Mother Knows Best?: The Truth About Mom's Well-Meaning

by Sue Castle

Reexamies old wives tales about habits, home remedies, pregnancy, infants, sleep, animals, and superstitions, and explains which ones have a basis in fact

141 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2000

Reviews

[Trish · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't get 10 pages into this book, it had so many typos and spelling errors. Why write a book if you don't bother to proof read your work??

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

he 411 by Maria:

So funny! There were so many things that I thought really people think this?

There were so many things that I found especially interesting. Did you know a ring around the moon means rain? I had no idea.

Basically the book takes a statement, gives you the answer in small italics than a reason why. This is a perfect companion to anyone who loves these age old wisdom anecdotes that many of us have been hearing forever, chews them up and spits them out.

You may actually find yourself rolling your eyes and just having to call your mom or grandma to tell them how wrong they are....

Like:

If you get stung once, the second time will not be worse! Hello grandpa..this is so not true but thanks for scaring the bejesus out of me.

If you have heartburn while pregnant the baby will have hair. Yes...my friends have been saying this for years to each other. I knew it was a much of caca!

Don't pick a baby up every time it cries, it is good for their lungs to cry! umm...yup...I tell my friends all the time to pick up those crying babies. Oh and another thing YOU CAN NEVER SPOIL A BABY BY PICKING IT UP. Spoil it how? In three years they won't want to be picked up and you will be longing for the days when all they wanted to do was lie on you or be held. PICK THEM UP FOR AS LONG AS YOU CAN (BTW..not in the book about the picking up, just my own public service announcement.)



Great gift for soon to be moms or anyone who loves to read! Funny, straightforward and you can finally set the record straight on those sayings you have undoubtedly been hearing forever.

[Lenore Webb · Rating 5 out of 5]

I do not think that there was much of today that was in keeping with the things my mom did with us growing up. We were more of a live out loud day. Of course we all know that "Mother Knows Best?" or do we. I love when I find out how we have changed and evolved from the old wives tales we grew up with. You know them. No swimming for 30 minutes after you eat and you will get zits if you eat chocolate. Oh gosh I should be covered if so for I adore chocolate. Sue Castle was tired of hearing these such tales and went out and started tracking down the truth of the old wives tales. So she penned Mother Knows Best? The Truth About Mom’s Well-Meaning (But Not Always Accurate) Advice. Which of the following did you ever wonder if they were true?



· Will a glass of warm milk help you sleep? TRUE—although cold milk works just as well.
· Is chicken soup really the best cure for the common cold? MAYBE--it could not really hurt.
· Does turning a light off for a few minutes use more energy than it saves? NO
· If you pick up a baby every time she cries will she become spoiled? NO--babies need love and reassurance
· If you cross your eyes, do they get stuck that way? NO
· Are brown eggs healthier than white eggs? NO



Of course I am a trivia buff so I will be combing through this lil handbook. Hopefully I can find a few things to stump Dear Hubby with.

[Ben Phillip · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was very informative and I learned a lot, specifically that a vast majority of old wives tales are just not true. I felt that the book was trying to be numerous, but the author just did not bring her "A game" so to speak. It did not distract from the book, but it was noticeable. Finally, I read this book via an ePub file from the library and the typos were numerous,