A review by elizaed
Bad Mother: A Chronicle of Maternal Crimes, Minor Calamities, and Occasional Moments of Grace by Ayelet Waldman

4.0

I didn't know much about the author before reading this. My son actually picked this book for me off the new releases shelf at the library. I laughed when he handed it to me but decided it was worth checking out. Really glad I did. While I can't give it 5 stars - the author's voice did grate on me at times -- overall it was a page turner. Waldman is often brutally honest about her experiences as a bipolar mother of 4. I cried when I read the chapter about how her newborn almost starved to death from an undiagnosed palate problem and her struggles to breastfeed him, and also the chapter about her considering an abortion after an amnio showed a potentially serious problem. I also found her discussion of the impossible ideal of what constitutes a Good Mother and how other mothers are often the cruelest enforcers of it sadly accurate. Not recommended for conservatives as she is definitely coming from the far left in her viewpoints, but if that doesn't put you off, it's a good read.