Good-Enough Mother and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more

FREE Shipping on orders over $25.

Used - Very Good | See details
Sold by Selah's Books.
 
   
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Start reading Good-Enough Mother on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Color:
Image not available

To view this video download Flash Player

 

Good-Enough Mother: The Perfectly Imperfect Book of Parenting [Hardcover]

René Syler , Karen Moline
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


Free Two-Day Shipping for College Students with Amazon Student

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition $9.69  
Hardcover, Bargain Price $9.18  
Hardcover, March 27, 2007 --  
Paperback $12.18  
Image
Save on Popular Books This Summer
Browse our Bookshelf Favorites store for big savings on popular fiction, nonfiction, children's books, and more.

Book Description

March 27, 2007 141693491X 978-1416934912 1

For every woman who's passed off store-bought cakes as her own at the school bake sale comes an honest look at motherhood.

In an ideal world, mothers would have time to hand-sew their kids' costumes for the school play, prepare all-organic meals, and volunteer in the classroom at the drop of a hat. In reality, most moms have to settle for plopping their little ones in front of SpongeBob so that they can prepare yet another chicken nugget-based dinner, guiltily convinced they're falling down on the job.

In Good-Enough Mother, René Syler shares how she learned to chuck perfection for practicality. She shows other women seeking to balance family, work, and some semblance of a personal life how to happily join the ranks of good-enough mothers who occasionally serve breakfast for dinner yet give their children plenty of what really matters -- love, time, and support.

Whether it's dealing with annoying Super-Moms, bluffing through a third grader's math homework, or coping with the words that strike terror into every parent's heart ("Your son's teacher on line one"), the welcome empathy and sage advice of Good-Enough Mother will have every modern mom laughing in relief and recognition.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

All mothers want to provide their kids the perfect childhood; as such, many try to become the perfect mother. In this humorous look at modern momhood, journalist and TV personality Syler uses her own experience as a working mom of two to show how "good-enough" is the new "perfect." Each short, punchy chapter is focused loosely on a parenting topic, including spouse management, math homework, assigning chores, taking time out for friends and "flunking the PTA." Syler believes in teaching by example, a strategy she uses on her kids and her readers; in honest, conversational prose, Syler gets very personal, giving readers plenty of lengthy glimpses into the life of a minor celebrity. Though it doesn't add a whole lot to the exploding mommy-memoir canon, this will make a satisfying read for any woman who knows what it's like to scramble through the day raising children, working full time and hoping her efforts are good enough.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

René Syler has been an anchor of CBS's The Early Show. She is an active member of the National Association of Black Journalists. Syler is married to Buff Parham, with whom she has two children.

Karen Moline is a journalist, novelist, and ghostwriter. She has worked on a wide variety of bestselling books. Moline lives in New York City with her son.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Gallery Books; 1 edition (March 27, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 141693491X
  • ISBN-13: 978-1416934912
  • Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.9 x 1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,600,307 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars Good Memoir...Okay Parenting Book July 30, 2007
Format:Hardcover
I would have given this book more stars if it had been marketed differently. I think my problem with this book was viewing it as a type of parenting book. If it had instead been put into the memoir category, then I might have enjoyed it more.

I do appreciate the author's message that parents do not have to all-perfect beings. But I think I got that message somewhere in Chapter 2 or 3 and I could have skipped reading the rest of the book which was full of the author's family stories.

Instead of putting this in the parenting books, the publisher should have targeted it to working women as a "My Life in the Trenches" book. Because I think most working women are already doing a lot of what Ms. Syler recommends and could identify with her feelings and approach towards many situations.

So, if you are a fan of Ms. Syler's, then read the book and you'll get a great view of her life and her family and plenty of examples of how she puts her parenting theories into practice. And you'll learn about her house-hunting, and her shopping and bill paying habits, and her childhood, etc. This is a fun read about her day-to-day life with her family.

But if you are looking for a book that is reader-focused and targeted towards solving the readers' particular issues, then look elsewhere.
Was this review helpful to you?
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful look at motherhood! April 20, 2007
By C. King
Format:Hardcover
I absolutely loved this book! It is so nice to know that even celebrity moms struggle with many of the same trials that the rest of us face daily. In a society where women are expected to be "SUPER WOMEN," Rene reassures us that it's okay to be human! As I read the book, I found myself laughing out loud - a must-read for the overworked mother! I am recommending this book to all of my "mommy" friends.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars Good Idea, But Kind of Repetitive June 27, 2007
By S. Ford
Format:Hardcover
I liked the basic premise of the author admitting that she has flaws and shortcomings in the motherhood department. As women, we often measure our self-worth by comparing ourselves to others, so it's always comforting to read that there's another mother out there who also feels like she isn't perfect. However, there are only so many chapters I can read about this topic. It seemed like EVERY chapter was the same: some anecdote about the antics of the author's children, a cutesty self-depricating remark about the author's foibles in the face of said antics, and then the author bragging that she came through when it really counted.
Was this review helpful to you?
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars friends
I worked with Rene back in the early 80's at Miller's Outpost in Sacramento California. She was very outgoing back then with a determination to achieve the best for what life... Read more
Published 19 months ago by badger
5.0 out of 5 stars Good Enough is Good Enough
Hello world! With full disclosure I am a full fledged G.e.m. blog fan before reading this delightful book. Rene Syler nails it in this book... Read more
Published on March 27, 2011 by Irene A. Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!
This book is a great look about the realities of being a mom. It helped me realize my kids aren't the only kids that act crazy and get into stuff all the time. Read more
Published on October 3, 2009 by A. Mitchell
2.0 out of 5 stars Good Enough Mother- Not good enough
Not well written, and just not interesting. A dual $100K+ earning household where the mom is off work early, and complains about it all. Read more
Published on June 7, 2007 by Tracy Goodman
5.0 out of 5 stars You're not alone!
Just to know that I, a mother who loves her kids, but is not a perfect person, am not alone in my quest to just "break even" a a "good enough mom" is refreshing. Read more
Published on May 20, 2007 by K. Bryan
4.0 out of 5 stars Fun to Read
I bought this book for my daughter-in-law because she is so organized and wants everything the best. Read more
Published on May 13, 2007 by C. Latimer
5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely loved it!
What a delightful and encouraging read! It makes me breathe a sigh of relief to know it is okay and "normal" to not have perfect order in all facets of a modern day mom's life! Read more
Published on April 11, 2007 by Renae Stahl
5.0 out of 5 stars What a FUN book!!
This book is a wonderful ray of hope to mothers, and even fathers, who struggle through the day, occasionally worrying about how they measure up as a parent. Read more
Published on April 11, 2007 by Sara Ann
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book!
I bought this as a gift for my best friend who is a new mommy-to-be.

What a great idea for a book! Read more
Published on April 11, 2007 by Matthew Pylant
5.0 out of 5 stars An honest look at motherhood
None of us are perfect and this book allows us to be the perfect imperfect parent to our kids. It helps us to accept that each child is different, even in the same family, and... Read more
Published on April 3, 2007 by Samantha Coulter
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews


Forums

There are no discussions about this product yet.
Be the first to discuss this product with the community.
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 



So You'd Like to...


Create a guide


Look for Similar Items by Category