false 306417 2 Does Martha Stewart make you feel like you never do enough for your kids? Do "celebrity mom" profiles leave you feeling lumpen and inadequate? That's because they're supposed to, say Susan Douglas and Meredith Michaels, authors of <I>The Mommy Myth</I> and self-professed "mothers with an attitude." Both scathing and self-deprecating, their pop-culture critique takes on "the new momism," the media's obsession with motherhood and the impossible standards which that obsession promotes. Today's ideal mom makes June Cleaver seem like a layabout: she may work outside the home, but never <I>too</I> much, always looks at the world through her children's eyes, makes sure to buy only educational, age-appropriate toys, and includes a loving note with each hand-prepared lunch. Meanwhile, the news media hype stories about child abduction, politicians excoriate so-called "welfare queens," and parenting experts advocate wearing your child in a sling until he moves out on his own. Romanticized, commercialized, sensationalized, and demonized by turns, today's mothers are damned if they work and damned if they don't; what's more, the idea that the government might do something to help their plight has come to seem almost quaint. As a history of motherhood in the media from 1970 to the present, <I>The Mommy Myth</I> makes a fun and thought-provoking read. Yet close readings of episodes of <I>thirtysomething</I> don't create quite the call to arms the authors seem to have in mind; no woman likes to think of herself as a media dupe, particularly the kind of woman who will be reading this book. Straightforward policy critiques like their chilling chapter on childcare fare much better, illuminating a culture that seems to have forgotten public institutions' power to correct social ills. <I>--Mary Park</I> 297401 2004 The Mommy Myth: The Idealization of Motherhood and How It Has Undermined All Women total:180|5:44|4:72|3:40|2:20|1:4| 180 672 359 42 5 21 false false Thu Sep 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 29 09:19:09 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 03 11:12:06 -0700 2009 once And after hearing comments like, "motherhood is so wonderful!" and, "there's no better job than being a mom!"...
And after overhearing lots of "mommy wars" crap - stay at home vs. working mom...more...]]> 5 4 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed Jan 09 19:09:09 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 09 19:13:40 -0800 2008 more...]]> 1 1 true false Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Aug 29 18:47:01 -0700 2007 Wed Aug 29 19:09:05 -0700 2007 However, it felt like the authors were hammering in the same points using a very aggressive tone - if that makes sense - which made it difficult for me to read.
I felt like the authors were often rolling their e...more...]]> 4 2 false false Mon Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2005 Wed Oct 03 11:51:12 -0700 2007 Wed Oct 03 11:54:38 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 1 true false Thu Mar 15 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Jun 25 10:46:44 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 25 10:58:26 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Thu Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Sun Feb 03 18:44:39 -0800 2008 Sun Feb 03 18:44:39 -0800 2008 more...]]> 0 0 false false Tue Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 19 07:45:55 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 19 07:45:55 -0700 2009
But I think th...more...]]> 4 1 false false Mon Jan 28 12:27:05 -0800 2008 Mon Jan 28 12:33:58 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Apr 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Fri Oct 19 12:22:49 -0700 2007 Fri Oct 19 12:30:20 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Aug 18 11:45:54 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 01 12:02:46 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Thu Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Wed Jul 11 00:13:40 -0700 2007 Wed Jul 11 00:15:44 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Tue Jan 06 18:12:13 -0800 2009 Fri Mar 06 09:36:48 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Jul 02 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Jun 12 14:27:25 -0700 2008 Wed Jul 02 16:47:42 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Mon Feb 16 07:28:09 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 16 07:28:09 -0800 2009 more...]]> 2 0 true false Sun Nov 16 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Jul 12 16:10:28 -0700 2008 Sun Nov 16 11:44:34 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun Aug 03 11:56:29 -0700 2008 Sun Aug 03 12:11:27 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 07 14:55:07 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 03 14:23:56 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Oct 18 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Nov 04 07:48:09 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 04 07:48:09 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Mon Oct 06 07:51:24 -0700 2008 Mon Oct 06 07:59:49 -0700 2008 2
A truly eye-opening book that tackles one of the most enduring grand narratives. Douglas examines the media manipulation of mothers with the manufactur...more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Feb 16 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Aug 15 15:26:41 -0700 2007 Mon Feb 16 13:04:33 -0800 2009 more...]]>