I came across this eight year old article listing thirty of the best parents from literature. As I skimmed the list, I saw some I agreed with and some I definitely did not. For example, Alex and Kate Murry from A Wrinkle in Time are on the list of best parents. I 100% disagree. Allowing your teen and pre-teen children to not only hunt for their missing father, but play such a big, life-risking role in escaping back to reality just does not seem like good parenting to me, and Kate seems disengaged in my opinion (it’s been months since I read this book).

Pa in Little House on the Prairie – was his “serious case of wanderlust” really what was best for his family in such uncertain times?

Mame Dennis from Auntie Mame: An Irreverent Escapade – just no… I get that she took in her nephew, but the world she exposed him to was not meant for a child, and while some of what he saw/was a part of might have helped him grow up, does any child need to attend a nude school to do that?

Other questionable parents from literature:

The mom in Love You Forever – I know the book strikes a sweet, sentimental note for lots of parents, but if this isn’t attachment parenting at its worst, I don’t know what is. She crawls in her ADULT son’s window. Nope.

Rosie in Dumplin’ – nicknaming your kid based on her body type is just gross.

Jack Spier in Love, Simon – I know he does the work and comes around to his son’s sexual orientation, but the fact he needs to apologize for homophobic references he made before he knew his own son was gay says something about him as a person, and it isn’t anything good.

Which parent(s) make you cringe?