How I Learned to Pee in the Forest by Sharon Neiss Arbess – About the Book
From the Author
A trip to the dry cleaners that raises your eyebrows as you second-guess your intelligence.
Why won’t a colleague at work talk to you? Your friend’s subtle yet kind gesture that makes you feel ten feet tall.
As mundane as these situations may seem at first, each one can be life-changing.
I am a mom, a daughter, a wife, a friend — the woman you pass by in a coffee shop.
What you hold in your hands contains 18 short stories, each paired with the perspective of authentic and dedicated humans. Their words are not only filled with wisdom but also take you down different paths. And that is the beauty of the story. You don’t know where it will take you.
Reading can have a range of effects on your body and mind, and following these stories are gentle exercises to soothe and calm.
Creating this book has been an adventure, and I hope reading it will be the same for you.
How I Learned To Pee in the Forest can be surprisingly relatable and educational—if you allow yourself to go there.
I hope you do.
The Review
How I Learned to Pee in the Forest is a self-help book for beginners. It’s not preachy – in fact, it’s relatable and told in bite-sized chapters making it eminently readable. Sharon Neiss Arbess is a warm writer. I had the opportunity to speak to her on a couple of occasions and her writing style is very much how she speaks. I could hear her voice in her encouraging words.
Each chapter of How I Learned to Pee in the Forest is broken down into a theme, Neiss Arbess’s take on it based on her own experience, an “Exercise Snack” and a “Mentor’s Perspective” where she matches someone who has expertise in the theme that she is covering.
I always looked forward to reading Neiss Arbess’s portion of the chapter – it felt like advice that you either already know or advice that your best friend would give you. She is such an authentic writer that I found myself wanting more of her voice and less of everything else. It is a true testament to her easy talent.
At 182 pages, you can do what I did and read it in an afternoon or read a chapter a day if you want to think about each topic. There is little to criticize in the book but a couple of areas to improve. I found the “Exercise Snacks” unnecessary and a distraction from the theme of the chapters, mostly because they tell you a bit about why you should do the exercise, then you are sent to a third party website to try it yourself. This was by far, the weakest part of each chapter and I would have loved for more from the author. If they were eliminated, it would have made for a smoother transition into the “Mentor’s Perspective” and would have allowed more depth in the excellent essays.
Overall, the book was so enjoyable – especially the title. I won’t spoil anything about that chapter or her decision to name her book How I Learned to Pee in the Forest. Just know that like every portion of the book – it is something that we, as women, can all relate to.
When I say it’s perfect for self-help beginners, what I mean is that it’s an easy read and it isn’t at all preachy. We can all see ourselves in each situation that the author is placed in and her advice is practical. She has a way of making the lessons understandable and guides you through your own reflections. I highly recommend the book.
How I Learned To Pee in the Forest is available on Amazon.ca.
