Good Fiction About Motherhood

I second "Little Earthquakes" by Jennifer Weiner - fabulous, hysterical, and you will be able to relate to it all as a mother!!

There is a great book by Paul Reiser called either Babyhood or Parenthood- can't remember which and can't find my copy, but it is absolutely hilarious!! He also wrote Couplehood, which is just as funny. I've given both as gifts to people over the years!

The late Erma Bombeck is still the most hilarious - it's not really fiction in the sense of a novel, more anecdotal and rambling. But hilarious.

If you're into mysteries, the Stephanie Plum novels by Janet Evanovich feature a main character who's single but she has a mom, a dad who just grunts his way thru life, and a wacky grandmother. There's a crazy sister in some of them, and she has kids. I just laugh out loud with every one. Most of the books have a number in the title - You can read them sequentially but you don't really have to - I think the first is "One for the Money" and then there's "Two for the Road" and so on - she's up to 12 now I believe. The library will have them, and they are a fast read - you don't have a lot of time so these might be a good choice.

Happy laughing!

I know your request was for fiction, rather than parenting guides. But if you haven't read "The Girlfriend's Guide to Surviving the First Year of Motherhood" by Vicki Iovine, you should. It is funny, funny funny. She has another book "The Girlfriends Guide to Toddlers". Having a ten-month old - toddlerhood is just around the corner for you.

Enjoy.

T.
SAHM of three (8yrs, 7yrs and 13 months)

This is not necesarily Fiction but I loved it... it is very funny about Parenthood and is a quick read...I read it cover to cover basically in less than two hours.

"I'm Counting to 10"
Hope and Humor for Frazzled Parents by Jahnna Beecham and Malcolm Hillgartner

Also I have heard that Marley and Me is another good book to read (then you could see the movie that is out now in theaters)

Jenny McCarthy's Belly Laughs AND Baby Laughs (the first year with baby)....HILARIOUS. There's a part in Baby Laughs where she is talking about how other moms make stupid "comments"...such as "your baby is not crawling yet? Are you encouraging him?". Jenny's response: "no, we stick him in a chicken cage at night and throw food at him". I'm laughing out load thinking about it. I could read it over and over again. I'm also glad you asked this question b/c I'm a first time mom of a 3 mo and I should get some more good reads other than parenting guides. Thanks to all!

Without a doubt - Operating Instructions -Anne Lamott.

Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner

Everything by Jennifer Weiner is brilliant. One I didn't see mentioned is her latest Certain Girls.

Anne LaMott's writing is great! First one about being a mom is "Operating Instructions." Enjoy!

They are older books but timeless humor - anything by Erma Bombeck. She makes me laugh until I'm in tears. Her books follow her through motherhood.

Summertime, by Rafaella Barker. Or probly any other book by her. But though that isn't the first chronologically, it's the first I read and loved.

"Please Dont Eat the Daisies" by Jean Kerr is hilarious. Its an old one, I think it was written in the 50s, but its pretty timeless in my opinion. "The Grass Is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank" by Erma Bombeck is another oldie but goody.

Try "Dirty Little Secrets" I think the author is Trisha Ashworth - the author of "I was a really great mom until I had kids". It's a book with a bunch of one liners that mom's across the world tell. Try to borrow it from your library though as I belive it is $17.95 and since it's a quick read; there's really no use in buying it. I manage to read a few pages every time I go to Borders or Barnes and Nobles. It really makes me laugh. Hsve fun with it :-) All the best, ~T.

Belly Laughs: The Naked Truth of Pregnancy and Childbirth by Jenny McCarthy

It was very cute and funny!

i don;tknow the name of the author but the book is called naptime is the new happy hour.really funny great to read. hope you like it

T.,

I'm reading one right now and am only on chapter 8 so I don't know how it turns out but it is funny so far. My mom got it for me on a visit to England and has an English/Irish tone, humor and verbage.
It's "From here to maternity" by Sinead Moriarty. Apparently she also wrote "The baby Trail"

L. M

The absolute best book of all is by Anne Lamott:

Lamott, Anne (1993). Operating Instructions: A Journal Of My Son’s First Year. Pantheon Books. ISBN ###-###-####.

Hands down, absolutely. -H.

Hi T.,
The Girlfriend's Guide to the First Year is hilarious. It basically talks all about the stuff that ISN'T in the technical books and it's good for a lot of laughs! I definitely recommend it!

Happy Reading!

A. B.

I really enjoyed Jennifer Weiner's "Goodnight Nobody".

Daddy Needs a Drink, by Robert Wilder is pretty funny and an easy read.

This is a fun book, but not fictional. Belly Laughs by Jenn McCarthy. Here is a link, check it out...http://www.amazon.com/Belly-Laughs-Naked-Pregnancy-Childb...

Good luck!