Arlene Schusteff's Peanut Butter, Playdates & Prozac: Tales from a Modern Mom is a lighthearted, humorous book that will nicely balance out the more rigid and serious parenting books on any mom or mom-to-be's bookshelf.  Schusteff writes of her own experiences as a mom of two, as well as sharing observations she has made over the years as she watches other moms around her.  Reading this book is like sitting down with one of those mom friends you can be honest with and admit that yes, your child has watched a video or eaten a french fry.

Topics include "Starbucks Stepfords" (had to read that one right away to see if I was one), "Magazine Makeovers" (what you used to read versus what you read now), "My Porn" (a.k.a. Real Simple, Pottery Barn Kids, etc.) and "Schoolmarms".  I read Schoomarms aloud to a friend while we were both waiting for our girls at ballet, and we had a good laugh as we tried to picture the "Hot Mamas", "Martha Stewarts on Speed" and "Granola Gurus" we each see at school.  And then we realized that maybe we're the granola gurus!

My dad flipped through my copy of Peanut Butter, Playdates & Prozac while he was here and chuckled a bit. In fact, he picked it up several times.

Schusteff talks about real life, with actual conversations and the real thoughts that we all have from time to time.  I love the "Mommy Speak":

What they say: He has so much energy.
What they think: He's such a wild animal.

What they say: She speaks so well.
What they think: Does she ever shut up? 

I got a kick out of one of the new mommy/old mommy comparisons:

Carpool, New Mommy: Checks to make sure the car seat was installed properly and discreetly asks others about driving record.
Carpool, Old Mommy: You've got room?  Great, can she go with you?

For any mom that's feeling stressed out trying to do it all and raise the world's best kids, Peanut Butter, Playdates & Prozac will provide a few light moments and a break from the pressure to do it all just right.  Share it with a mom friend and have a good laugh together.