Book Review: Mama Never Told Me

Mama Never Told Me by Emily Van Do

I’m not sure whether Emily Van Do is being strictly truthful when she says in the introduction that the illustrated comments within this short and sweet booklet are ones she has personally heard. If so, she must have been around the most callous people in her life to have had to bear some very overbearing remarks. The phrases strike me more as something you’ve heard a friend of a friend say to some poor unsuspecting pregnant lady, twenty years ago.  The book is a very light read, containing comments from people she received while pregnant, complete with an illustration.

A Book of Pregnancy Comments

Some of them strike me as real enough, such as the boobs comments, which this once-again A-cup momma received many a times. The one from the mom comparing her to her sister also sounded spot-on. But if I had gotten most of the comments received seemingly from random people out and about, and from my co-workers…well let’s just say they would have had to contend with the wrath of a hormonal lady indeed. Also, what would make this more useful (and perhaps funnier in a snarky kind of way) would have been retorts to silence the more particularly unwanted and insensitive comments.

Good as a Baby Shower Gift

However, once I decided not to over-analyze whether these comments are lifted straight from reality or not, I found them amusing. I would have appreciated this as a baby-shower gift while carrying. It’s a very light read, with bright and to-the-point illustrations. It’s a gift I could see myself happily laughing over, showing to friends and family as a conversation piece once the usual talk of morning sickness and weird food cravings had gotten stale.

Perhaps I could even show it to particular family members as a hint.

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Book Review: Mama Never Told Me