The Price of Motherhood: Why the Most Important Job in the World Is Still the Least Valued

A new way to encourage divorce

In short, Ann Crittenden's new book encourages divorce and therefore female poverty by arguing for more gov't action and programs to support single female parents. She makes the very old fashioned socialist argument that since women do such important unpaid work,i.e, raise society's children, then society should recognize the value of that work and support women financially or doing it. But, the divorce rate has shot up from near 0 in 1960 to 50% today, not by bad luck or pure chance, but precisely because we have already supported divorce too much. We have insured that most kids in America now come from confusingly tragic broken homes wherein the mother (the plaintiff in most divorce cases) decides she no longer loves the father she chose for her children. If kids suffer from divorce; if nearly 100% of men in jail were raised in broken homes by single mothers, why on earth would we want to further encourage even more single motherhood? Since 1960 we have had male bashing feminism, welfare, Medicaid, WIC, section 8, child support, alimony, no fault divorce, and exclusive female child custody, all of which have encouraged women toward our 50% divorce rate. We have encouraged hate, rather than love, as an environment for our children and quite simply we should stop. The best book I know about how to encourage familial love in today's complex environment is: The 91% Factor. The Mars/Venus books are also good and groundbreaking in that they encourage us to use the differences between husbands and wives to strengthen our families rather than weaken them.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Wake Up U.S.

This is what is wrong with our world today. No one has their priorities prioiritized. People have children and pay others to raise them because they claim they cannot afford to do it themselves. I left my career to have children and to devote myself (fully) to this and I now I will suffer with the consequences later BUT I will also, some day be rewarded. Not with money but in other ways that money could not reward! The government needs to 'Wake Up' and realize this IS the most important fact for the future of our children and DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! The government needs to look at other countries laws and rights on childbearing. (example, Canada & Netherlands) This book says it all to a tee!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Whiny?? Try A Long Overdue Dose of Reality!!

This book goes right to the heart of the deliberate and systematic use of motherhood to keep women economically dependent and, therefore, unable to support themselves if need be. I love the women who say money and motherhood should not be spoken of togther...oh fools, oh naive little fools...what the heck do you think PAYS for all of the things you and your kids have???? By all means read this book and get your head OUT of the sand..

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Good title for the information provided.

This book was purchased for a college research paper, and although I did not use all of it, I did quote some of the topics. The book is very interesting and every mother should read this book. It repeats the premise in modern times of the worth of the mother, and her what happens to her career. Great topic.

Great book! Read it!

This book tells it like it is. When women become mothers, there are great rewards, but also great costs. Our society puts most of those costs on mothers, to the detriment of the children, women, and society itself. This book is important reading for all parents, women, and policy makers in government and business.

Socialism not the answer - from a responsible mom

This book is about creating a socialist society which takes away individual responsibility. Single parent families are NOT good for kids even if there is enough money. A better route is to enliven and educate people about healthy relationships, esp. male and female ones to create working marraiges...AND to get info. out about what makes a HEALTHY family. Also helpful would be disseminating info. about saving for the future before having kids, etc. The government's role in all this is to LOWER all taxes so FAMILIES can use their earnings for themselves and chosen charities. If the gov. would stop taking away so much of our paychecks, more moms could stay at home!

What my mother always tried to tell me...

My experience first as a daughter watching her mother struggle, then as mother of three of her own sons bears witness to the correct application of every economic idea and principle the author discusses. Amy Crittenden does not suggest that women NOT bear and raise children, but that women consider those costs--as the vast majority of those costs will be set squarely on women's shoulders by men and society. Crittenden provides an accounting of the costs of motherhood with which her readers may easily determine their own opinions. She also gives examples of how other nations have taken steps to reconsider the value and the price of motherhood. Crittenden's assertions do not entertain gender or economic bias, which make this clear, concise book a most sane read. Every student, but especially women students need to encounter this book in curriculum somewhere between junior high and college--but preferably receive it from the hands of her own mother or father first. This book would be excellent reading for every sociology, business, and economics major...

Universal preschool?

