AustLit

'A poignant, revealing and hilarious memoir about what happened when a former Playschool presenter (and brothel receptionist) woke up one morning in Munich four months pregnant, without a word of German under her belt, and surrounded by Bavarians! It's a tale about friendship, marriage and motherhood and how even a feminist can own a Dirndl.

'In her first book, There's A Bear In There, Merridy Eastman led us into the forbidden world of a Sydney brothel where she once worked as a nervous receptionist. In Ridiculous Expectations she packed us into her suitcase and took us on her British book tour where, instead of finding Mr Darcy as promised, she was swept off her feet by a tall German called Tom. Who knew?

'In How Now Brown Frau Merridy plunges headlong into a new life in Bavaria where she takes up residence four months pregnant and without a word of German under her belt. Here we meet her conventional Bavarian inlaws, climb excruciating language barriers (not to mention a few alps) and grapple with a culture that seems at times to be on a whole other planet. A world of challenge opens up before us - the food, the weather, the customs, the traditional religious greetings, the silence on public transport, and of course the Freikorperkultur, or nudism, acceptable even in Munich's central public gardens. But with help from some wonderful expat friends, Merridy grows to love the beautifully restored ancient city, and to realise that travel doesn't just broaden the mind, it can also open the heart.

'How Now Brown Frau is laugh-out-loud funny and all the more so for being completely true. This is What Merridy Did Next.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Merridy Eastman's been ditched by her builder boyfriend for a waitress named Nancy, but everyone seems to think she'll find Mr Right very soon. In England, to be specific, where she will be spending three months on her wacky sister's sofa bed.

'The age-old tale of Australians trying to make it in the UK gets a new twist as Merridy encounters the class, culinary, cultural and communication eccentricities of the English. Will Merridy find her prince at last, or does she have ridiculous expectations of men? Are English men really any different to Aussie blokes? Should she hold out for true love? And will her family ever behave like normal people?

'This is real life chick lit for grown-up girls with all the characteristic humour and compassion that made There's a Bear in There such a hit. Does Merridy find her prince? You'll have to read on ...' (Publication summary)

'"I have several young busty blondes, Derek," Pip sang like a weathergirl. "One is a very sexy Danish girl, just back from a skiing trip, five-foot-five, long wavy blonde hair, blue eyes, 25 years old. A fantastic figure: 36-25-35. Or I have a more demure, very pretty, young strawberry-blonde Australian, Derek. She's 19..." And give or take an inch or two Pip described the same girl four different ways.'

'When her acting career stalls, Merridy Eastman lands a challenging real-life role: night receptionist at a Sydney brothel. A long way from the bright lights of a TV studio, she is swept into the high drama of the sex industry.

'Nothing in Play Street or Shakespeare in the Park could prepare her for this. She learns words for items and acts she never imagined. She opens the door to first-timers, old hands, couples and the occasional celebrity. And above all she becomes friends with the women who make their living out of having sex with strangers.

'There's a Bear in There (And He Wants Swedish) is a funny and fascinating account of a forbidden world, told with a lively sense of the absurd and a rare and forgiving understanding of human frailty.' (Publication summary)