Hidden Tears and Happy Smiles: Living with Andrew and Other Special Children Book

The Gosselins have always fascinated me, largely because of their TV show. What other family would allow a TV crew to add to the chaos of 8 children, basically all around the same age? From watching the show, you get the impression that the Gosselins live a life of trips, presents and special events, thanks largely to their six four-year-old moppets - and you learn to wince whenever Kate calls out to Jon in a public setting. I've never quite seen someone as anal and controlling as Kate - but perhaps that comes in handy when you need to be organized in life.

This book, short on substance, doesn't answer any burning question like does Jon still work or why does Kate seem abnormally cut-off from her family. At best it attempts to disassemble the impression you may have had that this family constantly goes around with its hand out, expecting society to provide after fertility treatments went wrong. It doesn't quite get there but you do feel a smidgeon of compassion for Kate at the end - if only because she seems to have wrapped herself up in a bubble that she can't break free from.