Publisher's Weekly Review
Mom-of-two Mary is an angry woman, and she's determined to count the ways. But list-o-mania doesn't begin to cover the legion of gripes the part-time TV producer has against husband Joel, whom she is secretly, and hilariously, judging. Hopkinson (Cyber Cinderella) channels every nasty thought of her mad housewife: Joel leaves clothes and food debris all over the house, and never clears the table. Adding to Mary's woes are her formidable mother-in-law; best friend, Mitzi, whose perfect life hides a kinky secret; and gay-pal Becky, who longs for the kind of messy life Mary moans about. There's far more to this sharp look at the craziness of modern life and love than Mary's angry rants and snarky patter about how everyone is leading a better life than she is, and though there's a too-pat ending for these warring partners, Hopkinson nails a marriage cracking into a million pieces, and manages to make you believe there's always a way to patch things up. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
A British novel asks who is more maddening: a couple of preschool boys, or their man-child father.Mary loves her children, and everyone tells her she should adore her husband Joel, who is sexy and romantic and so good with their sons. But still...she wishes he wouldn't throw the dirty laundry in the direction of the basket, and wouldn't ignore the pots and pans when he's washing up and expect she do all the boring bits of childcare, and housework and cooking, and then go and impress everyone with his occasional culinary masterpiece. Mary's list of complaints is so unruly she begins organizing it on a spreadsheet. Unbeknownst to Joel, he has six months to prove himself not totally worthless (she gives him an allotment of points per month) or else she's going to divorce him. Her best friend Becky is stunnedwould she really divorce her husband because of teabags left on the counter? She would. Or at least she believes this until the novel's end when she realizes there are other issues at play. Unfortunately, this leaves hundreds of pages of Mary's unpleasantness. Occasionally, Hopkinson's keen observations are funny, but too often the carping is tedious and the minutia of Mary's fault-finding comes to seem pathological. Thankfully, there are distractions along the way, like Mary's obsession with her friend Mitzi's perfect life (which includes a multimillion-dollar, eco-friendly vacation home, housing spotlessly attired children, cared for by efficient nannies). That is until she discovers the revolting peccadillos of Mitzi and her straitlaced husband. And then there's Becky, who is considering motherhood but is afraid her partner Cara (whom Mary has a crush on) will leave her. Joel, the center of Mary's fury, is left in the shadows until the end, when they are forced to either grow up or get divorced.A mixed bagthe sly comedy and cleverness regarding the fate of modern women (nothingyour body, your house, your childrenlooks as it does in the magazines) is almost drowned by the relentless anger of the heroine.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Mary is fed up with her rambunctious sons, her unsatisfying part-time work, the constant mess in her house, and, especially, her charming husband. Nobody else can see that behind his laid-back facade is a man-child who leaves behind a trail of coffee stains and dirty underwear. So she starts a list of his infractions. Mary is a hard woman with whom to sympathize absolutely underappreciated and understandably frustrated but, frankly, not very nice. Hopkinson (Cyber Cinderella, 2006) poses some interesting questions about the trials of the modern working mom but drops the seriousness of Mary's plight in favor of a rushed, melodramatic conclusion. (The fate of her seemingly perfect, wealthy friend, Mitzi, however, is disgustingly if predictably hilarious.) Not as much fun as other British mommy lit, The Pile of Stuff at the Bottom of the Stairs may find readers among fans of Fiona Neill's Slummy Mummy (2007).--Maguire, Susan Copyright 2010 Booklist
Library Journal Review
"I'm an angry person," says Mary, and she is. She's angry at hybrid cars, Valentine's Day, dog poop on the sidewalk, birthday party goody bags, and her twentysomething coworkers. Most of all, she's angry at her husband, Joel, who she's convinced is the only thing standing between her and the orderly House Beautiful life for which she longs. While Mary juggles the care of two young sons, a part-time job, and a perpetually chaotic household, Joel cheerfully meanders through life leaving a trail of wet towels, dirty socks, and unwashed pots in his wake. Mary's plan is to use a balance sheet to track her husband's domestic infractions. If the bottom line shows he is an asset to the house, he gets to stay in it. If he's a liability, out he goes. VERDICT Mary's whining is irritating, but Hopkinson (Izobel Brannigan.com) writes with wry humor and an unmistakable ring of truth that will resonate with multitasking mothers everywhere. Perfect for fans of mom lit/chick lit crossovers like Allison Pearson's I Don't Know How She Does It and Jane Green's The Other Woman.-Jeanne Bogino, New Lebanon Lib., NY (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.