June Caregiver Conversations

Join us on Sunday, June 22 at 3:30 pm at the Gunnison Library for the return of Caregiver Conversations! Caregiver Convos are monthly book discussions about raising children, facilitated by Louise Perry, MSW.

Read & discuss:

The Good Mother Myth: Unlearning Our Bad Ideas About How to Be a Good Mom by Nancy Reddy

About the facilitator:

Louise Perry has worked with new families for more than 13 years in the Gunnison Valley, providing support as a birth doula, birth educator, support group facilitator, and currently as a licensed social worker providing psychotherapy to new mothers in partnership with The Family Birth Center at Gunnison Valley Health. As the Caregiver Conversations facilitator, Louise hopes to provide a supportive space to engage in deeply important and lively discussions about guiding and nurturing our children in modern society.

About the book:

When Nancy Reddy had her first child, she found herself suddenly confronted with the ideal of a perfect mother―a woman who was constantly available, endlessly patient, and immediately invested in her child to the exclusion of all else. Reddy had been raised by a single working mother, considered herself a feminist, and was well on her way to a PhD. Why did doing motherhood “right” feel so wrong?

For answers, Reddy turned to the mid-20th century social scientists and psychologists whose work still forms the basis of so much of what we believe about parenting. It seems ludicrous to imagine modern moms taking advice from midcentury researchers. Yet, their bad ideas about so-called “good” motherhood have seeped so pervasively into our cultural norms. In The Good Mother Myth, Reddy debunks the flawed lab studies, sloppy research, and straightforward misogyny of researchers from Harry Harlow, who claimed to have discovered love by observing monkeys in his lab, to the famous Dr. Spock, whose bestselling parenting guide included just one (1!) illustration of a father interacting with his child.

This timely and thought-provoking book will make you laugh, cry, and want to scream (sometimes all at once). Blending history of science, cultural criticism, and memoir, The Good Mother Myth pulls back the curtain on the flawed social science behind our contemporary understanding of what makes a good mom.

More about the event:

Snacks and refreshments provided at each gathering. RVSP to ellen@gunnisoncountylibraries.org. Free copies of the month’s book selection are available to check out at the Gunnison Library. Participants are encouraged to attend even if they are unable to read the whole book. Conversations are centered around exploring ideas, learning new approaches to caregiving, and connecting with others. Spanish translation available! Free and open to all.