Being Kendra

September 12, 2011
Wilkinson (Sliding Into Home) was an easy favorite from E!'s The Girls Next Door; against the background of Holly and Bridget's strained attempts to keep it classy, Kendra was unabashedly herself, a crass 18-year-old with a love for chicken fingers. In her second memoir, she presents the next chapter: marriage to NFL player Hank Baskett, and a baby, Hank IV. Wilkinson stresses her need to do motherhood in a way that works for herâeating egg sandwiches in the shower, using Pedialyte as the "ultimate hangover prevention and cure," and, when her baby was born, looking into his eyes and thinking "I love more than I love Dunkaroos" in order to stay on track with losing the baby weight. Wilkinson takes an honest, self-critical, and touchingly earnest tone when writing about motherhood. Though some chapters prove mundane, with pages devoted to Baby Hank's diet, daily routine, and trips to the park, there is at least one section devoted to how she keeps the marital flame alive. Wilkinson's secret: "Avoid the bed as much as possible."