[close] "Frequent Parenting Miles." Mothers of the 21st Century may not be familiar with this term, (coined by author Faulkner Fox), but they'll quickly catch the gist, no doubt about it. In her irreverent, smart, thought-provoking memoir, Fox raises a lot of questions, and even answers a few. A biggie is this: "If you love someone and he's a feminist, and you create children together...shouldn't the groundwork for peace and generosity be laid? Perhaps Duncan [Fox's husband--not his real name] was a fake feminist, an armchair spouter of equity-talk." Fox agonizes over what is just, for her little family and for womankind. She obsessively (and hilariously) counts the hours she spends caring for her two sons versus the hours her husband spends doing the same thing (a.k.a. frequent parenting miles). She reflects on the social, political, and health ramifications of pregnancy, birth, and motherhood. In her professional life she ponders the time-honored tradition of paying women less to do the same jobs men do. And she returns, again and again, to a fantasy she had in her 20s, in which she writes peacefully in a house by the sea while a man cooks in the kitchen and a small child plays quietly in the corner. Why does real life look so different, even with a swell husband, much-loved children, a part-time job, and a little time to write?

Dispatches from a Not-So-Perfect Life is packed with the kind of ambivalence and unexpected humor and joy that so many women find in life today. It should be required reading for any woman or man contemplating marriage, parenthood, or simply life as an adult. --Emilie Coulter [close]