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A review by rjvrtiska
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo
3.0
I read this book during the process of purging a large American home before a move overseas. The book is a quick read, and makes a lot of sense. I am essentially being forced to follow Kondo's instructions to tidy all at once, because we have a deadline. Without the deadline, I certainly wouldn't be going through my house at the pace I am. The main criticism against this book is her insistence of talking to her home and possessions. I don't plan to take this up anytime soon, but I agree that being more mindful of my possessions and home is completely necessary to the process. I would phrase this mindfulness more in the language of thankfulness toward God and acknowledgment of the work my husband and I have done to earn what we have. I especially appreciate Kondo's suggestions about how to think through the things that need to be released as having already served a specific purpose.
My personal critique is that Kondo's doesn't live with 3 small children. I am not autonomous in the purging decisions for my house. I have 3 children, who I fear I am turning into hoarders because I am (necessarily) curtailing their possessions. This requires a balance of stealth, tantrum-baring, and mean mommy discipline. It's hard to get to the larger purging projects, when I spend chunks of my time separating children from dearly beloved items like the plastic drink cup from the restaurant we went to last week. True story oft repeated. I almost cried when she described her calm, fluid, rational actions upon returning to her home after work. While she starts water for tea, changes her clothes, and unpacks her purse, I generally enter my house only after coaxing multiple people out of the vehicle, up the stairs, and to the bathroom while carrying grocery bags, library books, empty restaurant cups, and mail, if not an actual person. I would love to read a (comical...obviously) version of a mom with lots of littles going through this process. I know steps 1, 4, 7, 12, and 35 would all involve the repeated process of recycling school papers and trashing cheap plastic toys while the kids aren't looking.
My personal critique is that Kondo's doesn't live with 3 small children. I am not autonomous in the purging decisions for my house. I have 3 children, who I fear I am turning into hoarders because I am (necessarily) curtailing their possessions. This requires a balance of stealth, tantrum-baring, and mean mommy discipline. It's hard to get to the larger purging projects, when I spend chunks of my time separating children from dearly beloved items like the plastic drink cup from the restaurant we went to last week. True story oft repeated. I almost cried when she described her calm, fluid, rational actions upon returning to her home after work. While she starts water for tea, changes her clothes, and unpacks her purse, I generally enter my house only after coaxing multiple people out of the vehicle, up the stairs, and to the bathroom while carrying grocery bags, library books, empty restaurant cups, and mail, if not an actual person. I would love to read a (comical...obviously) version of a mom with lots of littles going through this process. I know steps 1, 4, 7, 12, and 35 would all involve the repeated process of recycling school papers and trashing cheap plastic toys while the kids aren't looking.