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https://theconversation.com/in-her-new-childrens-book-jacinda-ardern-explores-working-mum-guilt-through-her-daughters-eyes-265465>
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Review: Mum’s Busy Work – Jacinda Ardern (Penguin Random House)
Jacinda Ardern’s second book released within four months, following her memoir,
is a simple children’s story. Its title –
Mum’s Busy Work – appears to still
hold true, then, despite her no longer being prime minister.
Dedicated to her daughter Neve (the narrator of this tale), the “busy work” in
fact refers to the big briefcase Ardern brings home nightly.
But the metaphor isn’t laboured in these 32 pages. It’s a book about emotions
rather than events, dancing through the days of the working week that dictate
Neve’s lifeworld.
“First bloke” Clarke Gayford is there, doing the washing and being present when
Neve wakes up on Tuesday and mum is already at work. All three go out for a
Saturday picnic. Mum arrives home early on Friday to play hide-and-seek.
In fact, positive mentions of work are thin on the page. On Monday, mum tells
Neve she doesn’t always like going to work; Neve thinks, “She looked really
tired when she got home.”
There is a welcome chocolate treasure hunt in the prime minister’s office when
Neve visits. While mum works at home on Sunday, Neve asks what her job is. Mum
replies, “Looking after everyone, like you.”
The book ends with Monday rolling round again and Neve going from stomping her
feet at the thought of daycare to dancing with mum in her “clippy-cloppy” work
shoes. For Neve, this is mum’s real job: spending time with her, dancing,
reading, playing and loving. "
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