Bundles of joy but little fun as parenting becomes a high-performance pursuit

PARENTHOOD, like a lot of things, is not what it used to be. We are bombarded with books, blogs and television programmes on how to be the perfect parent — and produce the perfect child.

Parents do not lack guidance on how to feed, sleep-train, discipline, socialise and educate their children. We have more material comforts than our own parents, and more resources, which we expend on our children. In just one generation, children have moved from the periphery of our lives to the centre, with the result that many parents are constantly fretting over whether they are doing enough to maximise their offspring’s potential.

In her new bestselling book All Joy and No Fun: The Paradox of Modern Parenthood, writer Jennifer Senior, pictured below, looks at today’s culture of intensive parenting, and ponders the issue of whether we might be better off focusing on our relationships with our children instead of obsessing about moulding them into high-achievers.