Raising the Perfect Child Through Guilt and Manipulation

September 28, 2009
Comedian and actress Beckwith here takes a saucy tongue-in-cheek approach to parenting advice, complete with laugh-out-loud funny chapter summaries, discussion questions, and pseudo letters from readers. Via chapters titled a la "How To Scare the Crap Out of Your Child (in a Positive Way)," readers relive much of Beckwith's youth in her Italian Catholic family and will chortle at many of her experiences. Covering such topics as raising a nerd, Beckwith advises, "Instead of being cranky that your son didn't make the football team, breathe a sigh of relief that he is now less likely to be involved in an ill-conceived gang-bang." Touche, Beckwith; well done! See Chris Mancini's Pacify Me for a recent Bombeck-like take on parenting.-Julianne J. Smith, Ypsilanti Dist. Lib., MI

Copyright 2009 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2009
Its hard to tell if this spoof might really be intended as an actual parenting guide, cleverly disguised. Humorous anecdotes about the authors childhood and current family relationships conceal many truisms about growing up; all parents will recognize themselves or their families somewhere here. Especially funny is the account of an interview with Beckwith in Penthouse magazine that she is horrified for her mother to see, proof that the techniques outlined in the chapter Mind Control: Why Its a Good Thing really work. Many of the tactics outlined as examples of guilt and manipulation are actually time-tested parenting techniques, such as instilling morals and ethics in children by observing, and commenting on, the behavior of others, both positive and negative, here called Creating a Team: Us vs. Them. Of course, regular parenting guides feature much warmer and fuzzier chapter titles than these, which is what makes this so funny. More of an olio of thoughts on child rearing rather than either a full-fledged spoof or a straightforward advice book, this engaging mix of poignant humor, honest commentary, and hidden nuggets of wisdom will find a ready audience among seasoned and new parents alike.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)