The Alphabet Year

by Kathryn H. Kidd

Kate Carbine knew that there were good mothers in the world, She just wasn't one of them. So why did she ever let herself get involved in the co-op daycare? Some people were meant to be mothers Kate figures, and some people just weren't. And when Kate Carbine's year of co-op daycare is over, you'll look at the children in your life and be grateful that they're only a little bit strange.

Genres: Humor, Lds, Fiction

244 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1991

About the author

Kathryn H. Kidd was an American author. Many of her books concern The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She co-wrote some of these with her husband, Clark L. Kidd, and also co-wrote a novel with Orson Scott Card.

Reviews

[Sarah Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent, amusing book by the writer who collaborated with Orson Scott Card on "Lovelock." It tells the story of a woman who moves with her family across country from California to Utah who is much against motherhood, despite being a Mormon. The book does not stereotype the Mormon church. The woman gets drawn into being a part of a babysitting coop, with the free help thrown in of a woman who is auditing for motherhood, so to speak, who has as yet only her cat to show for seven years of marriage. Kate (the initial woman) insists on structuring her days of the coop around letters of the alphabet, in spite of her husband's telling her to relax, and her over structuring is invariably disastrous, particularly since one of the neighbor's kids (and not the obvious one) is a handful. Kate's own school aged eldest daughter is a very great handful. But the book ends on a happier note, and Kate and Angela (the daughter) finish by liking one another better.

[Connie Cook · Rating 3 out of 5]

A family moves from California to SLC and settles into a neighborhood with all sorts of characters. The little boy who refuses to wear clothes, the relief society president who appears to be perfect, the cat lady, co-op babysitting, and a wise husband. I skimmed a bit. It was kind of written like a blog ..a little too much at times. But I did laugh!

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

An okay Mormon motherhood novel--a little on the bubblegum spectrum.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Kate moves into a new neighborhood, she decides the time has come to start a baby-sitting coop and get back into the workforce. She enlists one other mom and one mom wannabe to help her out. But she finds her calling takes up all her time, and meanwhile, baby-sitting is turning out to be more than she bargained for.

I really liked this book. Every mom I know has felt inadequate sometimes (Or maybe a lot of times.) But that's pretty normal. Being able to laugh about it helps a lot.

Although I enjoyed this book and laughed throughout, I kind of had a problem with the end. The idea that some mom could explain her bad relationship with her son as a lack of hormone-triggered bonding at birth was a little hard to swallow. I don't know that Kidd actually believes this, but it seemed a bit much. The whole message of the book is that motherhood is a combination of what you do and who you are, so the ending seemed a little inconsistent to me.

[Suzanne Lorraine Kunz Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny books written for moms are few and far between. I wish there were tons more of them! If you are a mom, here is one that made me laugh - and I hope it will make you laugh as well!

**Talking Points - When you are having a hectic day with children, what do you do to cope?

[Clwaddoups · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clever and funny.

[E. Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

another book by Kathryn Kidd a fun book about mormons, I love all her books I've read.