Did you ever wish someone had given you a life primer when you were in your 20s?
Melissa Kirsch did, but by age 27, she hadn’t been able to find such advice neatly packaged in one place. She decided she’d have to write the quintessential book.
“There was no database of accumulated experiences,” said Kirsch, 32, whose book “The Girl’s Guide to Absolutely Everything” does just that.
Kirsch started her research by asking acquaintances in their 20s, 30s and 40s what they know now that they wish they’d known right after college. The response was staggering, so she knew she was onto something.
The book has chapters on health and body image, career and work, money and finance, etiquette, dating and sex, getting along with your family, spirituality, home economics and fashion. Each chapter offers pithy practical advice in digestible form.
An example from the money and finance chapter: A year of buying plain coffee could run you as much as $275; if your taste runs to lattes, you’re shelling out nearly a G-note annually.
Brew the high-end stuff at home (latte lovers, invest in a cappuccino machine for under $150) and take it in a thermos to work. You’ll save up to $842 a year.