A Candid Look at Parenting.

Being a parent can be one of the sources of our greatest joys. It is also – intermittently – the cause of some of our deepest sorrows. It is likely that we will spend at least some of the time in despair and confusion, wondering whether it really had to be so hard. 

The Joys and Sorrows of Parenting is made up of 26 small essays that aim to provide understanding of and consolation for the trials and pleasures of parenting. They will provoke insight, recognition and a far more forgiving, generous assessment of one’s challenges. The Joys and Sorrows of Parenting promises us a gentle way of staying calm around one of the most arduous yet deeply fulfilling jobs in the world.

Quotes from the book:

• ‘For almost all of human history, people didn’t particularly worry about being ‘good parents’. The expectation was, rather, that it was the children who needed to be good.’
  
  
• ‘We blame ourselves because we are haunted by a beautiful, touching, insane idea; that it is wholly in our power to make our children happy.' 
  
  
• ‘We cannot be perfect parents and perfect workers. Something always has to give – and that is not our fault.’