Give It Up! My Year of Learning to Live Better with Less by Mary Carlomagno might be likened to "Walden Pond" but Carlomagno is no Thoreau. The premise of the book is certainly captivating - we live in such a super-saturated world with so many THINGS, maybe we would actually be happier with less THINGS in our life. She then goes on to describe how she eliminated one thing from her life each month for a year. The problem I have is with the list of THINGS that she chooses to forgo: alcohol, shopping, elevators, newspapers, cell phones, dining out, televisions, taxis, coffee, cursing, chocolate, and multitasking. Most of those things appear to me to be anything but a necessary part of life and parting with any of them would be about as painful as parting with a toothache.
Now I'll admit that I'm fond of chocolate and cell phones have sometimes made my life easier. My mother-in-law was certain that I couldn't live without newspapers but that probably came from my trying to find something in her house to read that was published after World War II. Television is only as useful to me as it fits my schedule so it was only with the recent gift of a Tivo that I have begun watching TV again.
Carlomagno has much more trouble giving up all these things and that is really the fun of the book. In a vertical world of skyscrapers elevators are important and doing without leads to unexpected workouts. Giving up taxis means taking mass public transportation, a skill many of us don't possess. Likewise eliminating dining out means actually having to use our kitchens for cooking - what a concept. I actually enjoyed the book for what it is, a quick, fun read and a humorous look into the life of a New Yorker.
I think that I actually read a review for this book about a year ago on Slate. It sounded interesting then, and I think that I just might have to read it, but your right about most of the things that she gave up as not being that hard. Although I probably would have a hard time with out chocolate.
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