The Tao of Poop: Keeping Your Sanity (and Your Soul) While Raising a Baby [Hardcover]

Vivian E. Glyck (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 14, 2006

There's a lot of romance about becoming a parent, but at some point the storybook scenarios of serene life with baby are interrupted by the darker side of the motherhood experience: the little "bundle of joy" cries inconsolably, wakes up four times a night, won't take a bottle—the fantasy of motherhood quickly collides with reality. Vivian Glyck shows us that in fact it's the difficult parts of parenting that are the most valuable. The many challenges call on us to grow and develop as people. "Parenting," Glyck writes, "is the ultimate spiritual practice."

The Tao of Poop presents ten valuable life lessons that arise amid all the challenges of parenting. Based on the author's own experience and drawing on the sentiments of many mothers she's spoken to and corresponded with, each chapter explores a common parenting predicament and a lesson that can be drawn from it, as well as helpful tips and strategies she calls "sanity savers."

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this light treatise on parenthood, entrepreneur and marketing consultant Glyck warns new and expecting mothers "there's no escaping the poop," which is good, because "the hard parts of motherhood actually offer...the most potential for growth." Glyck takes pains to avoid the glorious myths about the beauty of birthing and childrearing, instead offering readers 10 topical chapters about lowering your expectations, rolling with the infant's punches, the importance of maintaining perspective (and outlets for frustration) and surviving "mommy wars." Interspersed are inspirational quotes, "Sanity Savers" sidebars and "Thought Experiment(s)." Though Glyck can tend toward the meliorist ("I often wonder why we just can't support one another," she muses about other mothers), her naïveté is tempered by her curious choice of epigraph: Sylvia Plath, before she put her head in an oven.
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Review

"This book will provide a belly laugh for some new mothers in desperate need of comic relief, or any kind of relief, from the twenty-four-hour shift that goes with parenting a very young child."— Publishers Weekly

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Trumpeter (March 14, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590302877
• ISBN-13: 978-1590302873
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #912,901 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Selfish parenting, August 4, 2010

By 

CT (Las Vegas, Nevada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Tao of Poop: Keeping Your Sanity (and Your Soul) While Raising a Baby (Paperback)

I only got a few chapters in and could go no further. I am a new mother and love and lucky enough to spend nearly every waking hour with my baby. It is easy to see why she only has one child. She seems to have a totally warped, painful sense of parenthood, it is kind of sad. She mainly talks about herself. The cover portrays that one may find silly, funny, or realistic antidotes about parenting of little ones, this is not what is in the book. It is pretty much the parable of the burning bush of parenthood, beware.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great mothers day and baby shower gift!!!, April 28, 2006

By 

Dr. T. Shanahan - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Tao of Poop: Keeping Your Sanity (and Your Soul) While Raising a Baby (Hardcover)

I am not a Mom but needed a great gift for friends. I bought this amazing, fun, wise book and now have a stack for all my friends. This book is a perfect and I mean perfect gift!!!
Thank you Vivian Glyck!! Give us more!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great support for the journey, April 12, 2006

By 

Jill McMillan (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Tao of Poop: Keeping Your Sanity (and Your Soul) While Raising a Baby (Hardcover)

This book is comforting, enlightening and at times utterly hillarious. I found myself reaching for it like I used to reach for an after work drink with friends. Vivian offers guidance and much needed reality checks on the topics we stress over the most. Down to earth and easy, this is a great gift book for any pregnant or new mom you know.