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Operating Instructions | Introduction

Anne Lamott’s Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son’s First Year was published in 1993. This work chronicles the first year that Lamott, a single mother, and her newborn son, Sam, spend together. Lamott records her thoughts about her unplanned pregnancy, the birth of her child, and the numerous and often challenging responsibilities of parenthood.

Operating Instructions also focuses on baby Sam’s development, detailing his numerous achievements during his first year. Lamott explores her relationship with her child as deeply as she does her relationships with her friends (whom she now relies on more than ever) and her relationship with herself. She writes about the adventure of motherhood without losing a sense of herself as a unique individual, and without losing her unique sense of humor.

Operating Instructions Summary

Pregnancy and Birth
Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son’s First Year begins during Lamott’s pregnancy. An unmarried, thirty-five year old writer, Lamott decides to keep the baby and raise it herself when the biological father makes it clear that he will not take part in the child’s life. In the months preceding Sam’s birth, Lamott faces her feelings of loneliness, as well as her joys and her fears.

1989
Sam is born on September 7, 1989. Lamott’s best friend Pammy and her brother Steve are in the delivery room with Lamott. When Lamott holds Sam for the first time, she immediately becomes enraptured with her baby.

During the first month of Sam’s life, Lamott is exhausted. Sometimes she feels so stressed that she needs to leave the room to get away from Sam. Throughout the long days and nights, Lamott records Sam’s accomplishments: crying, losing his hair, smiling, laughing, sleeping through the night, and being... » Complete Operating Instructions Summary