"My Beautiful Mommy," a children's book due out this Mother's Day, walks small children through the story of how mommy can get "even prettier" with the help of plastic surgery. The book was written by Michael Salzhauer, a board certified plastic surgeon in Bal Harbor, FL to help parents explain to their children why they are undergoing plastic surgery. The book is aimed at children aged 4-7 and features Dr. Michael (a muscle-bound superhero type) and a young girl whose mother gets a tummy tuck, breast implants, and a nose job. In the book, the mother explains to the girl, "You see, as I got older, my body stretched and I couldn't fit into my clothes anymore. Dr. Michael is going to help fix that and make me feel better." Mom then comes home looking like a slightly bruised Barbie doll with demure bandages on her nose and around her waist.


Um...where to start? I guess I can see the purpose of the book given the amount of plastic surgery people are undergoing these days. The part I don't get is explaining away unnecessary surgery to children just because it makes mommy "feel better." Doesn't this seem like it would lead to even more body issues with young girls? I'm not crazy, right?