Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom.

So after reading so many controversial things about this book, I decided I just had to read it for myself.  So I started Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua a few nights ago.  It is truly fascinating and extremely eye-opening!!  And to be honest, I really love the way she writes!

So I first wrote about this book and this Tiger Mom sometime back in January, and it has literally taken 4 months for this book to show up at the library - that just goes to show you how popular the book has been.

I read every little bit on the outside and the inside flaps before I dove within the pages of the book...and the bit on the front states...

"This is a story about a mother, two daughters, and two dogs.

This was supposed to be a story of how Chinese parents are raising kids better than Western ones.

But instead, it's about a bitter clash of cultures, a fleeting taste of glory, and how I was humbled by a thirteen-year-old."

The bit on the back tells you How to be a Tiger Mom...

"A lot of people wonder how Chinese parents raise such stereotypically successful kids.  They wonder what these parents do to produce so many math whizzes and music prodigies, what it's like inside the family, and whether they could do it too.  Well, I can tell them, because I've done it.  Here are some things my daughters, Sophie and Louisa, were never allowed to do:

• attend a sleepover
• have a playdate
• be in a school play
• complain about not being in a school play
• watch TV or play computer games
• choose their own extracurricular activities
• get any grade less than an A
• not be the #1 student in every subject except gym and drama
• play any instrument other than the piano or violin
• not play the piano or violin

Chinese parenting is one of the most difficult things I can think of.  You have to be hated sometimes by someone you love and who hopefully loves you, and there's just no letting up, no point at which it's suddenly becomes easy.  Just the opposite, Chinese parenting - at least if you're trying to do it in America, where all odds are against you - is a never-ending uphill battle, requiring a 24-7 time commitment, resilience, and guile" - Amy Chua author of Battle Hymn.

And then on the inside flap you can find a quote from Tom Brokaw.  He states, "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother is the book we've all been waiting for - a candid, provocative, poignant, and vicarious journey through the Chinese American family culture.  It will leave you breathless with its bluntness and emotion.  Amy Chua is a Tiger Mother, a greatly gifted law professor, and, ultimately, an honest, loving woman with a lot to say."

After reading all those little bits don't you just want to read the book for yourself??  I know I did!  So I think I will stop typing and go and do just that!