Price of Motherhood: Why the Most Important Job in the World Is Still the Least Valued (Anniversary)

by Ann Crittenden

Book Overview

THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF THE NATIONAL BESTSELLER THAT CHANGED AMERICA'S VIEW OF MOTHERHOOD

In the pathbreaking tradition of Backlash and The Second Shift, this provocative book shows how mothers are systematically disadvantaged and made dependent by a society that exploits those who perform its most critical work. Drawing on hundreds of interviews and research in economics, history, child development, and law, Ann Crittenden...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312655401
• ISBN13: 9780312655402
• Release Date: November 2010
• Publisher: St. Martins Press-3PL
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.72 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.5" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

THIS is the book that belonged on the cover of TIME

Forget Sylvia Ann Hewlett's "Creating a Life" and the furor it has spawned with its encouragement that professional women marry and start their families early. THIS is the book that deserved a TIME magazine cover story, and the fact that Hewlett's book has overshadowed Crittenden's in publicity speaks volumes about our culture's unwillingness to address the bottom line about motherhood. Quite simply, "The Price of Motherhood" answers all the questions about women's reluctance to start families when they are younger and more reproductively healthy. Doing so puts them at a hugely greater risk for poverty, as Crittenden so painstakingly documents in this book. Our nation expects women to bear ALL the opportunity costs of motherhood, without providing any sort of support or safety net for those who undertake the public service of raising and educating the next generation of law-abiding, productive citizens. "The Price of Motherhood" provides the evidence to support what we all know to be true, on some level. Trust me -- I'm the mother of a 4-year-old with another baby on the way, and even with my graduate degree, 15+ years of work experience and many professional accomplishments, I have been marginalized like you wouldn't believe since I became a mom. The sad truth is that most women in the throes of childrearing are so exhausted and dependent that they probably will never band together to become the political force that will create the pressure necessary to change this sad reality. Kudos to Crittenden, whose son is nearly grown, for returning to this issue at this point in her life (she's nearly 60) and taking a stand for the women and children -- and the society -- that will follow her.

An Excellent Resource for Everyone

Ann Crittenden should be thanked for producing a book relevant to sociologists, women's studies scholars, and mother's everywhere. Her prose is readable; her scholarship exhaustive and convincing. Every married woman or mother (and often those who are both) has said to herself, "There's something not fair here, I just can't put my finger on it." Well, Crittenden puts her finger on it! Corporate attitudes (from often "family friendly" companies), taxes, divorce law, and rotten child care all enter her gun sight as she explains the current situation, how we got here, and what we need to do TO MAKE IT FAIR. The answers are like the problems: complex and difficult to implement. That does not mean, however, that the solutions aren't worth attempting - they are.I especially enjoyed the author's analysis of countries like Sweden and France and how they have handled issues surrounding parenting and work. The most interesting factor was the description from the member of Sweden's "Father Commission" as to why Sweden adopted such liberal and finanically supportive policy for parents. It seems that at the time of widesweeping legislation offering financial support to new parents, Sweden was undergoing a shortage of labor. Rather than relying on the importation of labor, Sweden realized its greatest resource were Swedish women who faced obstacles to working when their children were young - unreliable child care, no guaranteed job when they returned to work, lack of flex time, etc. Sweden's government decided to remove the obstacles, jack up financial support, offer great child care, and put in place crucial legislation encouraging parents (read "men and women") to spend time with their kids. Result: happier women, men who know what its like to be a parent and get support at work for doing it, and happy babies living in a profitable economy. Go Sweden!If there are any drawbacks to The Price of Motherhood, it's that Crittenden has spent so much time with the topic (both researching it and personally experiencing it) that her bitterness occasionally seeps through in prose. I think her arguments might have been stronger in some instances if she had managed to root out the sarcasm or the repeated "It's not fair...". But she's right. It isn't fair. Read the book before voting!

Time to change things for American moms (and dads)

In this well-written, passionate, and fascinating book, Ann Crittenden challenges us all to look at the subtle and not-so-subtle ways in which we make life harder than it should be for parents (especially moms). So many of us care enormously about both our families and our work, and too many of us are forced to choose between the two, to either drop out of the workforce when we have kids or to work ridiculous hours that don't allow us to be there for our families. As Crittenden points out, with paid parental leave, a fairer income tax structure that doesn't penalize spouses who work, more high-quality and affordable child care options, and a richer array of flexible and part-time work options, many more women would choose to and would be able to combine work and family, which would be better for women, for families, and for society as a whole. Crittenden notes that feminism largely succeeded in opening up many previously male fields to women, but only if women will play by the male rules (with the result that the gap between mothers' and childless women's wages is now larger than the gap between childless women's and men's wages). Shouldn't the next task be to transform the workplace so that it works better for everyone, including parents? So many other countries have done this -- why not the US?Crittenden is sure to be criticized by some as another rich whiner who chose to have a child, can afford not to work full-time, and yet isn't happy with the results of her choices. This, I believe, is a superficial and short-sighted criticism. Crittenden counters that choosing to have a child is not like choosing to have a pet. Today's children will be supporting these nay-sayers in their old age. We all have a stake in making sure that families are supported and that children get the best start in life that they possibly can. Crittenden's book is a must-read.

Why American Mothers Have to Work Much Harder

Families all over the U.S. are straining to provide good care for their children and manage to handle their paying jobs too. Since women, especially mothers, are by far responsible for most child care, women suffer most from the constant battle to balance workplace responsibilities and important family responsibilities. This includes women doing all kinds of family care: those with children, elderly relatives, or handicapped family members.Ann Crittenden has studied the situation for families in the United States during the last several years, and in a clear, easy-to-read style she explains why American mothers struggle so much harder than mothers in other developed countries to meet their family obligations, and how we got to this position. She shows how U.S. institutions have repeatedly refused to support American mothers in the family care work they do, with the result that American mothers are left to shoulder alone the burden of bearing and training the children, the very essence of tomorrow's civilization. Mothers are expected to provide this labor for free, and suffer severe economic disadvantage in doing so by an establishment that mostly pretends the mother's labor does not really amount to much work of consequence.Ann's book springs from her own experiences as a mother, and her book is one with which every mother will identify! Good Reading!