In a Nutshell: Welcome to the world of single working mothers who are floored by busyness. They are forced to be the masters of multi-tasking as they cart the kids around, work late at the office, handle most of the chores and errands at home, and do the cooking and much more; all this which leaves them feeling exhausted and drained. This comprehensive book deals with working mothers, our time-starved culture, the challenges of the work-place for women, and the burdens busyness puts on marriages.

About the Author: Brigid Schulte is a writer for The Washington Post and a married mother of two school-age children. In an interview on NPR with David Greene, she points out how the workplace puts men under immense pressure as well: "We're on such a cutting edge of changing gender roles [but] our workplaces really haven't changed and haven't caught up with that reality. So workplaces, you know, if you look at surveys from around the globe, they think the best workers are the ones that come in early, that leave late, that are available 24/7. Our workplaces are becoming even more and more demanding."

Sum and Substance: Schulte calls the overworked busyness that she experiences "the Overwhelm." With a fascinating mix of research on workplace culture, gender roles, time management, and family life the author finds that businesses hire those who are willing to dedicate themselves completely to work; that despite the fact that their wives are carrying more than their share of the workload, many men do not help with household chores; and that many working men and women worship at "the Altar of Overwork" by making busyness a badge of honor in the competitive marketplace. Her commentary on the quest for leisure is very thought-provoking.

Quotes to Go:

• "Because this is how it feels to live my life: scattered, fragmented, and exhausting. I am always doing more than one thing at a time and feel I never do any one particularly well. I am always behind and always late, with one more thing and one more thing to do before rushing out the door."

• "I thought of the stressed-out working mom Tina Fey played in Date Night. Her leisure fantasy? To be in a hotel room with clean sheets, completely alone, drinking a Diet Sprite. This is certainly not how ancient Greek philosophers envisioned leisure. To them living a life of leisure was the highest aim of a human being."

Related Books:

Buddha Standard Time: Awakening to the Infinite Possibilities of Now by Lama Surya Das

CrazyBusy: Overstretched, Overbooked, and About to Snap! Strategies for Coping in a World Gone ADD by Edward O. Hallowell

Moments in Between: The Art of the Quiet Mind by David Kundtz