Overview

Jane Pollak spent most of her life “looking for a family.” Raised by a mother who was emotionally unavailable, she grew up believing that love came from performance rather than from being seen, heard, and acknowledged for her true self. It followed that she married an extrovert who performed for his students and yet was unable to connect with his wife. In this poignant, instructive memoir, Pollak investigates the roots of misguided love and paints a picture of what it means to live a satisfied life. Her tale starts in the couples’ counseling office, where her soon-to-be ex-husband drops the bomb that he’s seeing someone else. From there, Jane goes on to find self-empowerment through her La Leche League group, her career as an artist, her travels around the world, her journey through twelve-step recovery, and her experiences while dating in her sixties. At last, she forges a blissful life on her own in Manhattan, conducting business and enjoying time with a committed partner. Inspiring and deeply relatable, Too Much of Not Enough Lessons I Learned to Become Myself is a primer on how to be the proactive agent of one’s own best path.

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9781631525278

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Reviews

In this memoir, entrepreneur and public speaker Pollak recounts the dissolution of her marriage and the subsequent realizations that changed her life . . . Her interpretation of relationships in a 12-step frame offers a refreshing change from other addiction narratives . . . Her memoir is at its best when she puts forth her own voice, effectively synthesizing complex feelings into powerful, revealing phrases: 'Intimacy once removed was delicious, ' she writes regarding codependency. 'Too close, and it felt like a burden.' . . . A smart, empowering work about self-discovery that features strong prose and intriguing takes on self-help strategies. --Kirkus Reviews

Author Information

Jane Pollak was born in the heart of the Midwest, in Columbus, Ohio, but she inherited the city gene from her New York City–native parents. When she was five, they returned the family to a neighboring suburb, White Plains, where Pollak grew up. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College with a BA in studio art and theatre and an MA in art education from Columbia University Teachers College. Her first book, Decorating Eggs: Exquisite Designs with Wax & Dye, was recently republished by Schiffer Publishing. Her second book, Soul Proprietor: 101 Lessons from a Lifestyle Entrepreneur (Crossing Press, 2001), shares what she learned as a home-based business owner who successfully turned her passion into a thriving company. When Pollak’s marriage ended in 2011, she moved back to Manhattan, where she currently resides contentedly single, seeing her beloved significant other every weekend. She has three grown children and three grandchildren.

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