Mom, WIll This Chicken Give Me Man Boobs?

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A lighthearted look at one woman's struggle to raise a family, be kind to the planet, and maintain her sanity.

As Robyn Harding's family moves from Calgary to Australia to Vancouver -- settling in one of the world's greenest neighborhoods -- she tries valiantly to decrease the size of their carbon footprint. But will environmental guilt, confusion, and worry give her a nervous breakdown?

When ten-year-old son Ethan becomes aware of the hormones, antibiotics, and pesticides in food (""Will chicken give me man boobs?""), his mother commits to going organic. But can they afford it? To keep the family in organic milk, she'd have to sell a kidney! And what about eight-year-old daughter Tegan's obsession with the diminishing polar bear population?

Harding finds herself trying to make litterless lunches, green her home, and cut down on the commercialism of birthday parties and Christmas. But her new friend shuttles her three children and their musical instruments (including a cello) to their lessons via bike trailer. How is a mother supposed to live up to that?

With spirit and humor, Harding deals with these challenges while wondering how far her family has come, how far they are willing to go, and whether being green will send her to the loony bin.

Robyn Harding is the author of four successful novels including The Secret Desires of a Soccer Mom and Unravelled. Her first teen novel, My Parents Are Sex Maniacs, will be published in 2009. She is a contributing editor at Granville Magazine, a lifestyle publication with a focus on sustainability. This is her first nonfiction book. She lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.

"Harding is no stranger to confessional humour, and uses it to full effect when chronicling her earnest . . . efforts to green her extended family. Refreshingly funny, disarmingly honest, and mercifully free of apocalyptic horrors, Harding's tale will resonate with those who feel unequal to the task of buying organic milk, let along saving the planet." -Quill & Quire

"Harding's take on raising green kids without losing her mind is a priceless look at the choices and compromises that every parent makes as he or she journeys towards a green lifestyle. And if nothing else, it will certainly give you a good eco-laugh." -Mother Nature Network

"Robyn Harding didn't know what she was getting into when she launched her family on a go-green project . . . What ensued is revealed in this hilarious and candid book . . . Harding's personal angst is certainly the focus of this book, but somehow her wit and honesty shine brighter than her groans, making this a highly entertaining and delightfully engrossing read." -Waterloo Region Record

"Robyn Harding, author of Mom Will this Chicken . . . contends with 'a daughter who can't sleep for worrying about the polar bears and a son who fake barfs whenever a meal's not strictly organic'." -Earth Island Journal

"Robyn Harding's book is a hilarious journey through the trials and tribulations of going green in a modern world. The book touches on everything from litter-less lunches to worries over fostering eco-anxiety in children, plus a health dose of Harding's own anxiety over whether she is green enough to fit into her super-environmentally aware neighbourhood." -Treehugger.com

"A hilarious account of trying and sometimes succeeding to build a green ethic and raise an environmentally conscious family without losing her sanity or cleaning out her bank account." -The Province

"An informative, spirited account of an increasingly dispiriting subject: going green . . . Despite her lapses and concessions to comfort, Harding is to be commended for her efforts. Researching each issue, she considers all the ambiguities and the truths before judiciously and responsibly setting on her own compromises. Few of us can do more. And for those of us who have also fallen short of the ideal, this book is both reassuring and empowering." -Globe & Mail

"If you're trying to go green, or have already gotten there, I guarantee that you'll find this book a very good, funny, educational and easy read. You'll be able to relate to it in many ways." -Canadian Living

"STARRED: Harding's sense of humor and keenly observed account of social mores in the new ecology will keep modern parents, especially those with opinions on the green movement, tickled throughout." -Publishers Weekly

"The title of this book may not be a familiar refrain in your house, but the struggles it chronicles will be. A humour-filled, stream-of-consciousness account of Harding's efforts to become 'a deep-dark-green goddess,' it both delights and occasionally grates. The latter is where the book's real value lies. As Harding confronts her own values, habits and ideas, we're forced to look uncomfortably at our own." -Green Living Magazine

"This book is a hilarious account of former Granville columnist Robyn Harding's confused, guilt-ridden, and stressful struggle to raise a green family." -Granville Magazine

"This book welcomes a wide audience, not just mothers whose sons worry about man boobs. It is clever, alarmingly funny and informative in a way that will, I hope, make readers green with envy . . . Mom, Will This Chicken Give Me Man Boobs? is a hilarious account of trying - and sometimes succeeding - to build a green ethic and raise an environmentally conscious family without losing her sanity, or cleaning out her bank account." -Vancouver Sun

"This catchy title draws you in, albeit with a smirk on your face, to one author's account of going green . . . Even though Ms. Harding admits to being overwhelmed and frustrated, she powers through many complex decisions, from choosing sustainable seafood to buying organic milk - doing much of the research for you." -Finding Solutions