A hilarious but very helpful guide to motherhood and all that this entails.
Maggie Groff is an Australian novelist, columnist and non-fiction writer who has won numerous awards. She has written two crime novels and three non-fiction books: Mothers Behaving Badly, Hoax Cuisine and Not Your Average Nurse. A new addition to her works, Mrs Groff’s Mischievous Book of Motherhood Management, continues this series of books based on her life, writing about the things she knows best and using her trademark wit to keep us fully entertained.
This new offering champions motherhood, calls out the absurd, and is full of helpful information and tips for mothers. We learn about the woman who solely funded the development of the contraceptive pill in 1950. She continued to use the pill into her eighties, because she could! How cool is that!
All these facts, tips, words of wisdom, truths, and genuinely helpful information are peppered with many, many laugh-out-loud moments. “If you live with an impatient person and you are not ready to go out … Hide the car keys in a pot plant. This is the only valid reason for a pot plant”.
Instead of tearing mothers down, Mrs Groff’s Mischievous Book of Motherhood Management builds up motherhood and helps us to realise that we all have difficult moments raising children but we are not alone. All too often we are judged: by society, by those without children, and even by other mothers, but this book empowers women and helps us to stand tall and be proud of the untold number of decisions we make every single day when we raise little humans. Surprisingly, the tips throughout the book are genuinely helpful.
One truth that all mothers need to remember is “to be the best mothers we can with the situation we’ve been given”. That means not beating ourselves up when we make mistakes. This book is full of affirming statements.
A really useful tip is that there are only four answers to all questions that children ask, but you will have to read the book to find out what they are.
Mrs Groff’s Mischievous Book of Motherhood Management is a must read for all new parents, regardless of gender, but it is also a lovely trip down memory lane for those who no longer have children at home.
As Mrs Groff says; “Be kind to yourself. Things will get easier. And harder. And easier. And then one day you will think, Hot damn, I can do this.”
Do yourself a favour and get yourself a copy of Mrs Groff’s Mischievous Book of Motherhood Management, or buy a copy for a friend.
Reviewed by Sue Mauger
Distributed by: Penguin Books Australia
Released: December 2019
RRP: $24.99
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