Mad Cows by Kathy Lette

Rating: 2 out of 5
Paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Picador; New edition edition (1996)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0330334034

"Maddy Wolfe's first day out with her newborn takes a Kafkaesque turn when she's arrested in Harrods for shoplifting. If this is a miscarriage of justice, then detaining her in Holloway Prison's Mother and Baby Unit is the D&C. The only person she can turn to is her hot-to-trot ex-lover Alex, who proves himself as useful as a solar-powered vibrator on a rainy day. When will he realise that a paternity suit is not the latest look in men's leisure wear? How do you brief a lawyer with a heat-seaking penis which doesn't report to mission control? And why the hell is Maddy's friend Gillian searching for a sperm happy to get egg all over its face? There's hard knocks and rude shocks in this devastatingly witty follow-up to Foetal Attraction. " - Amazon.co.uk

To be honest I found the blurb to be the most interesting and funny part of this book. The story was unbelievable, and I don't mean that in a good way. It really was just stupid. The series of events which landed Maddy in Jail just seemed ridiculous. Also everything that followed after just left me thinking "oh come on". I know with fiction you have to suspend some beliefs and realities but this was just so silly I couldn't ignore it.

The characters, ALL of them, really annoyed me. Even Maddy was driving me nuts I just felt like slapping her and saying "snap out of it". They were so self centered and borderline insane. Alex was one step up from pond scum, Maddy I think was insane, and Gillian must have a multiple personality disorder as one minute she was likable and and then horrible in the next minute. I found them all frustrating. Maddy in particular really irked me with her constant "oh woe is me, my life sucks, what am I going to do? everybody is out to get me" attitude.

This story is told from both Gillian and Maddy's perspectives. I found this interesting as the first book Foetal Attraction was told only from Maddy's perspective. There is no real reason I could see as to why the story was told from Gillian's point of view other then to pad the story out and make it novel length.

The few parts about mothers in the mothers group was pretty close. Kathy Lette also nailed the competitiveness in these groups and guilt trips associated with being a mother. There is a wonderful scene written where Maddy goes to a nearby mothers group and sits in shock as the mothers talk about little Jane doing this, and little Bobby learning to read, then grilling Maddy on what courses her baby is enrolled into.

Even though I have pretty much bagged out this book, it wasn't all bad otherwise I wouldn't have continued reading it. There were some funny moments but they were few and far between. I was disappointed with the book as Kathy Lette is normally very funny.

It was an ok book. I probably wouldn't recommend it.