Daddy Won't Let Mom Drive the Car

True Tales of Parenting in the Dark

By: Jo Elizabeth Pinto

Narrated by: Marni Penning

“So Sarah?” the teacher asked, in a question I had rehearsed with her, “What’s it like to have a blind mom?”

“Well,” my little girl said, in an unrehearsed answer, “It’s like a regular mom, except Daddy won’t let her drive his car.”

With that nonchalant reply in front of her second grade class, Sarah summed up the way my blindness has fit into the fabric of our family. It isn't a problem; it isn't even a novelty; it's just part of how we roll. My blindness has changed a few practical logistics. But in the end, kids are kids and moms are moms, and the dents and delights of parenthood are universal.

As I told my daughter when she was very small, putting an only slightly different spin on the words my mom had said to me 30 years before, "The eyes in my face are broken, but the ones in the back of my head work just fine."

Daddy Won’t Let Mom Drive the Car: True Tales of Parenting in the Dark is a book of short vignettes - most of them lighthearted, a few more serious - about my life as the blind mother of a sighted daughter. Welcome to my journey!

©2019 Jo Elizabeth Pinto (P)2019 Jo Elizabeth Pinto

Short, sweet, and Great wisdom here!

Besides being a very entertaining read, I found this book to be an emotional roller coaster for me. But, in a good way!
As a blind parent myself I found this book to be not only informative, but also reassuring. We all go through struggles as parents, and as blind parents it is absolutely no different. Thank you for being down-to-earth, honest, transparent, funny, and absolutely amazing!
But, if you are a cited parent, this book is also for you. This book is for any of us that deal with the mysteries that are our children.
God bless the author! This is truly a great work!

I loved it!!!

I absolutely love this book! It validated a lot of the feelings that I have as a blind parent. I recommend this book to anyone who may be just curious, who has a student with a blind parent, or if you yourself are a blind parent. I couldn’t put this book down! I enjoyed every minute of it. Thank you so much I really appreciated the time energy and thoughtfulness Joe put into her stories, they really helped me out a lot. For me, this book was a lot like sitting down with a hot mug of tea after a very stressful day, thank you. You gave me a lot to think about.

Wonderful read

Loved the wonderful, positive spirit of the author. Highly motivational. Fast paced and yet touches one's heart.
Beautifully narrated

Great Book

This book is full of valuable “Mom” lessons. I would recommend all new moms to read it. There is so much valuable information. It also gives insight, from a blind mom (who has eyes in the back of her head) about how differently a person with disabilities is regarded. I have so many examples - Like the man who physically moved her in a store because she was blocking something he wanted to get. There are so many examples, just read the book!

Adventures in Motherhood

Narration is awesome. Rich and hilarious stories. The author shows that blind moms are like all moms. it is a hopeful powerful book. I not only recomend it for blind parents but also the parents of blind. children.

Charming and Insightful

Many of the mother-daughter stories and experiences in this book are so charming and sweet and the author’s love of her daughter shines through in a most lovely way that parents can relate to. The author shares her experiences of ableism with a clarity that can be processed by all, and the perspectives she shares are invaluable.

Wonderful

As a blind mother myself, a lot of the experiences in this book, pretty much all of them actually, resonated with me deeply. I’m sure I will be reading this again.

Endearing and heartfelt stories

Endearing and heartfelt What amazing stories!
You can truly tell this mother loves her family.
Stories that are completely relatable and enjoyable by all.
Must read!

Back Eyes

As a mother of a daughter who is legally blind I absolutely loved listening to this book. It's a group of short stories from a blind mother with a mix of life lessons, cute stories, frustrating moments from ignorant and some just plain rude people. She even included her solution to problems like using hot glue (brilliant and Thank you!) to baking recipes. I loved the stories about her "Back eyes" all mom's have them! Whether you are blind or not this is a great book for parents in any stage. I liked the little stories format and would love to hear more from this author. The narrator did a great job and was easy to listen. This was a really fun and quick read.

—I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Great, honest stories

I am not a parent, but I am someone who is blind. I have godchildren, nieces and nephews. I hoped that I would not be bored with this story, but didn't think I would be since I also read The bright side of darkness. I was not disappointed.

There are stories in this book that anyone can relate to. I particularly enjoyed the pet blessing story (One of my cats escaped her carrier before we could go to church, so the priest came to my house to bless her for me. He said she looked at him with a curious expression as if wondering if the ceiling was leaking). I've also watched with concern as school shootings have risen, and kids don't have that feeling of safety at school as they might have in the past.

The stories have caused me to think about how I perceive things as a blind woman. For instance, the story of the ugly duckling cake made me think about how when my sighted roommate moved in, lots of people started treating her as if she took care of me. I became worried about the impression I would make as a blind person. I had to do things just right. And as I read, (and as I have also learned) I was reaffirmed in my belief that all of us, regardless of ability, need help from time to time. We may do things a little differently, but the point is that we do them.

I also enjoyed the brookie and cabbage burger recipes. :)