Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #45392 in Books
• Published on: 2006-08-31
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 371 pages

Review
Smart and funny, The Rise... explodes the yummy mummy myth' Heat ** 'Written with the lightest of touches and serious intent. A funny, smart and honest account of modern motherhood' In Style ** 'Deliciously well-written tale... Sparkling and seductive' Good Housekeeping ** 'As baby-sick lit takes over from chick lit as publishing's latest craze, the genre may well have found its Bridget Jones in Amy, the 31-year-old hero of journalist Polly Williams' debut' Marie Claire **

Louise Chunn, Editor, IN STYLE
This peek at the contradictory heart of modern mothering is clever, funny -- and very true'

HEAT
‘Smart and funny . . . explodes the yummy mummy myth’

Customer Reviews

Remarkably insightful and true.
I have just finished this book, and enjoyed every page. As a mother of two small boys I don't read as much as I would like to, yet this was such a page turner I managed to fit it into a day or so in snatched moments...quite an achievement.
Somehow Williams manages to capture almost every insight I had thought was my own: on being a mother, other mothers, nights with a new baby, breastfeeding, the shock of new motherhood, the insecurities relating to loss of identity, libido and multiple other issues. Despite my own circumstances and habitat (both social and geographical) being very different from those of the protaganist, Amy, I identified with her from the first page.
This is a must-read for all pregnant women and anyone who is or ever aspires to being a mother. It might be a helpful read for fathers too.

Funny Mummy
Motherhood used to terrify me. Before I read this I thought to be any good at having kids I'd have to paint the nursery walls with Farrow and Ball, feed them organic babyfood from Fresh and Wild and take them to baby yoga classes from the moment they pop out. Turns out main character Amy Crane worries about all those things too and spends the whole time feeling really inadequate in comparison to her sussed Yummy Mummy friends, superior to her Right On Green Baby friends, and at odds with her own skin. Where does she fit in and who is she now? Polly Williams' description of the career girl turned mum's journey is funny, sharp yet poignant and a reassuring observation that when you have kids you may lose your waistline but you don't have to lose yourself. I'm not a mum yet but when I am, I'll remember to laugh at myself. A classic in the making.

a sweet and sour delight
As a mum of an 11-month-old baby girl, I was delighted to discover that I wasn't alone in the everyday challenges I was facing! This is a funny, poignant and uplifting novel that is hard to put down. Polly Williams brilliantly puts into words the physical and emotional pressures faced by the new mother, as well as the immeasurable joy. Well worth a read!