Today I've come across an article by Daniela Hurezanu on SantaCruz.com, all thanks to Rebecca from The Book Lady's Blog. The title of the article is Book Expo's Sorry Turn and while I find the whole piece full of crap, from the assertion that 'the Book is disappearing' and 2011 BEA 'dispensed with any doubt' about it to the literary fiction being abandoned by major publishers, to finally a claim that housewives are bloggers who write mostly about romance, horror and/or paranormal novels, what I found the most offensive is that the term 'mommy bloggers' became derogatory both in the article and in some comments by women who want the author to be sure that they are single/ career women/ working women and blog about all kinds of fiction and non-fiction.
I ask: WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH BEING A MOMMY BLOGGER!!!???
Yes, I'm a mother of three and yes, I made a decision to be a stay-at home mom despite the fact that I hold a Masters degree, I have a great profession of translator/interpreter and I had bright prospects for professional success. I simply decided that I did not want my babies to be raised by strangers while I'm chasing a career. My life is no longer about me only, it's about my children and, I hate to break it to you, does require sacrifices and selflessness and letting go of your egos. Of course there are tons of women out there who have to go to work because their financial situation leaves them no choice and I also do not want to judge any woman who is a mother and who also works outside the home. I'm simply expressing my personal feelings about being a housewife.
But that's not even my main point. My main one is, mommy bloggers are not stupid. We are intelligent, we are smart, we are tough and we work too (while I'm not a particular fan of Dr. Phil, he did say it right when he stated that a stay-at-home mom works the equivalent of two full-time jobs). Does the author of the article think that when we pushed the placenta out, our brain followed right behind it? Is a mommy blogger some kind of oxymoron among the 'elite' of successful businesswomen and men. Here's a newsflash for you (and it's for all of the people who feel that mommy bloggers are some subspecies, not only for Ms. Hurezanu): we can read (Ooops, did I really say that?!) and then we can also think critically about what we read, and most shocking of all, we can write about it cohesively.
I sooo want to be rude and say SHOVE IT but maybe I should be nicer...wait a minute, I just did. There it is, I'm a mommy blogger and damn proud of it!
Oh that article has me fuming!!!! I don't ever leave comments on articles (if you can call it that), but I just had to on this one. I was totally flabbergasted at the generalizations and the writer obviously has not a clue on what the book blogging community is about. I did enjoy reading the comments though, you shouldn't mess around with bloggers :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting Lilly!
That should be a trademark sign: Don't mess with bloggers!
ReplyDeleteShe clearly isn't very blog-savvy, that woman.
HA! absolutely rocking post Lilly, couldn't agree more with your comments about mummy bloggers!
ReplyDeleteI haven't read the offending post (I'm off to do so) but I'm already fuming.
Sometimes the ignorance of the so-called 'intelligent' is quite mindboggling ;)
I haven't read the article, but yours is the second response I've seen...I think I'll just boycott the article in support. :-D
ReplyDeleteThere's absolutely nothing wrong with being a "mommy blogger!" I think many of the commenters took issue with the fact that the author of the article generalized BOOK bloggers as "mommy bloggers" in a certain age group who review only certain types of books, when book bloggers are male and female, mothers and childless, young and old, and read a variety of different books.
ReplyDelete"Does the author of the article think that when we pushed the placenta out, our brain followed right behind it?"
ReplyDeleteLol - fabulous quote I may use from time to time!! ;D
I'm not a mother - oh if only my body would allow it! But I respect all mothers who do the 'job' well. Because to do so is nothing short of amazing. And to pile a load of abuse on your shoulders - in obvious ignorance of this simple fact - is simplemindedness at its most ugly!
I'm a housewife - not because I am a mother - because of mental health issues. I have a good degree and did work in mental health and with children with challenging behaviors: Kids who had genuine and often heartbreaking reasons for their bad behavior (like being neglected and abused by their parents)- what's Ms Hurezanu's excuse?
Shah. X