blogging world, in descending order:

Kitsch Slapped

2 Kids and Tired Book Reviews

The Opinionated Parent

Surrender, Dorothy

More Blogger Love

Here's a roundup of recent, very thoughtful and creative blog reviews:

Moms Without Blogs

The Zen of Motherhood

Nicola Knits

Mouthy Housewives' readers post own "secret recipes"

Another Secret Recipes giveaway contest—this time, the Mouthy Housewives ask their readers to post their own "secret recipes." Here we have:

* Tastes-So-Good-They’ll-Shut-Up-For-A-Minute Pie
* Guilt-Trip-Over-Gory-Stories-Of-Pregnancy-And-Labor Birthday Cake
* Vacation Sex Pie
* and a "recipe for disaster" that consists of a summer vacation with a 3- and 6-year old, rain, a husband out of town, etc.

You, too can post your own "secret recipe" and enter to win at Mouthy Housewives!

"Amy Sedaris meets Betty Crocker"

I love the quote above, which is brought to you by Elle of Diary of a Mod Housewife. This blog is the latest to host a giveaway contest for Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife. You can participate through the month of June.

New York Daily News

I love the quote, "Delightfully retro in look, it's savagely funny in tone." Click to enlarge!

A Wedding Toast . . .

In today's Creators Syndicate Cook's Books column by Lisa Messinger: A Wedding Toast to a Magnificent Mock Cookbook for the 'Modern'Wife

VegNews, of all places . . .

This is a funny story. The associate publisher of VegNews, Colleen Holland, contacted me a couple of months ago after she got an advance copy of Secret Recipes. VegNews, a wonderfully written and gorgeously designed publication about all things vegan, has reviewed and excerpted my *real* cookbooks, and I've written a couple of travel pieces for them.

So Colleen wanted to know if they could have copies of Secret Recipes to give as a gift to the eight newlywed couples featured in the May/June issue (the vegan weddings is a popular annual feature). I wrote back: Are you sure? This is kind of a perverse gift for newlyweds, and you know, those ghastly pix of 1950s meat dishes . . . But she Colleen was sure, and I inscribed the books to all the couples, "Here's to Happily Ever After" — despite the cynicism in the book, Happily Ever Ambrosia is the final "recipe." We all still want to indulge in that one!

So, the newly married couples featured in the May/June issue have received a box of vegan chocolates from Rose City Chocolatier, a soy candle from Scandle Candle, and what is described as "a signed copy of Nava Atlas' hysterical new book." If you're not familiar with this fantastic magazine, I highly recommend it. Even if you're not a vegan, you'll find much to enjoy in VegNews.

More magazine

A brief excerpt in the May issue of More—click to enlarge.

Hudson Valley publications

Here's an in-depth article with a slew of images in the Wed., April 29 Poughkeepsie Journal. And another detailed interview is in the Kingston Daily Freeman.

The Fun in Dysfunctional

Today's blurb is in the St. Petersburg (FL) Times, as part of a roundup of new humor books titled Notable: The Fun in Dysfunctional. Along with The Perfect Baby and The White Guy, a field guide: Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife (Fireside) by Nava Atlas is a satirical cookbook by a real cookbook author, featuring "recipes" like Old Boyfriend Buffet, Mother-in-Law Fruitcake and Unfaithful Meatballs.

Radio Show and Word of Mouth in Action

If you'd like to hear my interview on BlogTalk Radio, "Feisty Side of Fifty" with Eileen Williams, click here.

And I got a Google alert on this fabulous thread on Scrapgirls, discussing an encounter with Secret Recipes in a bookstore—thanks to the web, authors get to witness word of mouth as it happens!

Quirky Book of the Week

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ran a brief blurb on Secret Recipes, designating it as the Quirky Book of the Week.

And last week, Taste Magazine Cincinnati covered the book in The Things We Get column, under the title "Secret" Recipes for Moms Everywhere!

First Wives World Interview

Though I am not personally a member of "The First Wives Club," I was honored to be interviewed by First Wives World. Click here to read the interview!

Watch the Secret Recipes Trailer!

Gender Role Casserole

[Click on the image to enlarge]

This is one of my favorite spreads from Secret Recipes. It typifies what so many of us post-feminist moms go through—vowing to be co-parents, to reject traditional gender roles, you know the drill. But many couples are pretty much back to square one when it comes to division of child care. Men are definitely more involved dads these days, and certainly not everyone falls into the gender trap. And even you don't partake of this "recipe" I'll bet you know plenty of couples who do!

Secret Recipes—Coming Soon!

Hello, and welcome to the world of Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife!

Those of you who know me best for my vegetarian and vegan cookbooks might be surprised at this departure — these "recipes" aren't like any you'd actually want to make and serve. Instead, these faux recipes, accompanied by those classic, oversaturated 1950s food photos, comment on contemporary marriage and motherhood. From the publisher's description:

------

Flavored with frustration, simmering with rage, and iced with affection, these recipes will make you laugh as you multitask your way through the challenges and joys of matrimony.

Whether you’re a new bride or an old hand at marriage, it’s always handy to find fresh and fascinating recipes to add to your repertoire. And the recipes in this collection are perfect for you, the busy, overextended, and occasionally conflicted modern wife. Enveloped in them are the secrets — delicious, distressing, and everything in between — that accompany women on their marital journeys. Here are recipes you won’t find in just any cookbook:

Gender Role Casserole
Control-Freak Cookies
Soufflé of Fallen Expectations
Unfaithful Meatballs
Sometimes I Feel Like a Tart

Though she grills societal norms with gleeful relish, Nava Atlas never loses sight of marriage’s simple, loving rewards. The result is a feast of retro art, sly wit, and cultural commentary. No woman will be able to read this without thinking of five friends she must share it with!

------

In the weeks to come, I'll be sharing news, reviews, and multimedia coverage of Secret Recipes. So set a place at the table, and enjoy!