Dear Navel Diary, Are You Listening?

Having addressed the initial shock and disbelief at the demise of the perfect in-ey navel, ruined by the racking cough of pneumonia, in The Navel Diaries: How I Lost My Belly Button and Found Myself, the author continues her journey into competent maturity in the second book in the series. The collection of essays in Dear Navel Diary, Are You Listening? ranges from a humorous take on becoming set in one’s ways to a poignant apology for thoughtless past behaviors. The author takes the reader along on a disastrous childhood family fishing trip, offers suggestions for procuring perfect foundation garments without having a melt-down in the fitting room, extols the virtues of knitting and recounts the thrill of fast cars. There are musings about what to do with everything that has accumulated in the attic and the basement and the remnants of all that rock ‘n’ roll that are still playing. The author shares her surprise at learning that elderly is a bona fide medical age-related diagnosis, and many will understand, and even share, her indignation at being called an adorable little old lady to her face. Along the way, the essays question the social constructs of aging as the author defies the stereotypes, challenges the beauty culture and redefines what it means to be a member of both the Pepsi ™ Generation and the Sandwich Generation.