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November 21, 2005
Humor and child food allergies
In the book May Contain Nuts the author mixes up the neurotic parenting approach with keeping kids with food allergies safe in an attempt to add humor to his book. The author, John O'Farrell, is a well know satirist in Britain and his book has received very favorable reviews - so good, in fact, I might just order it.
"With a comic eye for detail that has sent his books to the top of the British best-seller lists, May Contain Nuts is a funny, compelling, and provocative satire of the manic world of today’s overcompetitive, overprotective families."source: Amazon.com
The story is about parents who are looking to give their kids every edge in life. The problem is, the harder they push, the more the more they worry about their kids. Are the foods my kids eat or the amount of exercise they get hindering their child’s mental development?
The problem is their kids don't have food allergies and the "May Contain Nuts" title comes from the mother fretting over a label that says that, when, in fact, it is a label on a jar of nuts.
So, if you read the book, let us know if its funny. And for those of us who do have kids with real food allergies, lets be careful of how we portray ourselves in our own life story.
Now, if Mr. O'Farrell could just change the title....
Posted by David at November 21, 2005 9:07 AM