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The Seven Day Switch
By Kelly Harms
Fiction
Lake Union Publishing
July 1st, 2021
314 pages
The Seven Day Switch by Kelly Harms was an absolutely delightful read. Told in the narratives of main characters Celeste and Wendy, this story is a suburban mom spin on “Freaky Friday”.
Celeste Mason and Wendy Charles could NOT be more different. While Celeste is the seemingly perfect stay-at-home-mom with an “eat the rainbow each day” food mentality, Wendy is a full-time business owner, comfortable feeding her children processed foods. While Celest finds joy and purpose in taking care of her three children and her husband, Wendy works outside of her home and spends precious little time with her family.
In a twist of fate (or, in this case, an artisanal birch-sap vodka that Celeste finds online), the two wake up one morning in the other’s bodies. Now, over-worked, stressed out Wendy and Celeste, the mom-who-can-do-it-all must figure out how to function as the other. Harms has a great way of adding humor into what must feels like an insane situation. What to do when your husband comes in for a kiss? (fake a yeast infection). When your 3-year-old wants to nurse? (give her a lemon starburst to suck on). There were several laugh-out-loud moments that kept this story at a particularly good pace.
The story is told over the span of one week, as both women try to keep this disaster a secret until they can get their hands on more “magical hooch”.
While this is a comedy for sure, there is also a serious side to this book. Discovering how relationships are taken for granted when flying through our lives at breakneck speed. Finding the real cause of why we want to be perfect (or, at least thought to be so). Realizing that just because someone takes a different path or does something in a different manner than us doesn’t mean it is wrong. It is just…. different.
Finding the joy in our lives. What is our purpose? Why do we do the things we do?
As adults, it is so very easy for us to judge. If we really thought about what it would be like to wake up in someone else’s body- living someone else’s life- who would actually sign on for that experience? I certainly wouldn’t! But I am always down for a fantastical, magical spin on the norm.
A fun, thought-provoking 5 star read. Thank you to the Book Review Crew and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this gem!
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