Good Mother Bad Mother

'Was I a good Mother'

With these words, Gina Ford's mother voiced the question that has plagued women for generations. Yet it seems that now, more than ever, as the battle over how best to care for our children rages and the criticism and pressure on mothers mounts, we are desperate to find the answer.

In 'Good Mother Bad Mother', bestselling parenting author Gina Ford addresses the challenges of contemporary motherhood and fervently argues that mothers seldom recieve the support, respect and admiration they deserve. And for the first time, in a candid, personal account, Gina interweaves stories from her own childhood with the voices of mothers she has interviewed, and reveals how her relationship with her own mother has shaped the choices she made.

Illuminating, moving and thought provoking, 'Good Mother Bad Mother' pays tribute to the extraordinary responsibility a mother is charged with.

Random House Australia
Author: Gina Ford
ISBN: 009191289X / 9780091912895
RRP: $32.95


In her latest book, Good Mother Bad Mother, leading baby and childcare expert, Gina Ford, addresses the controversial debate, What makes a good mother?, encompassing wide-reaching issues that concern not just mothers, but health professionals, employers and governments.

In her book, she turns her attention to how motherhood has dramatically changed over the last 40 years. Having a child has now become a lifestyle choice. Choosing to sacrifice freedom, time and money in order to become a parent has made the desire to get it right more acute than ever.

At the same time, mothers today receive relentless pressure, bombarded by a wealth of information on the do's and don'ts of raising a child. Faced with endless choices - breast or bottle? work or stay at home? routine or feeding on demand? - the responsibility can often be overwhelming, with the need for reassurance that they are doing the best for their child.

Gina has spoken to hundreds of women, in person and via her website, during the research for the book. She relays the many different candid views of mothers and the choices they have made: those struggling alone with new babies; those who have given up a career and are enjoying their new role as a full-time mum; mothers under pressure to breast feed; single mothers forced back into the workplace; women riddled with guilt about leaving their children in nurseries and having to juggle a career; the positive effect having a baby has had on the relationship with their own mothers.

A woman's relationship with her mother affects her whole life, but especially how she mothers her own children and how she feels about it. Gina looks at the complex relationship between mothers and daughters, mothers and sons, mothers and mothers-in-law. Stories of best-friend mothers run alongside tales of rejection and bitterness.

The personal experiences of real women, the all too often unheard voices of mothers, are woven throughout the book. Gina looks at the mothers of the past, the present and what motherhood may hold in the future. For the first time, she talks of her own experiences with her mother and the other mother figures in her life. With humour and insight, she shares aspects of her own unique story of the maternity nurse who became a household name and modern-day phenomenon in the world of baby care.

In her quest to examine the meaning of motherhood today, Gina hopes to provide comfort and support and show women they are not alone in their doubts and fears. She concludes there is no such thing as a good or bad mother there are simply many different ways to be a mother.

Gina calls on mothers to accept these differences and at the same time stand united and be supportive of each other instead of competing and arguing over the minor issues. She urges mothers today to work together to put pressure on the government, the media and employers to improve the lives of mothers and children everywhere.

GINA FORD's first book, The Contented Little Baby Book, published in 1999, was a runaway success that caught on through enthusiastic, word-of-mouth recommendation.

Gina's philosophy has struck a chord with millions of parents around the world. Her sensible, pragmatic approach acknowledges that modern life is busy and hard to manage, if both parents and baby have not had a good night's sleep. A survey in The Daily Mail named her one of the 100 most influential women in Britain today.

At the heart of Gina's thinking is the belief that the liberal trend towards demand feeding and sleeping, which gained popularity in the 1980s, often results in an unsettled baby and exhausted parents. Her famous routines are designed to fit in with a baby's instinctive feeding and sleeping patterns and naturally enable him or her gradually to sleep for longer stretches at night.

Gina Ford devised and perfected this structured approach to childcare through 20 years of hands-on experience as a sought-after maternity nurse, specialising in caring for newborn babies and toddlers with serious sleeping and feeding problems. During this time she worked all over the world with a wide range of families including those of TV & film stars, media tycoons, barristers and pop-stars as well as helping hundreds and thousands of everyday mums. In 1999, after the success of her first book, Gina gave up maternity nursing and launched a consultancy service first by telephone and now online. Its aim is to make her specialist knowledge and expertise accessible to a much wider cross section of parent.

Through her books, Gina tries to bring her ideas to an even greater audience. Seven further titles have followed since 1999: From Contented Baby To Confident Child (2000), The Contented Little Baby Book Of Weaning (2002), Potty Training In One Week (2003), The Complete Sleep Guide for Contented Babies and Toddlers (2003), The Contented Child's Food Bible (2004) with Paul Sacher, The Gina Ford Baby and Toddler Cook Book (2005) and Gina Ford's Top Tips for Contented Babies and Toddlers (2005).

Gina's website provides advice, latest news and features and a discussion forum for parents following the advice in her books: www.contentedbaby.com