Mom's the Word

May 15, 2013

It's a little strange that a book likely aimed at the Mother's Day crowd is being published a month later, but the publisher claims its release coincides with "Smile Power Day" (June 15), which I couldn't even find listed in Chase's Calendar of Events. Marketing crisis aside, this compilation of quotes is organized into categories such as "A Mother's Love," "A Mother's Work Is Never Done, "My Mama Done Told Me," etc. Some are humorous, some are saccharine, some are out of context and seem to be included merely because they included the word "mother" (e.g., "I was a mother's boy," attributed to Don Rickles). VERDICT These "tribute" books rarely sit well with me, and, more often than not, they leave the reader asking, "So what?" Libraries can pass on this.

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