Rating: 
Summary: An Absolute Delight --- From Start to Finish
Review: A self-described "master fretter," the pregnant Ann Leary worried over her first-born but could never have predicted what was in their future: the delivery, three months early, of two-pound, six-ounce Jack in a distant land. A quick jaunt to England, where Ann's husband, comedian Denis Leary, has a gig, is suddenly interrupted when Ann's membranes rupture. Ann, who once believed she was the type of person who would take charge in a disaster --- leading people from a plane crash, for example --- found that she was "in fact, the shrieking, running-into-the-burning-wreckage type."After much hysteria and a cab ride, Ann and Denis find themselves in London's University College Hospital. She is put to bed in the hope that the delivery will be delayed as long as possible. Ann, who moved frequently as a child, sometimes feels like an awkward newcomer. In a roomful of British mums, she truly is out of her element. When asked if she is ready for tea, for example, she refuses while admitting she's hungry. She's concerned about caffeine and hasn't yet caught on to the fact that "tea" is actually a meal. Ann makes friends eventually with the hospital staff and the other mothers, who help sustain her and Denis during the long ordeal after Jack is born. When Denis must return to New York to work, Ann stays nearby spending most of her time in the Special Care Baby Unit. She describes her admiration of the nursing staff: "If, for example, you haltingly inform a nurse that you have just passed what appeared to be a large part of your brain into the toilet, via the birth canal, the nurse will not gag but instead will admonish you for flushing it away before showing it to her." Yet, she admits feeling jealous and redundant in the face of their efficiency with her baby. Ann, who went to England for a weekend and stayed for five-and-a-half months, felt frequently unprepared. Luckily, for her and her readers, one thing she didn't forget to bring was her sense of humor. As she tells her story, flashbacks to previous situations in her life point to the fact that, while she gives tragedy its due, she can often find life's inherent entertainment value. From the first page, I felt that I had settled into the wry musing of a self-deprecatingly hilarious friend. Despite my frequent bouts of laughing, I also found myself moved, occasionally to tears. A sympathetic physical pang squeezes my heart when Ann speaks of staring into Jack's isolette and willing him to "Breathe, digest, grow." Sometimes laughter and tears come simultaneously, as in the epilogue, in which 13-year-old Jack, now tall and healthy, sees a photo of himself in an incubator with his mom at his side and is aghast --- at her haircut! AN INNOCENT, A BROAD is witty, smart, terrifying, funny, heart-rending and heartwarming --- an absolute delight, from start to finish. --- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon
Rating:
Summary: An Absolute Delight --- From Start to Finish
Review: A self-described "master fretter," the pregnant Ann Leary worried over her first-born but could never have predicted what was in their future: the delivery, three months early, of two-pound, six-ounce Jack in a distant land. A quick jaunt to England, where Ann's husband, comedian Denis Leary, has a gig, is suddenly interrupted when Ann's membranes rupture. Ann, who once believed she was the type of person who would take charge in a disaster --- leading people from a plane crash, for example --- found that she was "in fact, the shrieking, running-into-the-burning-wreckage type." After much hysteria and a cab ride, Ann and Denis find themselves in London's University College Hospital. She is put to bed in the hope that the delivery will be delayed as long as possible. Ann, who moved frequently as a child, sometimes feels like an awkward newcomer. In a roomful of British mums, she truly is out of her element. When asked if she is ready for tea, for example, she refuses while admitting she's hungry. She's concerned about caffeine and hasn't yet caught on to the fact that "tea" is actually a meal. Ann makes friends eventually with the hospital staff and the other mothers, who help sustain her and Denis during the long ordeal after Jack is born. When Denis must return to New York to work, Ann stays nearby spending most of her time in the Special Care Baby Unit. She describes her admiration of the nursing staff: "If, for example, you haltingly inform a nurse that you have just passed what appeared to be a large part of your brain into the toilet, via the birth canal, the nurse will not gag but instead will admonish you for flushing it away before showing it to her." Yet, she admits feeling jealous and redundant in the face of their efficiency with her baby. Ann, who went to England for a weekend and stayed for five-and-a-half months, felt frequently unprepared. Luckily, for her and her readers, one thing she didn't forget to bring was her sense of humor. As she tells her story, flashbacks to previous situations in her life point to the fact that, while she gives tragedy its due, she can often find life's inherent entertainment value. From the first page, I felt that I had settled into the wry musing of a self-deprecatingly hilarious friend. Despite my frequent bouts of laughing, I also found myself moved, occasionally to tears. A sympathetic physical pang squeezes my heart when Ann speaks of staring into Jack's isolette and willing him to "Breathe, digest, grow." Sometimes laughter and tears come simultaneously, as in the epilogue, in which 13-year-old Jack, now tall and healthy, sees a photo of himself in an incubator with his mom at his side and is aghast --- at her haircut! AN INNOCENT, A BROAD is witty, smart, terrifying, funny, heart-rending and heartwarming --- an absolute delight, from start to finish. --- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon
Rating:
Summary: A Hilarious, Moving and Heartwarming True Tale
Review: A smart, snappy, utterly charming book that will make you laugh, cry, and smile in recognition. Ann Leary writes with humor and pathos about meeting her husband and starting a family. If you love movies like "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and fish out of water tales with a happy ending, you'll love this book.
