Title: Peanut Butter and Naan
Author: Jennifer Hillman-Magnuson
Publisher: She Writes Press
Release Date: 11th November 2014
Source: Own Copy

Fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants mom Jennifer Magnuson knew her spoiled suburban brood needed a wake-up call—she just couldn't find the time to fit one in. But when her husband was offered a position in India, she saw it for what it was: the perfect opportunity for her family to unplug from their over-scheduled and pampered lives in Nashville and gain some much-needed perspective. What she didn’t realize was how much their time in India would transform her as well.
A combination of Eat, Pray, Love and Modern Family, with a dash of Chelsea Handler thrown in for good measure, Peanut Butter and Naan is Magnuson’s hilarious look at the chaos of parenting against a backdrop of malaria, extreme poverty, and no conveniences of any kind—and her story of rediscovering herself and revitalizing her connection with those she loves the most. In India, after years of parenting under a cloud of anxiety, Magnuson found a renewed sense of adventure and fearlessness (a discovery that was totally worth the many months of hiding anti-malarial medication in her kids’ morning oatmeal), and started to become the mother she’d always hoped to be. Hers is a story about motherhood that will not only make you laugh and nod with recognition—it will inspire you to fall in love with your own family all over again.
I have only moved house once in my life and the memories of that still haunt me. I did that move with my husband and our dog, no kids where on the scene at that time.
The thought of taking my two kids and moving my family all the way to India, well that is the stuff of nightmares and that is exactly what Jennifer does with five kids, yes you read that right FIVE kids!
This is an entertaining read, I love reading these sort of books that takes a person out of their comfort zone and places them in a strange environment.
Moving from the States to India is quite the process and the culture shock of suddenly having cooks and housekeepers to cater to your every whim when you are used to looking after you own house is quite something.
This was an enjoyable memoir but maybe could have been a little bit more in depth, for a year in India it was a bit of a short read but hey she had five kids to wrangle and enough on her plate.


Fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants mom Jennifer Magnuson knew her spoiled suburban brood needed a wake-up call—she just couldn't find the time to fit one in. But when her husband was offered a position in India, she saw it for what it was: the perfect opportunity for her family to unplug from their over-scheduled and pampered lives in Nashville and gain some much-needed perspective. What she didn’t realize was how much their time in India would transform her as well.
A combination of Eat, Pray, Love and Modern Family, with a dash of Chelsea Handler thrown in for good measure, Peanut Butter and Naan is Magnuson’s hilarious look at the chaos of parenting against a backdrop of malaria, extreme poverty, and no conveniences of any kind—and her story of rediscovering herself and revitalizing her connection with those she loves the most. In India, after years of parenting under a cloud of anxiety, Magnuson found a renewed sense of adventure and fearlessness (a discovery that was totally worth the many months of hiding anti-malarial medication in her kids’ morning oatmeal), and started to become the mother she’d always hoped to be. Hers is a story about motherhood that will not only make you laugh and nod with recognition—it will inspire you to fall in love with your own family all over again.

I have only moved house once in my life and the memories of that still haunt me. I did that move with my husband and our dog, no kids where on the scene at that time.
The thought of taking my two kids and moving my family all the way to India, well that is the stuff of nightmares and that is exactly what Jennifer does with five kids, yes you read that right FIVE kids!
This is an entertaining read, I love reading these sort of books that takes a person out of their comfort zone and places them in a strange environment.
Moving from the States to India is quite the process and the culture shock of suddenly having cooks and housekeepers to cater to your every whim when you are used to looking after you own house is quite something.
This was an enjoyable memoir but maybe could have been a little bit more in depth, for a year in India it was a bit of a short read but hey she had five kids to wrangle and enough on her plate.
