Authors: Po Bronson & Ashley Merryman
Genre: Parenting/Popular Science
Pages (words): 352 (N/A)
Readability: N/A
Rating (out of 5 stars): ****1/2
Reviewed by: Ben
Description: Bronson & Merryman review a vast amount of child development and psychological research related to some of the major issues that parents are concerned about: lying, race, gifted children, language development, teenage independence, sibling interaction, praise and self esteem, and self-control. They show that many of the commonly-accepted practices of parents are in fact backfiring, and discuss ways that parents and teachers can better help children succeed.
Thoughts: Even though the year isn't even half over, I'm pretty sure this is going to be my favorite non-fiction book of the year. I really liked this book a lot. Jenn and I read it at the same time, and every night we had a conversation about what we had read that day, and I think we've really come away from it understanding our kids much better. It had good, solid science behind all of the recommendations, and in addition the authors gave a few examples of how they have put the ideas in to practice with their own kids. I felt like it was a great mix of proven fact and practical application, all without seeming agenda-driven or pushy in any way. Also, I always worry with books like this that the authors are trying to find that the accepted wisdom is incorrect, and that they will go to great lengths to "prove" this. With this book, it really seemed like the authors did an incredible amount of research, and then chose these ten areas where parents and/or schools commonly did things that could be better. That approach is so much better, because none of their recommendations are outlandish or quirky; they all make a lot of sense once you think about it for a bit. Anyway, I would highly recommend this book to everyone that interacts with kids regularly. I just hope I can remember all that I've learned.
Disclaimer: None.
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