In Yoga Pant Nation (Henry Holt and Company), the latest laugh-out-loud novel in her Class Mom series, Laurie Gelman (@lauriegelman) chronicles her main character's final year in the agony-inducing role. Spoiler alert: mayhem ensues. Here, we check in with the local mom of two about her own hilarious adventures in motherhood.
Katie Couric, Kelly Ripa, Ali Wentworth and Gelman dive into the juicy read at a party celebrating its release in Water Mill.
What inspired you to write the book? Yoga Pant Nation is the third book in the series. I was inspired to write the first one, Class Mom, after I was fired from being the class mom in my younger daughter’s third-grade class. It was my revenge on the PTA people who turfed me out, and I have to say I felt much better after I wrote it. As for the two sequels, I wrote them purely for the money.
Do you think this book captures the Hamptons mommy scene? I think this book captures the mommy scene just about anywhere there are moms forced to volunteer at school. You can be in the Hamptons, New York or (as in the book) Kansas City, and the mommy stuff is all the same crap in a different pile.
Yoga Pant Nation, the third installment in Laurie Gelman’s Class Mom series
Did you pull from real-life experiences? Any similar stories to share? The first book in the series was all about my real-life experiences being a first-time class mom (including the aforementioned firing). After that, I kind of ran out of ideas. Luckily, other mothers from across the country and even right here in the Hamptons were eager to share their tales from the trenches of the PTA with me. I have collected enough for 10 books!
Do you think a sense of humor is an essential tool when it comes to being a mom? I think it is the essential tool. There is so much stress and worry and crushing responsibility involved in raising your kids that if you can’t laugh about it you will end up eating soft foods at Dr. Percy’s Private Asylum. Also, kids are naturally funny, so we should all embrace that and share the cute things they say and do at dinner parties. People love that!
Describe your Hamptons mommy look—yoga pants and all! For my summer Hamptons look, I go with cropped yoga pants, my favorite Perfect White Tee and Oofos slides in bright white. I challenge you to catch me in any other outfit unless I’m out for dinner. If you do, you’ll win (what else?) a copy of Yoga Pant Nation.
Photography by: PHOTO: BY PATRICK MCMULLAN; COVER COURTESY OF HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY
