Permission Slips: Every Woman’s Guide to Giving Herself a Break by Sherri Shepherd with Laurie Kilmartin

I have been a fan of Sherri Shepherd for quite some time. I have probably watched every television show and movie she has ever been in. Below is a brief listing of her works:

Albums
No Refund, No Exchange, 2003.
Comedy Without Compromise, 2004.

Films
Cellular, New Line Cinema, 2004.
Guess Who, Sony Pictures Entertainment, 2005.
Beauty Shop, MGM, 2005.

Television
Cleghorne!, NBC, 1995.
Living Single, (guest star), UPN, 1997.
Suddenly Susan, (guest star), NBC, 1997, (regular), 1999–2000.
Friends, (guest star), NBC, 1998.
Everybody Loves Raymond, (recurring), CBS, 1998–2003.
The Jamie Foxx Show, (recurring), WB Network, 1999–2000.
Emeril, NBC, 2000.
Wednesdays 9:30 (8:30 Central), ABC, 2001.
Less Than Perfect, ABC, 2002–2005.
Brandy & Mr. Whiskers, (voice), Disney Channel, 2004–.

She began her show business career as a comedian, moved into acting, and is now in the talk show arena as a co-host on ABC’s The View. Even though I was anxious to read this book, it took me some time to get around to it. For me reading books is a quiet time event that I like to enjoy when there is anything else on my plate. When I finally did sit down to dive in, I was thrilled, I didn’t move until I finished the entire book. It was like sitting down with an old friend. They same wit and charm that makes Sherri feel like an old friend, is exactly the vane in which this book is written.

She had me laughing so hard at the situations she had been in, I began to cough uncontrollably. These same situations also made me feel like less of a moron for having gone through some of the same types of adventures in my younger days. This book really made me think about how I needed to cut myself some slack on everyday things. My house will not self-destruct if I don’t clean it today. Another reason I loved Sherri’s book was because, it made me feel like its okay to be human, and I don’t have to, or need to, be SUPER WOMAN all the time.

Here is a brief synopsis of the book from the Hachette Group. Thank you Hachette Group, I really appreciate you sending me this wonderful book to review.

Covering topics such as “It’s Jesus or Jail,” “Marriage, the Hard Way,” “Children: The Gift You Can’t Give Back,” and “All the Things I Don’t Know…And All the Things I Definitely Do,” stand-up comedienne, actress, and ABC’s The View co-host Sherri Shepherd comically chronicles her struggles to keep up with the many roles-professional, wife, mother, daughter, and friend-that women must play in today’s world. Sherri urges women to pursue their most important dreams and to never give up, but also let’s readers know that it’s okay to give themselves “permission slips” when things don’t always work out the way they want them to.

You can read a brief excerpt of the book here.

You can also buy Permission Slips: Every Woman’s Guide to Giving Herself a Break on Amazon

One of my favorite excerpts from the book: “It was a relief to accept myself. To say, I’m a mom. I’m a daughter. I’m a friend. I love being here. And I don’t remember anybody’s name.” (pg. 153)