Trapped In My Sports Bra and Other Harrowing Tales (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781956867275)

Trapped in My Sports Bra and Other Harrowing Tales is an uplifting, funny, and heart-warming collection of true stories. From raising her three rambunctious sons to navigating the aches, pains, and challenges of middle age to dealing with death, Marlene puts it all out there. She writes about her battle of wills with her non-compliant oldest son, the time her middle son called 9-1-1 because he wasn't allowed to go to a sleepover, and other stories to which every parent will relate (except perhaps those with exceptionally well-behaved children).

Marlene conquers meeting and embracing her boys' significant others and details her and her husband's efforts to keep the spark in their own 35-year marriage. Her advice is so good, it even was featured in the Modern Love section of The New York Times.

As the mother of three sons, Marlene is consistently bewildered by their lack of communications skills, which is a recurrent theme in the book. Figuring out the way her boys' minds work is no easy task, yet Marlene never gives up on her quest to understand them better.

In the "Gone but Never Forgotten" chapter, the author discusses the deaths of her infant son, her brother, and her dad, and how she was able to find happiness again. She also talks about why she won't be trying to contact them in the afterlife through a medium.

Marlene uses her satirical skill and dry wit to talk about a mom's struggles to learn the offside rule in soccer, our obsession with finding out our heritage through DNA testing, the age-old struggle to look presentable at Back to School Night, and a brutal fraternity initiation which forces pledges to read a mommy blog.

For anyone who likes Phish, there a few stories about them, including how Marlene meets the band members on a beach and has no idea who they are, even though her oldest son is a die-hard phan. In an ultimate best-mom-ever moment, she gets Trey Anastasio, the lead singer of the band, to call her son at work. In a second Phish tale, Marlene writes about going to one of their concerts - and how much she enjoyed it, despite getting offered acid for the very first time. (Spoiler alert: she says "no.") Another chapter in "Thank You for the Music" is about David Cassidy, Marlene's first musical crush.

Told in a conversational voice, Marlene's stories will make you feel as if you have a new best friend. One you'll want to hang out with again and again.

Trapped in My Sports Bra and Other Harrowing Tales is guaranteed to be the most fun you've had in a while.