Friday 18 September 2015

Book Review - A Year in the Life of a Playground Mother by Christie Barlow

Amazon UK
Title: A Year in the Life of a Playground Mother
Author: Christie Barlow
Format reviewed: Ebook
Source: Author supplied review copy
Publisher: Bookoutre
Publication Date: 9th June 2014
Rating: 4 Stars


Ever had the pleasure of collecting your children from the school playground? Even if you haven't, this is a hilarious must-read. 

Fed up with the playground mafia at her children’s school, Rachel Young is desperate for a change. 

With her family and various pets in tow, a picture-perfect village in the countryside beckons. There, Rachel’s children will be able to keep chickens and skip through fields and she’ll bid farewell to the botoxed, fake-Gucci wearing Mumzillas forever. 

But at the new school the mums are even worse, and before long, Rachel finds herself fighting for her place amongst the playground mafia. 

While the children are practicing their sums and perfecting their reading, Rachel is learning some harsh lessons on the other side of the school gates, and ruffling plenty of feathers along the way… 

This is an incredibly entertaining story, all about how the behaviour of parents in the playground. Although I don't have children, I have worked with them, and can fully believe all the behaviours displayed in this book. 

Rachel Young, with her husband Matt, and their four children have moved to a small village in the countryside, to try and avoid the playground mafia at their old school, and to have a simpler, and arguably better quality of life.  

During the introduction chapter, where Rachel is explaining why she needs to move house, some of the stereotypes are hilarious, as is her old next door neighbour. Of course she isn't at that point to know exactly what will happen to her in the following twelve months. 

The one thing I found just slightly off putting is that although we hear in great detail the ongoing of all the other parents in the village, and their various affairs, and there seems to be a lot of mixed up relationships and probably unhappy marriages, I just don't feel I knew that much about Rachel's children. 

Rachel is be-friended by a mother, who is a top mumzilla, and has other dubious personality traits. The whirlwind that she drags Rachel into, forms a series of assorted mishaps, humorous moments and all around mayhem. 

This is a fairly fast paced book, and the action never stops, whether its stalking a current hubsand, starting a new fitness regime with a partner who can only talk about themselves, learning how to take care of chickens (that scene has at least one laugh out loud moment!), or just generally showing that parents and children are very similar...none of them behave impeccably at all times, this is just a generally entertaining story to read. 

I am looking forward to starting the sequel very soon. 

Thanks so much to Christie Barlow for this review copy. This was my honest opinion. 

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