Scan barcode
kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
Kate Feiffer, My Mom is Trying to Ruin My Life, date, rating
A standalone picture book of a young girl with embarrassing parents.
My Take
It’s that age-old embarrassment every child faces as they grow, when a parent can’t do anything right in public. Kisses? Ick. Hugs? Ick.
Of course some of the ways in which Mom is ruining her life are sensible prohibitions. Others? Yeah, I’d be pissy too.
Fortunately the girl is into equality (and a first-person protagonist point-of-view)…’cause Dad is trying to ruin her life too. Yep. All the usual, inconsiderate expectations. Yeesh.
Some of the little girl’s plans are too funny, especially as she follows their, um, natural consequences. Get your kids’ imaginations going with their own plans…and help them find those consequences. Eeep.
Goode's illustrations are terrific. I'm thinking pen and ink and watercolors for these soft yet cheerful graphics.
This would be an excellent story to discuss (that’s such a nasty word. Sounds like WORK.). What if we say, the story offers up opportunities to think up all the terrible things your child thinks you’re doing to ruin their lives! Then pick and choose the ones where you can be less “awful”. ‘Cause that ending will definitely make your kids re-think.
The Characters
Mom. Dad. Imaginative little girl.
The Cover and Title
The cover is too sweet for words with its creamy background that contrasts well with the pink and green of the title (which is in different sizes in a funky font) at the top, followed by Mom in her pink dress with green belt and handbag bending over to kiss her angry daughter, dressed in green with a pink belt. The author’s and illustrator’s names are in white at the bottom of the cover inside a red-violet band…with love.
The title is only half right, for, while My Mom is Trying to Ruin My Life, Dad is doing his part too.
A standalone picture book of a young girl with embarrassing parents.
My Take
It’s that age-old embarrassment every child faces as they grow, when a parent can’t do anything right in public. Kisses? Ick. Hugs? Ick.
Of course some of the ways in which Mom is ruining her life are sensible prohibitions. Others? Yeah, I’d be pissy too.
Fortunately the girl is into equality (and a first-person protagonist point-of-view)…’cause Dad is trying to ruin her life too. Yep. All the usual, inconsiderate expectations. Yeesh.
Some of the little girl’s plans are too funny, especially as she follows their, um, natural consequences. Get your kids’ imaginations going with their own plans…and help them find those consequences. Eeep.
Goode's illustrations are terrific. I'm thinking pen and ink and watercolors for these soft yet cheerful graphics.
This would be an excellent story to discuss (that’s such a nasty word. Sounds like WORK.). What if we say, the story offers up opportunities to think up all the terrible things your child thinks you’re doing to ruin their lives! Then pick and choose the ones where you can be less “awful”. ‘Cause that ending will definitely make your kids re-think.
The Characters
Mom. Dad. Imaginative little girl.
The Cover and Title
The cover is too sweet for words with its creamy background that contrasts well with the pink and green of the title (which is in different sizes in a funky font) at the top, followed by Mom in her pink dress with green belt and handbag bending over to kiss her angry daughter, dressed in green with a pink belt. The author’s and illustrator’s names are in white at the bottom of the cover inside a red-violet band…with love.
The title is only half right, for, while My Mom is Trying to Ruin My Life, Dad is doing his part too.
sillygilly101's review against another edition
4.0
This is my mom!
I loved this laugh out loud relate-able picture book.
Except my mom is actually trying to ruin my life
I loved this laugh out loud relate-able picture book.
Except my mom is actually trying to ruin my life
kristenremenar's review against another edition
2.0
I'm sure my daughter could relate to this book. Mom (and Dad, thank you very much) are trying to ruin the little girl's life by kissing her in public, not letting her eat or do what she wants, making her do her homework, etc. So the girl thinks maybe she should run away and eventually her parents would end up in jail for trying to ruin her life, but then no one would take care of the girl and she'd miss them, so things are better as they are. Pretty slim premise. The pink and green cover and funny title will make this more popular than the story will.
mbrandmaier's review against another edition
3.0
Clearly, the little girl is embarassed by her parents' loving ways.
leigh_reidelberger's review against another edition
5.0
Another super cute story I read quickly and will be purchasing for some of the young readers in my family.
faeriedrumsong's review against another edition
3.0
my daughter loves this illustrator. the book was cute enough, although i dislike the "i am going to run away" plot device that is so popular in kids books. i understand what it is for, and i know that it doesn't really encourage kids to run away, but i just don't like it, and you can't make me, so there.
mcampbel's review against another edition
4.0
I read this to some of the kids at Sparks camp. Great bedtime story. Loved the drawings too.
leaflibrary's review
3.0
This book is the embodiment of those Billy Ray Cyrus / Miley Cyrus skits on SNL a few years ago. Doting parents are so embarrassing!
(In other words, funny and relatable for privileged kids, but kind of a bummer if your parents are busy, absent, abusive, or from a less affectionate country than the US.)
(In other words, funny and relatable for privileged kids, but kind of a bummer if your parents are busy, absent, abusive, or from a less affectionate country than the US.)
tashrow's review
4.0
Sure, Mom seems nice and sweet but she is definitely trying to ruin her daughter’s life! She has five ways that her mother ruins her life: she kisses her in front of her friends, she brings changes of clothes into school in the middle of the day, she talks too loudly, she restricts certain foods, and she worries too much that her daughter might get hurt. Tragic, isn’t it? But the little girl has a plan that results in her mother going to jail for trying to ruin her daughter’s life. She would try to call her husband, but the little girl also knows that her father is trying to ruin her life, so in her plan they both are put in jail. All seems perfect, until the girl realizes that that would leave her all alone and scared. So maybe it’s not the best plan after all.
This sassy book has a sense of humor that keeps it from becoming bratty. The litany of wrong-doings of both the father and mother are humorous and even children will see right through them. Children will also enjoy spotting the holes in her plan before she realizes them herself. Her plan is painted with such broad humor that it could only be a daydream, a passing whim. Because all children feel this way about their parents at some time, they will relate effortlessly to the feelings on the page. Goode’s illustrations nicely use the white space on the page. They offer breezy lines done in watercolors that appear effortless and tie into the humor of the text well.
A great ironic choice for Mother’s Day that will cut through books that can become a little too sweet when read all together, this book is appropriate for ages 5-7.
This sassy book has a sense of humor that keeps it from becoming bratty. The litany of wrong-doings of both the father and mother are humorous and even children will see right through them. Children will also enjoy spotting the holes in her plan before she realizes them herself. Her plan is painted with such broad humor that it could only be a daydream, a passing whim. Because all children feel this way about their parents at some time, they will relate effortlessly to the feelings on the page. Goode’s illustrations nicely use the white space on the page. They offer breezy lines done in watercolors that appear effortless and tie into the humor of the text well.
A great ironic choice for Mother’s Day that will cut through books that can become a little too sweet when read all together, this book is appropriate for ages 5-7.
More...