In this book, mom/journalist Jennifer Senior turns the tables on the millions of parents who are so intent on assessing every minute effect that they have on their toddler. She does so by answering the direct question: What effects are our babies and youngsters having on us? Her responses encompass not only her own experiences, but also those of men and women experiencing what modern parenting really means. Editor's recommendation.

The New York Times Book Review - Andrew Solomon

…trenchant and engrossing…Senior…examines what it means to be a parent, through interviews with a handful of families who are neither typical nor extraordinary. These are snapshots, not longitudinal documentaries, but in the way of good snapshots, they tell more than one might notice at first glance, and they allow for cautious universalizing. She supplements these vignettes with extremely impressive research, weaving in insights from philosophy, psychology and…social science…Salted with insights and epigrams, the book is argued with bracing honesty and flashes of authentic wisdom.

The New York Times - Janet Maslin

Jennifer Senior's astute book about parents and children…is especially eye opening about how many prejudices are usually built into such studies…To her credit, Ms. Senior has avoided interviewing stereotypical subjects…Instead, she found people who would expand rather than validate her guesses about what their experiences as parents are currently like…this is an eye-opening debut, and it will help a lot of parents feel less alone, if not less frazzled.

—Entertainment Weekly

“A smart study of modern parenthood… it’s a treat to read a parenting book that’s not about our precious children.”

—Hanna Rosin

“Jennifer Senior’s excellent new book… is not prescriptive. She doesn’t tell parents to be more mindful or drink more wine or neglect their kids; she just wants them to understand why they are always so stressed out.”

—Huffington Post

“Attention childless persons: If you’re thinking of having kids, and are looking for an accurate assessment of the experience, disregard the holiday cards you may have received that portray merry families in various stages of triumph. Instead, read Jennifer Senior’s book. This eloquent read is a tonic”

—Elle

“If you are tempted to read just one more book on the arguably over examined subject of parenthood, let it be Jennifer Senior’s wise and surprising ALL JOY AND NO FUN.”

—New York Post

“Chatty, generous and yet statistically grounded reverse-angle of the usual studies of what parents do to children.”

—Boston Globe

“Senior’s wise compassion provides guidance that’s both necessary and inspiring.”

—Washington Post

“[ALL JOY AND NO FUN is a] richly woven, entertaining, enlightening, wrenching and funny book.”

—Newsday

“[The] glimpses into the conundrums of other parents are thought-provoking and fun to read”

—BookPage

“Jennifer Senior successfully connects a barrage of scholarship with the real experiences of moms and dads, and the resulting book, ALL JOY AND NO FUN, is completely fascinating….”

Tom Reiss

“The perfect intellectual Rx for today’s overstressed parents. While scrupulously considering ‘big data,’ the triumph is Senior’s own observations, presented with modesty and offhanded style, which brilliantly take down myths...a profound book about the meaning of love and how we raise not just our children, but ourselves.”

Daniel Gilbert

“An indispensable map for a journey that most of us take without one. Brilliant, funny and brimming with insight... an important book that every parent should read, and then read again. Jennifer Senior is surely one of the best writers on the planet.”

Curtis Sittenfeld

“If you’re a parent in 2014, you have to get your hands on this book. Wise, engrossing, and so real that I fear Senior has been spying inside my house, All Joy is a must-read for those of us whose lives have been enriched and derailed by having kids.”