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The Good Enough Mother Paperback – July 3, 2016

by Anoushka Beazley (Author)
3.8 3.8 out of 5 stars 61 ratings
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Gatlin - a leafy affluent town; Chelsea tractors and ladies who lunch. However, all is not as it seems. Drea, a most unnatural mother, struggles to find private school fees for her step-daughter Ava after her boyfriend leaves her for another woman. Watching the yummy mummies she becomes inspired, hatching a daring and criminal plan...unleashing all hell in the quiet town of Gatlin. Can Drea survive the fallout and the wrath of the PTA? A satirical and hilarious black comedy about love, motherhood and the human condition.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    332 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    July 3, 2016
  4. Dimensions
    5 x 0.83 x 8 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    0993436803
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0993436802
  7. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

'Dark, gripping & laugh out loud funny!' Rosalind Porter 'Anoushka Beazley is a talented, sharp-eyed writer.' Will Francis 'Anoushka has created a book about a mother yes, but more importantly a woman, that's laugh-out-loud in a dark and satirical kind of way...a little bit like motherhood now that I come to think of it.' Cat Sims

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Anoushka Beazley (July 3, 2016)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 332 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0993436803
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0993436802
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.6 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 0.83 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.8 3.8 out of 5 stars 61 ratings

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Anoushka Beazley

Anoushka Beazley

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Customer reviews

3.8 out of 5 stars
3.8 out of 5
61 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Jen Thomason
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing and hilarious dark comedy!
Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2017
I thought Drea was absolutely fabulous, however, be warned that if you are easily offended by language then you probably won’t be a big fan of Drea or this story. But this book had me laughing at loud the entire time!
As outlandish and crazy as this story is, it does address a very real and possible situation for many of us – how to come up with school tuition? Granted there is the argument of sending your child to public school, but Drea wanted Ava to stay in the school she had attended for so long and maintain some normalcy for her in light of her father leaving. There are also several political undertones weaved throughout the story about the overall debate between public and private schools and how fair it is for some to get a better education because their parents have more money. The great thing about the whole thing, however, is an unexpected source for the tuition that emerges throughout the novel!

Another issue is Drea’s lingering grief related to her childhood and the loss of her mother. Drea hasn’t had the opportunity to properly deal with and process what happened and her associated feelings, as well as, almost feels as if it’s her legacy to follow in her mother’s footsteps. I don’t want to provide spoilers but it does provide insight into why Drea is the way she is and there are pronounced personal improvements and changes in her by the time the novel concludes.

If you’re a very prim and proper PTA mom then, this may not be the book for you. However, if you’ve ever felt slighted or outcast by the snobby, perfect, over-bearing mothers out there, then this wildly entertaining and hilarious novel may be just what the doctor ordered! Anoushka Beazley’s writing style, characterization, and blunt dialogue all add up to a fabulous novel that I was not able to put down!

*Many, many thanks to the author for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review!
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damppebbles
4.0 out of 5 stars ... wanting to read this book since I read the amazing reviews when it was first published back in the ...
Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2017
I have been wanting to read this book since I read the amazing reviews when it was first published back in the Summer. For one thing, just look at that cover! A number of the reviews I saw said that this book is so much more than you expect it to be. So I had to take a peek, and I’m rather glad I did.

When I first started reading I’m afraid to say that I was a little disappointed. I started to feel that fabulous cover with it’s blood splattered knife had conned me and the reviews I’d read must have been written by people who had never read a ‘dark’ novel before in their lives. It seemed to be a story about the aftermath of a rocky relationship and how the injured party, in this case Drea, was dropped in it by her hopeless boyfriend as he cavorted off to France with a much younger model and WITHOUT his teenage daughter. The teenage daughter being left in the somewhat unsure, unwilling and unprepared hands of Drea. But oh, how wrong could I be!?

Drea, despite her numerous failings, decides to step up to the plate and do all she can to make her step-daughter happy. After all, poor Ava has lost her Dad (albeit to the continent) and Drea is all she has. After much consideration Drea decides that what makes Ava happy is her private school and her upper class friends (and who wants to subject their step-daughter to even more upheaval and turmoil by moving them to the local comprehensive – not Drea!). So, with a loose, sketchy plan in mind Drea starts to plot. And plot she must as school fees are due soon and come in at around £12,000…yikes!

Drea is something else altogether. I have never met a character quite like her before. If I could meet one fictional character in real life, I think I would want that character to be Drea. She’s…..erm….a terrible mother in some respects but the best kind of mother in many others. She has an ‘I don’t care what you think about me’ attitude, particularly when it comes to the snooty PTA mums. And she’s prime suspect in a murder investigation! There were so many things I really liked about Drea. The way she tries to raise the money for Ava’s school fees was both shocking and funny. Her relationship with Ava and then with Ava’s friends was heartwarming to read. I’ve never met a bunch of teenagers in a book that I liked more than Ava, Amelia and Tabatha. Drea’s new relationship mishaps made me chuckle (particularly the supermarket scene, which still makes me chuckle even now). Among the laughs and the giggles there is a much darker theme running throughout the story and that is Drea’s obsession with her mum’s suicide and her plan to take her own life. I found myself hoping that Drea wouldn’t take the 50 paracetamol squirreled away in her bag.

