Dan Gets a Minivan

My goal is to read 100 books by the end of 2013.  I just finished book 60.

Dan Gets a Minivan by Dan Zevin

Summary (via the book jacket):
The least hip citizen of Brooklyn, Dan Zevin has a working wife, two small children, a mother who visits each week to "help", and an obese Labrador mutt who prefers to be driven rather than walked.  How he got to this point is a bit of a blur.  There was a wedding, and then there was a puppy.  A home was purchased in New England.  A wife was promoted and transferred to New York.  A town house.  A new baby boy.  A new baby girl.  A stay-at-home dad was born.  A prescription for Xanax was filled.  Gray hairs appeared; gray hairs fell out.  Six years passed in six seconds.  And then came the minivan.
Dan Zevin, master of "Seinfeld-ian nothingness" (Time) is trying his best to make the transition from couplehood to familyhood.  Acclimating to the adult-oriented lifestyle has never been his strong suit, and this slice-of-midlife story chronicles the whole hilarious journey - from instituting date night to joining Costco; from touring Disneyland to recovering from knee surgery; from losing ambition to gaining perspective.  Where it's all heading is anyone's guess, but, for Dan, suburbia's calling - and his minivan has GPS.

My Opinion:
This was a quick, easy breezy read.  The author has a very conversational style and writes in a way that is entertaining and funny without making the last line of every chapter a punchline.
Each new chapter starts with a title page with a van at the bottom; it took me a few chapters to realize the van was moving forward with each chapter - a fun extra touch (and a reason why I still prefer actual books over e-books when possible).

My Favorite Chapter:
"Dating Ourselves"