Customer Reviews

Sahm I Am: Tales of a Stay-at-Home Mom in Europe

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

From these candid, funny, and wise pages, author and mom, Christine Louis Hohlbaum, opens the door to the multicultural daily dance and shuffle of motherhood. The insight of a professional woman turned stay-at-home Mom provides a compass to maneuver gracefully through the ever-changing directions of children, in faith and with humor. Christine's stories are refreshing - a breath of fresh air for parents, actually for all of us! She speaks with gritty honesty and promises only entertainment, although the nuggets of wisdom tucked into the stories of family dynamics and children's antics are real. She tells it like it is and spurs our interest to explore and read more. I highly recommend it to those parents that I coach because it guides all parents through their own thoughts and questions about parenting, and shows how to enjoy motherhood!


Dr. Caron B. Goode
Founder, Academy for Coaching Parents, Int'l (www.acpi.biz)
Author, Nurture Your Child's Gift, Inspired Parenting (www.inspiredparenting.net)

Hohlbaum has a good heart and is a dedicated mom, and she's not afraid to talk about the fears and worries that all moms share. Her book is clever and honest and easy to read in short bursts - perfect for a busy mother.

Christine Louise Hohlbaum is a down-to-Earth mother and it shows in every word she writes. There is no sugar-coating here. She tells it like it is and it is refreshing to read.

It is one of those books that comes back to you when you are standing in line at the grocery store wearing mismatched socks and hot pink nail polish your daughter insisted she apply to you. You are getting dirty looks because your children are screaming, and you feel like the worst mother in the world. Then you remember that you are not alone. Chistine Louise Hohlbaum has been there, done that and survived.

She creates magic with her writing. It amazed me as I read it that Ms. Hohlbaum can take the smallest events and turn them into stories I will never forget. An excellent follow on to Diary of a Mother.

It's hard not to get caught up in Christine Hohlbaum's lively collection of essays on parenting in Europe. While there are many "momoirs" on the American motherhood experience, Hohlbaum's perspective from Germany has something new to offer the avid reader of accessible motherhood literature. Her sense of humor is both refreshing and infectious -- and she never takes herself too seriously. The book cover alone will make you smile with recognition, which is one more reason it makes a perfect gift for young moms.

At the same time, Hohlbaum is honest about the challenges facing all work-at-home (or stay-at-home) mothers, no matter where they live. "Sadly, there is barely a day that goes by without my first having to deal with thirteen obstacles before I reach the keyboard," the author admits. Hohlbaum has crafted a fabulous career as an award-winning writer and marketing professional. I highly recommend her delightful book to every woman with similar dreams and goals, as well as to every parent who enjoys reading short pieces about motherhood.

--Cindy La Ferle, author of Writing Home (award-winning essays on motherhood and family): www.laferle.com

Like a tall cool glass of lemonade on a hot summer afternoon, "S.A.H.M I Am" is just what every at-home mom needs when the clutter and chaos of mommying gets to be too much. Which, for most of us, is every day. Recounting her adventures as an American mom of two living Germany, she tackles all the important subjects, such as lost loveys, dirty floors, and most important of all, the overall sweetness of children.

My favorite line in the whole book sums it all up: "Everything is pretty cool when you're a stay-at-home mom as long as you never have to eat, get sick or go to the bathroom." Highly recommended!

I wanted to love, or at least like this book, but I just couldn't. In the author's defense, I read her book right after reading Haven Kimmel's books and the latter's books are so incredibly witty that I laughed out loud through them--not so with S.A.H.M I Am. The humor in this book made me wince because I knew the author was really trying, and I was rooting for her, but she just was not funny. I also just completed the Happy Housewife by Darla Shine and I laughed and cried through that whole book, so I think that spoiled me for S.A.H.M I Am.

Maybe lots of mothers will see themselves in this book, but I am not amused by not cleaning your house. Maybe when you have a newborn, but not after that. Sitting at the computer is a luxury enjoyed AFTER the work is done.

Finally, I was hoping for lots of info about living in Germany (because of the title), but that was scarce. This read more like a journal and may be interesting to some people, but I was hoping for more.

I was so excited to see this book. Like some of the other reviewers, I am a SAHM in Germany. I was hoping to read about the trials and tribulations associated with trying to raise children in a foreign country and a foreign language. I did not get this at all. The author appeared to seamlessly integrate into German society, and even writes about how she briefed/taught something to local officials.

This made absolutely no sense to me, until I realized that this author *had* no language barrier to overcome. There may not have even been that much of a culture shock. Her husband has a German name, one of her children's grandmothers lives in Switzerland. I believe the author also majored in German in college and did graduate studies at a German university. She does not write about any issues her children faced with making friends, tackling German kindergarten, or learning to speak German. Reading between the lines, her children probably spoke German before they arrived.

This is all wonderful for the author, and I am glad that she has been able to integrate so well into German culture. But if her children are half-European native German speakers, if the children have family in Europe, if the author herself is fluent in German, if her husband is European, and if she has lived and studied in Europe before -- then it's not really the tales of a true expat family living in a Bavarian cow town, is it? Yes, she lives in a foreign country, but it is not foreign to her.

I agree that this book could have been set in anywhere in the USA, as there is very little discussion of the overseas aspect of her life with children. Its title is misleading.

Perhaps some of the other SAHMs in Germany that have posted should start a blog about what their experiences were like. It sounds like something I would like to read (and what I had hoped to read about in this book).

I am planning on being a stay-at-home mom in Europe and thought this book would be a perfect read. The author, however, could easily be writing from her home anywhere in America. The chapters seem to end abruptly and the punchlines just aren't funny. I'd suggest reading Vicki Iovine's books!

[...]This book was so close to home that I had to close it at times just to savor the moment. I laughed so hard at times at how similar we had things. Wonderful diary that makes me feel like I am glad someone understands, because she expresses it so beautifully and clearly.

I was really looking forward to reading this book, but have to say I'm really dissapointed. For one, it's really not that funny, but what bothered me more was all the stereotypes. The picture she paints of Germany sounds more like Germany 50 years ago, not today.
Save your money!