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meghan111 's review for:
Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother
by Amy Chua
Discussing the best way to raise children often brings up other questions, like what makes life fulfilling? What does it mean to be happy? This is a comic diatribe against what the author views as lazy, mainstream parents who never push their kids, and who believe in having fun and sleepovers instead of 3-6 hours of daily music practice and homework sessions. The author, who calls her style of parenting "Chinese" but claims it's often practiced by different immigrant groups, believes in hard work and practice as a way to ensure future success. Success means getting into a good school, winning music competitions, and, above all, serving your parents and making them proud. She doesn't believe that being happy is important, and I don't really get that.
It's hard to argue against instilling the values of practice and hard work, and that kids who learn to play the violin (and take it seriously) have some sort of advantage over kids who only play their iPods. But, then again: why would you discount the value and artistry of weird, outsider rock music made by untrained adults who just pick up and whack away at the guitar? That's the kind of thing I like. It was hard to figure out how serious she intended this to be; some of the remarks are over-the-top and self-aware and very funny, and she seems to hold herself at a distance from the crazier things she describes herself as saying and doing while raising her children.
It's hard to argue against instilling the values of practice and hard work, and that kids who learn to play the violin (and take it seriously) have some sort of advantage over kids who only play their iPods. But, then again: why would you discount the value and artistry of weird, outsider rock music made by untrained adults who just pick up and whack away at the guitar? That's the kind of thing I like. It was hard to figure out how serious she intended this to be; some of the remarks are over-the-top and self-aware and very funny, and she seems to hold herself at a distance from the crazier things she describes herself as saying and doing while raising her children.