I Was a Better Mother Before I Had Kids

Jean Kerr, Erma Bombeck, Dave Barry, Anna Quindlen and countless others have been exploring the subject for years, and now Borgman, a nationally syndicated columnist and mother of three, follows directly in their path in this somewhat uneven but overall worthwhile collection of her columns. As she hits on the usual topics (dieting and cooking, pets, family vacations, clutter, celebrating Mother's Day, husbands and cooking) readers will nod knowingly, all but finishing her sentences (which in this genre is not necessarily a bad thing.) Some of her one-liners are inspired, for example on driving with your teenager: ""You take the passenger seat while the kid you still have to tell three times to shut the refrigerator door slides in behind the steering wheel."" Others, especially the bits about dieting, have been done before. She's pretty good at capturing those familiar bittersweet moments, and sometimes she can be acerbic, as when she describes the dreaded disease ""affluenza"" afflicting many families. However, she can be sentimental and preachy about the good old days--and sometimes what might have been a good read in the nightly paper doesn't work as well in book form. But at her best, Borgman will make parents laugh aloud or bring tears to their eyes. (Apr.)