Fresh Take: Nancy Reddy on "The Good Mother Myth"

What Fresh Hell: Laughing in the Face of Motherhood | Parenting Tips From Funny Moms

Many of us grew up believing in that women are particularly biologically designed to nurture—which means that a mother will immediately and instinctively know how to parent, be better at it than the other adults around her and the baby, and that she'd really prefer to do the caretaking work on her own.

Nancy Reddy says all of that is THE GOOD MOTHER MYTH, and in her new book, uncovers the shoddy and old-fashioned science beneath our bad ideas about how to be a good mom.

In this interview, Nancy and Amy discuss:

• where the "good mother myth" originated
• how being a good mother is all-encompassing so that we never lift our heads to see the larger picture or argue for structural, societal change
• how the expectation that mothers can or should do it all harms all parents

Here's where you can find Nancy:

• www.nancyreddy.com
• @nancy.o.reddy on IG
• @nancy_reddy on X
• Subscribe to the "Write More, Be Less Careful" newsletter at nancyreddy.substack.com
• Buy THE GOOD MOTHER MYTH: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9781250336644

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What Fresh Hell is co-hosted by Margaret Ables and Amy Wilson.

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