I loved the idea of Social Security Benefits for SAHM's. I watched my mother struggle for the last 14 years on a fixed income after my father passed on. She had no skills and had to drop her health insurance. She become ill in her 60's and the hospital took everything she had. She was a devoted SAHM. I am also a SAHM who wishes society would respect that choice. But I am taking care of my future. I am going back to school part-time and hope to one day become a teacher. When my children are in school, I will be also. But for now no one can do the job I am doing to raise my child. Universal Preschool? My child is in two day preschool and it costs only 50 dollars a month. What this socity wants to do is institutionalize children at an earlier age in the name of 'Education' but it is really for the working mothers who do not want to pay for child care. Head Start is a government program that all poor children can attend and 50 dollars a month is not much to pay for early education. Are we really talking about Universal Government subsidized 'Day Care' fulltime 40 or 50 ours a week between the ages of three and five? Who will pay for that? We all will in the form of taxes? Government programs are not 'free'. Working moms will still have to pay for child care and the husbands of SAHM's will be paying for some elses kid to go to preschool or day care. Think about that! We moms do pay a price but often it is up to each of us individualy to form our own destiny. Yes it is outdated to think that that you will always have someone taking care of you. Take control of your own life. Keep your skills up and think about returning to work after your children are in school all day.

Bravo!

Just finished 'The Price of Motherhood.' It is the kind of book that puts names, places and numbers on things that we have always known, but need to know better. At the same time it opened my eyes to ways in which my thinking contributed to everything from the poverty of children to the 'glass ceiling' still experienced by half of society. If every woman and open-minded man read this book, we could change the world for our sons, daughters and their children. Profoundly disturbing, for me it puts together studies I have read on fathers, teen violence, children's poverty as well as the many discussions I have had with friends about why women seem to be striving for something more even when we seem to have it all. I think it also addresses the male backlash against what both sexes feel are unfair divorce and child custody laws. Societies have choices and we have consistently chosen to turn our backs on our children, apparently in an attempt to spite women. Other cultures do it differently and by implication Crittenden shows how to involved both men and women more in raising our children, to the profound benefit of all three. Her research in how other cultures address childcare and 'feminine' issues is concrete, understandable and broken down into legislatable proposals, if we have the will. The argument, as always, would be 'How can we afford it?' The standard social answer, 'How can we not?' always falls short of cash. So, let's look at the numbers one, oversimplified way. Four teens were recently arrested in Las Vegas for beating a homeless man to death. The district attorney has decided to prosecute them as adults -- the current trend in dealing with juvenile offenders who commit murder. Assume they are convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, which is very likely because of the brutality of the crime. Concervately, it costs about $36,000 per year to keep a prisoner. Again, conservatively, they average 40 years before they die (none of them will have reached 60) costing $144,000 per year to total $5,760,000 over their lifetime incarcerations. But that isnt' the only cost. Given an alternative scenario they would have each earned approximately $1 million over their lifetime, paying $300,000 in taxes over their lives. $300,000 x 4 = $1,200,000 plus the cost of their incarceration = $6,960,000 to society for these four boys. Just as you can't compare apples with oranges, you can't compare social costs with real money. But you can compare real money with real money. I think we have to start fighting the radical right on social justice issues the same way, comparing real costs to real costs. Police organizations across the country have stated that providing safe, productive, interesting places for children and teens to go is more important than increasing the number of police. They know that increasing the amount of adult and parental time spent with children is the most cost effective way of reducing crime and teen violence. Unions need to bargain for flexible schedules and part time work paid at the same rates and with the same benefits of those doing the same work full time, so that both parents can increase the time spent with their children. Businesses need to learn that the opportunity costs of losing top level executives to excessively demanding schedules are greater than the costs of accomodating employee's family needs. I am recommending this book to every person I care about. Crittenden provides us with the first round of ammunition to use in the fight to improve the lives of our children, our spouses and ourselves. I think this book is that important and would love to hear your thoughts on her work.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Motherhood has a price

I thought the book was priceless.... A reality check for all parents.

Too much whine

Too much whine with this author can make anyone shut the book rather quickly. The woman is very hung up on money vs. motherhood. Hello - there is no correlation in today's society nor in the previous past years to this choice and should not be expected. If you have chosen to stay home and raise your children, do it and be happy with the acceptable terms upon which a sahm (stay at home mom) endures. The New York Times and others who have given this a high recommendation are strange to say the least; but par for the course. Too much whine and a lot more action towards positive thoughts is what poor little Ann needs to act upon.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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