First Line Friday 56 || Life Advice and Parenting Woes

Posted December 6, 2019 by Sammie in #amreading, Book Beginnings, First Line Friday, Friday 56 / 18 Comments

It’s time to play “guess that book” and also watch our TBRs weep.

Book Beginnings is hosted by Rose City Reader and is all about the first line of a current/upcoming read. Friday 56 is a meme hosted by Freda’s Voice, where you turn to page 56 (or 56%) in what you’re reading a find a snippet that jumps out at you.

First Lines



To my son:

I want to apologize.
For everything I’m going to do over the next eighteen or so years.


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Page 56 Snippet



i came home from the store right after you were born and your mother shouted, “Did you buy diapers?” and I was all “Of course I bought diapers!” and she took them out of the bag and looked deeply skeptical and read the packaging and was all “You bought diapers for babies aged six to nine months?” and I was all “Yeah, but that’s just a recommendation, really” and she was all “He’s nine days old!” and I was all “Don’t you think i know that?!” and she was all “Apparently not!!” and then she looked into the bag again and said “These wet wipes are perfumed” and I was all “No” and she was all “Yes” and I was all “No” and she was all “It says ‘perfumed’ on them” and I was all “That’s what they want you to think, yes!” and she looked in the bag again and said “What’s this?” and I was all “I think it’s a rain cover for a charcoal barbecue grill” and she said “Why the hell did you buy a rain cover for a—” and I was all “BECAUSE I PANICKED!!! ALL RIGHT???” and then she said “Okaaay …”


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Book Reveal



Click To Reveal The Book
Things My Son Needs to Know about the World

Things My Son Needs to Know About the World collects the personal dispatches from the front lines of one of the most daunting experiences any man can experience: fatherhood.

As he conveys his profound awe at experiencing all the “firsts” that fill him with wonder and catch him completely unprepared, Fredrik Backman doesn’t shy away from revealing his own false steps and fatherly flaws, tackling issues both great and small, from masculinity and mid-life crises to practical jokes and poop.

In between the sleep-deprived lows and wonderful highs, Backman takes a step back to share the true story of falling in love with a woman who is his complete opposite, and learning to live a life that revolves around the people you care about unconditionally. Alternating between humorous side notes and longer essays offering his son advice as he grows up and ventures out into the world, Backman relays the big and small lessons in life, including:

-How to find the team you belong to
-Why airports explain everything about religion and war
-The reason starting a band is crucial to cultivating and keeping friendships
-How to beat Monkey Island 3
-Why, sometimes, a dad might hold onto his son’s hand just a little too tight



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Reasons to Read



✿ One of my favorite, must-read authors.
✿ Obviously has suffered through some things to bring us this book, bless his heart.
✿ Probably contains the secrets to life, the universe, and everything.
✿ Or, at the very least, highly relatable parental descent into madness.
✿ Comedic nonfiction is the best nonfiction.
✿ Everything in this book is true. Including the insanity.

Chat With Me

What’s your first line (or a favorite line) from what you’re reading this week?

18 responses to “First Line Friday 56 || Life Advice and Parenting Woes

    • It’s definitely been fun so far! It’s basically a letter from the author to his son, so I think parents may get more out of it than others just because of the relatability, but there are plenty of reasons non-parents would enjoy it, for sure!

  1. This sounds like an amusing read, and I was curious about it. And then… one of the life lessons is how to beat Monkey Island. Now I NEED to read it. (I mean, I have beaten Monkey Island on my own. But still.)

    • I haven’t gotten to that part! I just love Backman’s humor and honesty. xD I’ve only read the first chapter so far, but I’ve been looking forward to reading this for a while now.

  2. I know someone who needs this book immediately. Sounds hilarious and poignant at the same time. The click to reveal part of your post is great fun. (Currently trying to figure out how you did it…)

    • I highly recommend it so far! Even though … I’ve just barely started. But Backman is amazing, regardless haha.

      I use a plug-in called Collapse-O-Matic (though, if you know any programming, you can make it with jQuery pretty easily, but … I’m lazy).

    • I highly recommend My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry! It’s my favorite book of his! I thought it was even better than Ove, and that’s saying something.

  3. Happy Saturday!

    Yesterday on my blog I shared the first two lines from Land of Silence by Tessa Afshar. I’m currently starting The Dating Charade by Melissa Ferguson so I’ll share from there.

    “If one was going to dip one’s toes into the murky, pestilential waters of online dating, an escape plan was critical.”

    Hope you’re having a good weekend! 🙂🧡📖

  4. Wow, I’m surprised that I actually managed to guess this book because I haven’t read it and have only read one book by Backman… Sorcery! But it does sound good… So I might have to add another book to my TBR now 😂

    • I feel like Backman has a really unique, identifiable style. Even in nonfiction. xD I was reading this and was like … yeah, this sounds SO MUCH like Backman’s other books, in the best of ways.

      I so recommend this! It was hilarious. Maybe less so if you’re not a parent? But I think if you’ve been around kids at all, it’s pretty universal stuff as far as dealing with children. I had to stop and share some of these, because I was laughing so hard and it sounded so much like things my husband would do.

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