Mother's Place

by Susan Chira

Mothers all across America are caught in a maelstrom of guilt and anxiety, torn between their devotion to their children and their fears about economic security. A Mother's Place , written by a leading New York Times journalist and mother of two, is the book they have been waiting to read -- one that exposes the backlash against working mothers in our culture yet acknowledges their own ambivalence about the new lives they are leading. Evolving from...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060173270
• ISBN13: 9780060173272
• Release Date: April 1998
• Publisher: Harper
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.1" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Well-researched, compelling, and informative.

As a full-time working mother, ( I am an elementary school teacher), I found this book to be well-researched, and informative. I would like to comment on another reviewer's comments, however. To the reviewer from Cody, Wyoming who is so incredibly bright...perhaps you should have your mother review the use of contractions in a sentence! "We can tell who's mother stayed home and who's mother cared" is not only an ignorant comment, but also grammatically incorrect. Who's translates into who is...perhaps you meant whose?

A great book -- if people would read it!!

The book itself is very well done: thoroughly researched, and careful to consider all sides of the issue. But obviously it's a Rorschach test for most readers: the reviewers so far have seen it as a mirror of their own biases rather than trying to read it objectively (or read it at all -- witness Cody, Wyoming, who provides a refreshing counter-argument to the "homeschooling is best" books on the market today).What all these people miss is the author's main point: instead of arguing endlessly about whether it's "better" to have a stay-at-home vs. a working mother, let's accept the facts -- a majority of women with children work -- and apply all that energy to ensuring that this situation isn't harmful to children. (I had a mother who gave up a job she enjoyed in order to have children -- and made managing her children her "career." I wish to goodness that she'd kept her old job!!)

Her research is good, her bias is clear

This is a very well written and well researched book. I found it quite thought provoking. Although I work full time, my bias going in to this book was that this was not the best choice for my child. After reading Chira's book, I've moderated my views - her arguments were compelling. Chira's agenda in writing this book influences her presentation of the facts, certainly, but she is straightforward about her motivations and biases. In some cases, though, she makes the kind of blanket, unsupported statements that she would object to were they directed *against* working moms.

Extensive research, but do the facts support her hypothesis?

As a SAHM struggling with the decision of whether to resume employment, I read Chira's book eagerly. I was somewhat disappointed to find that many of the statistics she fairly presented still seemed to favor the traditional at-home parent model. Particularly worrisome to me was her assertion that many child care providers disapprove of working mothers. I also found that Chira defended all 'degrees' of working, including days where a bedtime kiss was the sole contact with the child. Many working mothers are not necessarily away for ten to twelve hours daily, and I'd be interested to see those lesser situations addressed. Her models also seem geared almost entirely to upper middle-class women, although she mentions those who must work for financial reasons. I thought Chira fairly affirmed a mother's choice to remain home, although some of her comments regarding these mothers' rationale may be offensive. Overall, I found the book interesting, but was disappointed that it didn't necessarily persuade me that working was a wholly desirable option.

This is a clear-eyed look at an emotionally charged topic.

I HAVE read this book and find Chira's writing to be clear and forceful. She summarizes research and makes the point that many people make broad assumptions based on personal beliefs and experiences without ever considering the circumstances or preferences of others. This book is a compassionate look at the problems faced by both parents in a society that seems to believe women must sacrifice themselves to be effective moms.