Breeder: Real-Life Stories from the New Generation of Mothers Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Breeder: Real-Life Stories from the New Generation of Mothers
Book Review: Good book for the untraditional
Summary: 4 Stars
This book was recommended to me by a friend who is hipper (or perhaps weirder, depending on your point of view) than I am. The quality of writing in this book is very high, and I enjoyed reading each piece. For me, the most moving parts were the bits about very universal feelings of joy, fear, anger, pain, etc. The specific situations the authors found themselves in frequently seemed quite foreign to me, but I read it very quickly and found myself quite absorbed. For me, I think "Mothers Who Think: Tales of Real-Life Parenthood" hit closer to home. I'd expected friends who are more conservative than I am to find little to relate to, but one of my most conventional friends (who recently suffered a miscarriage) was moved to tears by an account of a similar story in Breeder. After hearing how much this story moved my friend, I changed my mind and sent the book to my mother, who I'd initially thought would be too distracted by the specific situations and attitudes of the authors to enjoy the book. No word back from my mother yet!
I think the moral is that there's something for everyone in this very well-written book. I applaud the editors for compiling stories to encourage mothers to give themselves a break, and for providing a much more diverse set of parent role models than mainstream publications do.
Book Review: sigh
Summary: 1 Stars
From reading the pages of this book that are posted here, all I can do is say "groan." I am a "gen-x-er" and am so tired of the self-indulgent, me-focus of "my" generation. This book looks ridiculous.Book Review: Interesting
Summary: 3 Stars
This collection of essays by "the new generation of mothers" is an interesting and inspiring read. Stories of teen mothers, hippie mothers, gay mothers, infertile mothers, punk mothers, etc. shows the many forms "mother" can take.After reading "Breeder" the only question I have is what happens if you are a minivan driving soccer mom? Does that mean your not part of this new generation? DO you have to be an ex-punk, child-of-a-commune, lesbian to be a "new generation of mother"? One essay from a "main-stream mom" should not have been have been unheard of.
Book Review: Look at us! We're the first humans ever to have babies!
Summary: 1 Stars
I had difficulty getting through the self-conscious, affected and clumsy Vassar-dropout-style prose. I thought the book was poorly edited, and the politics stank. Here is a collection of entitlement-saturated young women who believe they've discovered the that the One True Path ends right in their own wombs. This might be a fresh perspective, except that there's enough text suggesting that any alternate paths are either (1) uncool, or (2) owe the authors a living, that any liberated intent the book had has fizzled.This is the kind of solipsistic fluff, seen on Salon and other 'zines, where it's obvious the authors are incapable of researching topics outside themselves.
As some other reviewers have expressed, I fear for the children these "Breeders" are raising. The authors' gifts to the future sound like they will be anarchistic, self-obsessed little deviants, utterly without taboos, raised to believe that if it doesn't feel good (i.e. school, constructive criticism, work, hygiene, self-control) they don't have to do it. I should probably consider a gun purchase to protect myself from whatever comes out at the other end of their way-cool, hip and reckless childhoods.
Book Review: I love Ariel.
Summary: 5 Stars
I've read everything that Ariel has published, and this was no different. Reading that so many other Mamas out there have the same issues made me feel a little less lonely. And there are enough people out there that think badly of younger or less mainstream Mothers.. we at least have our own support system.Ignore the Anti reviews- SOME people have to get their whole anti-child "down with the babies" kicks at the expense of others. Do us a favor, people- get a hobby. Take up smoking. At least I can take heart in the knowledge that you WON'T be passing your ignorant and hateful life's views on to the next generation.