The plot drew me in after that initial shaky start and kept my attention throughout. I just couldn’t wait to see what Drea was going to do next. There are many surprises along the way, times when things will happen and you’ll say to yourself ‘well, I never saw THAT coming!’.

Would I recommend this book? I would, Anoushka Beazley has managed to blend some quite dark themes with brilliant humour to create an edgy yet feel good, uplifting novel that will make all of us mothers feel just a little bit better about ourselves.

Four out of five stars.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Rip roaring good time, emotional roller coaster book!
Reviewed in the United States on July 19, 2016
"The Good Enough Mother" is a laugh out loud, rip roaring good time! Except for when it's taking you for a roller coaster, killer fast, dipping curve that drops a hundred feet and you have to put the book down in order to just BREATHE. Then you immediately pick it back up because you don't want to miss anything! According to our heroine, isn't it better just to tell it like it is? Why sugar coat it? Drea Peiris, is an out of work physics teacher, too clever for her own good when her life is turned even more upside down by the event called Life (plus a few more makings of her own!). Demonically clever and profound author Anoushka Beazley takes the reader on a black humored joy ride, riddled with life-truths, witty events that will leave you feeling as if you have never really tried at life. If you've ever felt unworthy, cheated, jealous, better than others -- this book will put you in your place and add an awesome dimension onto to your outlook. "The Good Enough Mother" is great summer read, who dunnit mystery or when you need a change of pace, all wrapped into one. This book is not like any others and you won't regret picking it up and giving it a go!
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5.0 out of 5 stars Love it
Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2016
The good enough mother is a great read. Drea is the kind of strong female need we need more of. She does her own thing in her own way and doesn't care what people think. I love her wit and sarcasm and loved the journey the story took me on. Its the kind of book you look forward to reading and can't put down which is a dangerous combination :).
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Paola Brunetti
5.0 out of 5 stars Laughing out loud at each page with intelligence
Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2016
The perfect Summer book to read on a very busy Italian beach, gripping and extremely funny, i have found myself divouring it in a blink while laughing out loud and happily ignoring all the drama and boredom around me. Thank you so much to brilliant Anoushka for writing this genious entertaining comedy...and so often speaking my mind! Highly reccommend to read it at least once.
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Top reviews from other countries

Lucie Regent
5.0 out of 5 stars The good enough mother This book is a real emotional roller-coaster
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 9, 2016
Verified Purchase
This book is a real emotional roller-coaster. Anoushka unique style is pure joy in the thrilling sense, you are never really comfortable and always wanting more. You think she is taking you somewhere and then she leaves you wondering where this is all going. It plays with a very familiar territory, the school run and cake sale but suddenly you are in a thriller with murder mystery… It is very funny but you know that the black humour hides painful truth.

I particularly loved the relationship I had with the main character, I like her anti-conformism, her style but along the way you get angry with her and it is only at the end that you can fully understand her.
But the good enough mother is not about characters, it is really about interactions between them and how, like in life, redemption and comfort comes from the very unlikeliest people around you.
It's a brilliant book about motherhood, love, coming of age and the pressures that life throws at all of us along the way. But the joy is in the realisation that beauty is in those little moments between a father and daughter between troubled teenagers and an even more troubled step mum, one sentence, one exchange and it was all worthwhile.

It's a very entertaining, funny book that will leave you with all sorts of questions about yourself and everybody around you.
2 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars black comedy made colourful
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 24, 2016
Verified Purchase
Easy reading with a twist. Honest, in your face writing from the heart.
One person found this helpful
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E. H. Schmidt
5.0 out of 5 stars Original and Funny- fantastic read!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 7, 2016
Verified Purchase
Fantastic Read! Had a hard time putting it down. Unexpected both in plot twists, writing style and character development. Its mixture of black humour and slapstick comedy lightened the very real portrayal of modern family life. Drea is wonderful in her thoughts and actions and the cameos of her dad are hilarious. The book is now dog-eared and folded and already well loved. It's travelled abroad and back and in many handbags.
Absolutely loved the flawed protagonist. Drea wants to be the cynical (very funny!) uncaring, self-centred anti-mother but all her actions and reactions just spell love, caring and concern.
A real gem and it's on my present list for all my mum friends out there.
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alex
5.0 out of 5 stars Utterly superb - A must read!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 22, 2016
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I was recommended this book by a mum friend - it is a brilliant read! It has the perfect mix of humour and sensitivity. Some of the dialogue was laugh out loud funny (which I haven't done in years!) - parts of it are deliciously absurd. But beyond the wit and light humour lies some very thoughtful and poignant reflections on relationships (mother, daughter, friendships), and pressures of life. A great page turner that you will thoroughly enjoy and will leave you with a rye smile!! I highly recommend it and I do not often bother writing reviews so that says it all!
2 people found this helpful
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Veronique L.
5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 12, 2016
Verified Purchase
Everybody needs a friend like Drea. Someone who keeps it real.
Anoushka Beazley has a true voice. Her writing is real, funny and delightfully inappropriate. She also tackles the delicate subject of mental health with such a natural style that it makes it approachable, acceptable, part of every day life... Almost attractive. This is truely remarkable and refreshing.
I can't wait for the sequel. Surely there will be a sequel? Drea's life is too interesting and entertaining not to be published!
2 people found this helpful
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