Tiger Babies Strike Back: How I Was Raised by a Tiger Mom but Could Not Be Turned to the Dark Side

Kim Wong Keltner is a Tiger Baby all grown up with a daughter of her own . . . but is she a Tiger Mother? Heck, no. This book describes—in hilarious, and sometimes heartbreaking, detail—exactly why not.

A battle hymn for every non-Tiger offspring of Tiger parents, Tiger Babies Strike Back examines why generations of kids have been made to feel inferior, isolated, suffocated, and humiliated in dogged pursuit of one goal: making their elders look good. In search of answers, Keltner delves into her own childhood, family history, and community traditions to expose the seamy underbelly of perfectionistic parenting. Can the Tiger-parented take back their emotional lives and love their own kids unconditionally? Keltner herself is living, hugging, fabulously flawed, Care Bear tea-party-throwing proof that they can.

Traversing the choppy seas of American and Chinese traditions, Keltner dives into the difficulties facing women today—Chinese American and otherwise. At once deeply relevant and playfully honest, Tiger Babies Strike Back combines personal anecdotes and tough love advice for a humorous, provocative look at how our families shape—and sometimes shake—our personal foundations.