BATTLE HYMN OF THE TIGER MOTHER

This audiobook will have “weak-willed,” “indulgent” parents making sarcastic, probably unprintable, comments to their MP3 players. Amy Chua notes that being a “Chinese mother” is more a state of mind than of ethnicity. While the parenting goals she espouses are laudable—“arming [one’s] children with skills, strong work habits, and inner confidence,” listeners will cringe at her unrelenting harshness in carrying out those goals. Her daughters aren’t allowed playdates or sleepovers, and a grade of A- brings the wrath of the Tiger Mother. The girls must practice their instruments for hours daily—only piano or violin is acceptable—and she threatens: “If the next time's not PERFECT, I'm going to take all your stuffed animals and burn them!" In interviews Chua has insisted that her book is a satire—sort of. But that quality does not come through in her reading, which is characterized by a crisp, bright timbre and a self-satisfied tone. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2011]