Unplanned Parenthood

by Liz Carpenter

Liz Carpenter has been a speech writer, a press secretary, a lecturer, and a well-known Texas character, but nothing prepared her for being a mother the second time around (.
"On his deathbed three years ago, the man she calls 'my soul mate' asked her to take care of his children (.So she opened her Austin home with its chintz-covered couches, and in flopped three teenagers....On the Mount Rushmore of child-rearing--Benjamin Spock, T. Berry Brazelton, Penelope Leach--a fourth face has been Liz Carpenter's."
--The Dallas Morning News
"I wish Liz Carpenter would adopt me. This book tells why."
--Bill Moyers
"Carpenter's how-to on raising somebody else's kids is a frequently hilarious, often-poignant, engagingly homespun road map of inter-generational side trips into unexplored territory where older Americans might once have feared to roam....Not merely did they put her through every torture (but they did it to her at an age when she should have been sitting back with her feet up, sipping a glass of wine and doing the crossword puzzle."
--The Washington Post
"I found the book both moving and wise. Hell, it made me cry. Yeah, sure Liz is funny. Liz is always funny. But Liz is not always funny, moving, and wise. That is why this book is a good value for the money."
--Molly Ivins
"An engaging, if wry, account of her surrogate motherhood--and the undisciplined, confused children she took into her home (.Her stamina is amazing. But her charges had to make adjustments, too. She is quick to acknowledge they brought her a completely new perspective on life, liberty and the pursuit of understanding."
--Detroit Free Press
"It's funny! It's right on target for the nineties! Liz Carpenter, Texas's favorite earth mother, inherits three teenagers and rolls it into a hilarious saga of what it is like to raise 'em at age seventy-three."
--Fannie Flagg

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published September 20, 1994

About the author

Elizabeth "Liz" Sutherland Carpenter was a writer, feminist, former reporter, media advisor, speechwriter, political humorist, and public relations expert. Carpenter stood at the forefront of the Women's Movement when it began and never wavered from her platform. Her projects and causes ranged from supporting high tech to fighting cancer. Often called the "funniest woman in politics", she was in demand as a public speaker until her death.

Reviews

[Susan Dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful witty tale of Liz's surrogate motherhood of three teenagers.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite Erma Bombeck, but really, really close. It was also interested to get more insight into Liz Carpenter, who is truly a fascinating woman.

[Captmashpea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. It took me a really long time but it wasn't because it wasn't interesting, it was just one of those books that you could pick up read a chapter and then put it down to read later. Liz Carpenter is very clever writer. It was fun to see what was a dated reference and what was still relevant today. It was also really cool to see her information about Washington DC and her close relationship with multiple president and their families. Who Liz Carpenter was really added to the nature of this book.
(hard copy).