Review: What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding

Title: What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding
Author: Kristin Newman
Format: egalley
Pub. Date: May 20th 2014
Source: Netgalley & Crown Publishing/Three Rivers Press

★★★★

Three and a half stars, rounded up.

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What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding is a memoir by TV comedy writer Kristen Newman that tells about her travels and adventures abroad and how these escapades help to form a better, more solid understanding of her life, her relationships, and herself.

First, let me say that I adore travel memoirs. I haven't gotten the chance to travel much (YET) for myself, so I love hearing different authors' experiences and tales from every corner of the world. And boy, does Newman manage to pack a lot of those stories into this book. She travels to so many cool places, and writes about each country with humor and style- I wasn't surprised that I was laughing out loud to myself once I realized that she was a writer for shows that I love, like That 70's Show and How I Met Your Mother. With each country and each jump on the plane, Newman shares a story of a rendez-vous with a local/native. From hilarious to romantic and a broad scope in between, there's a story here that everyone can relate to, even if you've hardly left your own home town.

On one hand, I really enjoyed reading about her native conquests of local men. I've been in a committed relationship for a long time, and it's fascinating for me to read about such exploits since I'm unable to have them, and to be honest even if I was single, I wouldn't have them. Props to Newman for being as open and as self-empowered as she is, I envy it truly. On the other hand, I feel like I expected more stories of the actual sites and travels and less about the sexual encounters. They weren't boring or badly written, I was just expecting more out-of-bed details.

I think the title of this book is very clever, and will definitely draw readers in. After all, that's what got my attention. I a) don't have kids b) don't particularly care for them and c) do not want them in the future. My sister, who feels the same about children, and I jokingly call our cousins (who have at least two kids each) breeders and laugh at things like birthday parties and then go out for a drink. Not that there's anything wrong with being a breeder, but having the word in the title made me snicker alone.

I think this is a memoir that a lot of single ladies will find entertaining, as well as those who love to travel and those who are confident with their sexual prowess. If you're prude to things like drugs and sex, this may not be the read for you. Thanks to Netgalley and Crown Publishing/Three Rivers Press for the chance to read this.