Rating:
Summary: laughter found in a tramatic life experience
Review: After having experienced the premature delivery of my daughter I could truly relate to all the anxiety, stress and guilt felt by the author. And I had my daughter in my hometown. I can't imagine being in another state let alone another country. Hats off to Leary for finding retrospective humor in a scary situation. You don't have to have had this experience to appreciate the unique writing style that ropes you in from page one. A great read for a wide audience.
Rating:
Summary: A different look at the preemie experience.
Review: Ann Leary flew to London for what she thought would be a short vacation, when she unexpectedly delivered her baby prematurely. She uses humor and story telling skills to recount her subsequent five month stay in England, as her baby is born and then slowly grows. This book is a bit lighter than many books on prematurity, focusing on her fish out of water feelings as she copes with living on low funds in an unfamiliar environment. The author is frank and open about her struggles with the complications of having a preemie, in the special care unit and then in her apartment. This is a book that anyone can enjoy, as well as parents of preemies.
Rating:
Summary: Funny, sweet, and honest!
Review: Ann Leary tells it like it is! She writes that her husband has had to convince her that she should write, but she is a wonderful author. She describes having a premature baby in a foreign country as honestly and lovingly as possible. Her writing is funny. She made me laugh out loud. Mrs. Leary is able to capture the truth of the moments between herself and the British citizens she has to interact with during her child's birth and subsequent hospitalization. Reading about her husband, Denis, is hilarious too, as any fan of his knows he is funny on his own, but apparently he is also a loving husband and father. Most of the book is about Ann, though, who is just as funny as her famous husband. I cannot wait to read more from her!
Rating:
Summary: One author's opinion
Review: Ann Leary's book, An Innocent, A Broad, is true page-turner, a fascinating peek into the life of a young family faced with a harrowing experience abroad. The writing is crisp and witty, the story one of deep emotion told with humor and clarity. This reader could often not decide between laughter and tears as the Learys tried to cope with fear, money woes, separation and the unconditional love they felt for their newborn, premature (two pounds, six ounces!) baby boy. This book has it all. It would take a heart of stone not to root for these three and thoroughly applaud Ann's unique courage in dealing with circumstances beyond her control. I suspect Denis Leary will not be the only famous member of the family in the future.
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: I absolutely LOVE this book. I started it on the subway on the way home from work and I finished it late last night. I was chuckling aloud while I read it and had to read some of the funny parts to my husband who cracked up as well. We have a friend who has recently had a premature baby and we plan to send her this book, as I'm sure she'll relate and will certainly be cheered up by the humour and warmth of this book.
Rating:
Summary: None Better, Few As Good!
Review: I love reading Memoirs and this is one of the best!
From the minute I started the book until I finished, I enjoyed every page. I didn't want to stop reading it and yet I didn't want it to end. I am delighted that Denis encouraged Ann to write and look forward to more of her books.
Ann writes not only with humor but also with honesty, clarity and tenderness. To have a premature child in a foreign country and be stuck there for five months (vitrually alone and broke) coping with the uncertainties of life or death, is enough to throw the hardiest woman into the depths of depression. To be able to tell this story with such humor and love is a gift.
I want all of my friends and family to read this book. I highly recommend it!
Rating:
Summary: A definite must read!
Review: I was just lamenting that it had been awhile since I read a truly good book, when I picked up An Innocent, A Broad by Ann Leary. What a fabulous book! I couldn't put the book down once I started. Ann Leary is a terrific, no-nonsense writer. She is humorous and sarcastic, able to poke fun at herself at a very serious time of her life. I laughed out loud several times while I was reading it. I recommend it for anyone - but especially for parents, who will reflect on their own experiences with a newborn, especially a preemie.
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