As John Crace said in the Guardian in his Digested Read, 'Never has mediocrity seemed so appealing.'

I read the book in a day appalled and fascinated in equal measure at this true story of an American mother of Chinese ethnicity bringing up her children the Chinese way: no sleepovers, no drama clubs, and no down-time in front of the TV. Schoolwork, perfecting their Mandarin and music practice dominated her children’s out-of-school time…… If her children were forced to work hard, Chua herself had a punishing schedule fitting her demanding job in with the demands she placed on her children.

Glad I read it, even if it exhausted me. ( )

Ok, I seriously did not know how to rate this book so it's getting three stars.

In case you've been in a media blackout, this book is a memoir about the parenting choices made by one Chinese American mother. Amy has two daughters, and both are successful in their own right. The older daughter is a concert pianist. The younger daughter is a serious violinist and tennis player. Amy Chua details the parenting approach she used to develop these highly accomplished children.

Let's just say that there are no means this woman won't use to gratify her own ego. Her tools include berating the kids, shaming the kids, punishing the kids, and essentially browbeating them into doing what she wants when she wants it.

In the media, the kids have been quite loyal, but let's be real. What are they going to say? They have to live with this person for a few more years . . .and she's pretty much shown that if she wants to make life difficult, she can and she will.

Now, others might say simply that Amy is holding her daughters to a higher standard. And look how successful they are. And they are. But I would argue that in the case of the older daughter, she was talented and driven and obedient and compliant from the get go. And the younger daughter is spirited and competitive by nature. Amy assumes she got the best out of these girls, and perhaps she did. But I think she had good genes by and large. The rest of the life script of these daughters remains to be played out, and I think it would be quite amusing if one of them happens to write a "Mommy Dearest" style expose in the future.

So why give it three stars at all?

Well, it is honest is most regards. Amy reveals exactly what she does and how she does it. She obviously didn't care that it made her look like a psychopath.

It's engaging. Like a car crash where you can't look away.

What's truly bad? Well, first of all, I don't buy for a single second that Amy didn't raise her daughters in this fashion because she thinks it is really good for them. She rationalizes her behavior that way, but I seriously think this is all about her. Her children reflect on HER. She mentions numerous times the number of accolades her daughters have gotten from friends, family, and total strangers - - it's like a giant ego trip. Look how I raised these girls. Look how accomplished they are. Look. Look. Look. And look some more. They are like performing little princesses.

What really let this book down was the ending? The younger daughter started to rebel, and in the end, you can really see how she is starting to hate her mother for her endless pressure and criticisms. But the ending is sort of pat as Amy just ends up bragging about the younger child's newest accomplishments in the sport of tennis. Sort of like, wellllll, tennis isn't the violin or the piano, but you know, it's still really really great . . .

I do think her daughters will end up successful because they totally have the intellect to be so, and I think they are inherently motivated. But in my mind, their happy childhoods were sacrificed to Chua's narcissism. I would like to hear one reader say at the end of the book - - boy, I wish Amy Chua was my mother. ( )

Liked a lot! Fun to read. You definitely don't have to be a fan of her parenting style to enjoy the book, and Chua ends up being a lot more of a sympathetic and thoughtful character than you might expect from reading the cover of the book. ( )

Quite an eye-opening book. A view not only into the author's life, but an aspect of Chinese culture. It was interesting to learn that a "Chinese mother" isn't necessarily Chinese, nor a mother; it's a construct. It will certainly shock people, and indeed has. The destination is as important as the journey. ( )

Just ignore the hype. The book is nothing like I imagined like it would be.

The beginning chapters reminded me more of a kitten than a tiger mother. I actually felt for and LIKED the vilified Tiger Mother. It made me wonder what I could have been if I was pushed instead of just allowed to wallow in front of the television during my childhood.

In the middle, the children, Sophia and Lulu took center stage. It was easy to cheer for Sophia. When Lulu at a young age started counting to eight like "4, 11, 5, 60, 21, 0, 9, 8", I loved her.

But as the story reached it's denouement, tiger mother left me a with a distaste. Why would someone ever want to bring their story - this story - to the public? In terms of entertainment and producing something of value of society yes ... but the "Chinese" way of raising is quite private and she completely contradicted herself on this part.

Any way, if you are Asian, you should read this. If you're a parent of a child that you ever wanted your child to do something that they didn't want to, you should read this.

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