Extreme Parenting

You may have heard about the controversy caused by the recently published Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, by Amy Chua. I had to see what the fuss was all about. I thought I might read a chapter or two and then get so upset that I would refuse to finish it. I have to admit, I actually liked the book and finished it within about 2 days! I can't say I agree with her parenting techniques (in fact I find some of them quite appalling), but the book itself was well-written, funny, and offered a view into a completely different way of parenting than I have ever considered. I expected Chua to be a know-it-all (well, I guess she kind of is) who was so entrenched in her way of thinking that I would just find the book infuriating. She actually is quite self-deprecating and is able to look at herself with a sense of humor. My guess is she probably wouldn't actually change much with the way she raised her girls if she had it to do all over again, but she was actually much more likeable than I expected. I would be curious to find out what and how her daughters are doing 10 years from now. In the meantime, her oldest daughter has started a blog. If you want a quick, entertaining read, I recommend this book.