Times article ' Life is a see saw for working mums ' a book written by succesful working mother - comments please

[CaptainUnderpants]

Times article

Anyone read it ? Has this been written by a well known mumsnetter ?

I do like the bit that you and your partner must get away at least twicw a year without children for at least three nights !

Her DH is the one that has given up work !

I quite like Good Housekjeeping actually.

It at least treats home making as a serious topic (hey, isn't that what old fashioned domestic science did?) unlike the other magazines which sneak them in by stealth in flurry of bunting and antique pressed glass.

I have subscriptions to Vogue UK and Vogue US and to the Economist and sometimes I buy Milk Magazine or Junior to keep up-to-date with the wild world of child-specific consumerism. Oh, and I read Gala and Paris Match at the hairdresser and dentist.

I like Men's Health because:

1. The recipes are quick, easy and very healthy, and don't assume you identify with the whole cooking thing as an essential part of your gender identity. They assume you just want GOOD FOOD and FAST! They also do clever things like have pictures of comparative portion sizes and calorie counts. which makes it easy to learn to make good choices when eating out and so on.

1. They have good sub-editors, so the picture captions and headlines are really funny.

1. There is a lot of RL info about how men see women, which is really fascinating.

1. There are pictures of fit men in it.

1. Their gadget reviews are very well written.

1. Their fashion tips for men are very sensible and help me steer DH in the right direction.

I used to like Paris Match too, but like Stern, I have started to lose touch with who all the celebs are now.

Interesting.
No interest in gadgets though.
Is there not a lot about vain twats who work in advertising agencies and go to gym and spas a lot though?
I have no trucks with blokes like that.

I used to subscribe to Junior.Jesus, what 6was^ I thinking?? All that baby crap/equipment is sooo naff.

Can't go wrong with the Economist though.
Damn it, I just want an accasional light but enriching read, especially as now uo to eys in MSc. Saturday Telegraph is still the nearest thing to it I reckon.

No twats. Twat free zone. Gym articles are very reasonable, and only what you would expect in a mag with that title.

Junior is a bit out of touch, expecting people to spend that kind of money on designer consumer goods in this climate. I bought the Green Parent once, and that was the diametric opposite, almost too puritanical.

Well I do go to gym and aerobics and run and stuff but in solitary sort of way. No elaborate trainers connected to heart monitors/iPods/pace makers.

Might do me.

Also despise middle class puritannical stuff.

I'm a miserable swine really.
God alone knows how I am married with 2 delightful progeny.

I like to read Junior and Milk Magazine for the same reason I read Vogues - not because I can actually afford to buy lots of the stuff in them, but because they provide a window onto innovation and there are occasionally really good things that will take off and filter down right across markets. And looking at highly style shoots of very expensive clothing and furnishings inspires me to innovate.

You know a mag is going to be bad when you open it to the contributor's page and they are all wearing headscarves, like a bunch of Anabaptists crossed with a 1978 Laura Ashley catalogue.

lol @ boffin

you are sizzling

I am off GH.

ALL they talk about is how to look younger.

All the fashion is women in boot cuts wiht smart jackets high boots and pendants.

AND the food section is shrinking and has crap about "superfoods" and other Bad Science in it.

I have been thinking this morning of writing my own how to book, after all this. Things like:

Tackling lazy teachers.
The psychology of the school gate.
Feeding fussy children.
Dealing with passive aggressive shop assistants.
Surviving the shoe shop queue.
How to make Tesco value basics taste like nice food.
How to avoid ironing.
How to afford an extra baby.
Top tips on juggling from single parents.
How to study part-time without family trauma.
How to make things for the school fete without breaking into a sweat.
A dad's eye view of marital sex.

Stuff like that. Stuff we all actually want to hear.

Thoughts?

I'd buy that book, BoffinMum.

Thanks for the magazine tips by the way. I have been in a state of quiet despair about the UK's women's 'quality' mags for some time. I long for something more than a couple of thousand words long to dig my teeth into and I am tired of the same old topics.

I tried 'Vanity Fair' and 'Time' which were excellent but too US-focused. A male friend is sending me a goodie bag with his three recommendations of UK-based reads and I can't wait.

Patsy

boffinmum - in other words you want to write "Mumsnet - The Book"!

Well yes, I suppose, except I would have to call it something completely different, and not repeat everyone's MN secrets wantonly to make a heartless profit.

'Cos that would be NASTY.

You might now laugh folks, but I have just written 1/3 of a book proposal between posts. I am actually quite excited. I normally write boring but worthy academic books that I am sure nobody reads, but this is a lot more fun. Maybe I should really do this while I am on maternity leave. I am going to look on Amazon now and see what other parenting books there are for parents of school aged people, so I don't duplicate. I have a feeling there aren't too many books dealing with life with the over 5's.

boffs, re your book. I wouldn't want to read about any of that. I don't have a problem with the basics of day to day life. On the whole.

You know, I might just buy a copy of Men's Health

I gave up on women's magazines ages ago, although before that I used to buy loads of them. I think I was seduced by the promise of half-interesting stuff on the cover, but none of them delivered. In the end it was like your dad making you smoke a full packet of woodbines to put you off smoking, and I went cold turkey and never missed them. There's so much advertising and product promotion that it's just like reading a catalogue but paying three quid for the privilege.

As for Julia Hobsbawn, I had been quite lucky not to have even heard of her, but I can honestly say that I have never come across such a blinding example of Smug Twattery in all my born days. It's hard to believe anyone is able to actually make a living coming out with such guff, and scary to think they can .

Do you think it's a bit of a non-starter then, pointydog? I don't want to get all passionate about it for nothing. Maybe there aren't many other books for a reason.

You have summed the whole mag thing up very well IMO, BitOfFun. And the Frogspawn. I have never heard so much name dropping as in some of her articles.

Nobody ever went broke stating the bleeding obvious, pointydog

Go for it Boffin!

Sadly, your book might do well, boffs. It's the lower middle class version of hobsbaum. I have never been able to stick general womanly housekeeperly chitter chatter.

I might show the proposal to some RL mums then and see what they think, before I get too over excited (which I have been known to do). But a bit of me would sure like to stick it to these women once and for all.

On my smug woman bonfire currently:

Nigella Lawson
Frogspawn
Trinny and Susannah

Who is on yours?