Mama Rock's Rules - Review and Giveaway

Update: Please note the new deadline of April 27 for this contest. I'm bumping up the date so that I can feature this contest in the very awesome Bloggy Giveaways Carnival! Click here to enter all of the other fabulous giveaways going on there. Good luck!

As a parent of three, I've been learning and growing along with my children for over 18 years. And you know what? "You learn something new everyday" is quite true, even after all this time.

Imagine if you were able to get sage advice and tips from a mother who has successfully raised 27 children? If you're like me, you'd jump on the chance to do so.

You'll have the opportunity to do just that when you read Mama Rock's Rules: Ten Lessons for Raising a Household of Successful Children (Harper Collins) by Rose Rock with Valerie Graham. Rose Rock is the mother of comedian Chris Rock, and has raised ten children as well as 17 foster children.



Anyone who can do that...and do it successfully, has my full attention! The book is full of wonderful words of wisdom, and I like that Mama Rock is very "old school." She tells it like it is and believes in setting rules and limitations for children. She believes that parents should be parents and not friends with their children (Amen to that!)

To bring home the points she makes in each section, she offers "Mama's Mojo" which is a short but sweet summary of some of her rules. Her children also offer their point of view in quotes in the sidebars of the book.

The celebrity lover in me enjoyed getting a glimpse into the childhood of Chris Rock. Mama Rock tells so many funny/charming stories that you feel like you're right there in their household, trying to cover up the broken gumball machine right along with them (one broken piece at a time carried out of the house under coats, lol).

My favorite piece of advice was how Mama Rock got her children to admit to doing something wrong. She advises parents to never ask a "yes" or "no" question. Don't ask your children if they broke a vase. The answer will always be no.

Instead, sit them down, make them comfortable with something like a delicious bowl of ice cream and then make them believe that you already know more than you do (don't you just love her already?). Then ask them something like, "When you did this (broke the lamp or piece of china), were you bouncing a ball or did you throw it around the room with someone else?"

I am so going to use that from now on with my kids! In fact, I clearly remember using this on a boyfriend of mine who I suspected was cheating on me in middle school. He'd gone to a skating rink on a Friday night and when he got back I said, "I heard you were skating with that girl."

Of course, I'd heard no such thing, but it worked. He apologized profusely and I quickly dumped him. Why didn't I ever think to use that tactic with my kids? Thanks, Mama Rock for reminding me that a little manipulation can go a long way in bringing out the truth!

I don't agree with all of the rules in the book (for example, I don't believe in handing my children a condom and so far my approach has worked as my oldest is heading off to college as a virgin and plans to save herself for marriage), but I think most parents would be hard-pressed to completely agree with all the rules another parent has for their kids.

But I do agree with most of the rules, and I think you will too.

Want to find out if you do? I am giving away my review copy of Mama Rock's Rules to one lucky reader. Simply leave a comment here to be entered. Deadline to enter is at 11:59 p.m, April 27. Winner will be selected at random using Random.org and announced on April 28. Good luck!