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    It. Goes. So. Fast.: The Year of No Do-Overs
    It. Goes. So. Fast.: The Year of No Do-Overs
    It. Goes. So. Fast.: The Year of No Do-Overs
    Audiobook7 hours

    It. Goes. So. Fast.: The Year of No Do-Overs

    Written by Mary Louise Kelly

    Narrated by Mary Louise Kelly

    4.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Winner of the 2024 Audie Award for Narration by the Author!

    This program is read by the author.

    Operating Instructions     meets Glennon Doyle in this new book by famed NPR reporter Mary Louise Kelly that is destined to become a classic—about the year before her son goes to college—and the joys, losses and surprises that happen along the way.

    The time for do-overs is over.

    Ever since she became a parent, Mary Louise Kelly has said “next year.” Next year will be the year she makes it to her son James’s soccer games (which are on weekdays at 4 p.m., right when she is on the air on NPR’s All Things Considered, talking to millions of listeners). Drive carpool for her son Alexander? Not if she wants to do that story about Ukraine and interview the secretary of state. Like millions of parents who wrestle with raising children while pursuing a career, she has never been cavalier about these decisions. The bargain she has always made with herself is this: this time I’ll get on the plane, and next year I’ll find a way to be there for the mom stuff.

    Well, James and Alexander are now seventeen and fifteen, and a realization has overtaken Mary Louise: her older son will be leaving soon for college. There used to be years to make good on her promises; now, there are months, weeks, minutes. And with the devastating death of her beloved father, Mary Louise is facing act three of her life head-on.

    Mary Louise is coming to grips with the reality every parent faces. Childhood has a definite expiration date. You have only so many years with your kids before they leave your house to build their own lives. It’s what every parent is supposed to want, what they raise their children to do. But it is bittersweet. Mary Louise is also dealing with the realities of having aging parents. This pivotal time brings with it the enormous questions of what you did right and what you did wrong.

    This chronicle of her eldest child’s final year at home, of losing her father, as well as other curve balls thrown at her, is not a definitive answer―not for herself and certainly not for any other parent. But her questions, her issues, will resonate with every parent. And, yes, especially with mothers, who are judged more harshly by society and, more important, judge themselves more harshly. What would she do if she had to decide all over again?

    Mary Louise’s thoughts as she faces the coming year will speak to anyone who has ever cared about a child or a parent. It. Goes. So. Fast. is honest, funny, poignant, revelatory, and immensely relatable.

    A Macmillan Audio production from Henry Holt & Company.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Audio
    Release dateApr 11, 2023
    ISBN9781250882554
    It. Goes. So. Fast.: The Year of No Do-Overs
    Author

    Mary Louise Kelly

    Mary Louise Kelly has been reporting for NPR for nearly two decades and is now cohost of All Things Considered. She has also written suspense novels, Anonymous Sources and The Bullet, and is the author of articles and essays that have appeared in the New York Times, the Atlantic, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal, among numerous other publications. A Georgia native, Kelly graduated from Harvard University with degrees in government and French language and literature and completed a master’s degree in European studies at the University of Cambridge in England. She created and taught a graduate course on national security and journalism at Georgetown University. In addition to her NPR work, Kelly has served as a contributing editor at the Atlantic, moderating news-maker interviews at forums from Aspen to Abu Dhabi.

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    Reviews for It. Goes. So. Fast.

    4.5/5

    36 ratings5 reviews

    What our readers think

    Readers find this title to be a favorite among several wonderful biographies. The author's stories about being a woman in middle-life resonated with readers, who laughed at the relatable anecdotes and cried at the losses. The book is praised for its determination to look forward with hope and joy. It is considered a great read, especially for working mothers, as it accurately articulates the conundrum faced by many professional women.

    What did you think?

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    • 5/5
      This is a must reads book for working mothers. This gifted author accurately articulated the conundrum faced by many professional women. Our daily choices are so fraught with consequences that choosing is difficult at best.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      One of the best books I have listened to in a long time!! Totally relatable… and SO true! I shed a tear in almost every chapter. I have just ordered 8 copies to send to friends! ?
    • 5/5
      It does go so fast. Thanks for the reminder to cherish your children every day.
    • 5/5
      I have read several wonderful biographies in the last couple of years- Viola Davis’s, Matthew
      McConaughney’s and Michelle Obama’s just to name a few, but this is one is my favorite. Although Ms. Kelly definitely does not come from a working class family like myself and the other authors whose stories I have enjoyed, her stories about what it is like to be a woman in middle-life trying to juggle work, children and aging parents along with life’s other challenges (no spoilers here) at this moment in time (post-pandemic) really resonated for me. I laughed at loud at the crazy things her sons said, just like I do at my daughters, (Did school buses have motors when you were in school?) and I cried at the losses she experienced as they reminded me of my own. Mostly I smiled at her determination to look forward with hope and joy toward whatever is next. I think that is something we can all use more of these days.
    • 5/5
      Great read! Enjoy ride cause things can change in a moment.