"Keith Harmon Snow's meticulously documented investigation into sex-trafficking of children by American judges is not to be missed. This scandal is one of the most important censored stories in our country today. I might not believe what Mr. Snow has written if I had not independently investigated two dozen cases not discussed in his article, and found ample evidence of the precise dynamics he lays out for us here. Anyone who says they care about child welfare needs to learn what is happening in family courts and take action until it is stopped. Once you start reading this expose, you won't be able to put it down." -Lundy Bancroft Author of Why Does He Do That? History's largest-selling book on domestic violence"
Upon his father's death in 1973, JAM became the man of the house at age twelve. And in this memoir, JAM narrates a life story that is at times both difficult and extremely heart-wrenching as he witnesses the aftermath of the atrocities of physical abuse, rape, and other tragedies including a volatile personal life. In the Worst Interest tells of the author's dedication to responding for calls of help. At age fifteen he became a youth member of the local volunteer fire department in metropolitan Minnesota where he responded to more than 500 calls, became an emergency medical technician, and then a probationary firefighter. The memoir tells of his thirty years of service as an Army and National Guard medic serving a tour in Kosovo and two tours in Iraq. JAM also tells of the painful trials of his life from living with a woman diagnosed with schizophrenia and a painful divorce that divided his family, to his battle with county social services and the loss of custody and a relationship with his two daughters. In the Worst Interest narrates the story of one man's journey and his prayers for his children to let him come home.
Friends broaden our children’s horizons, share their joys and secrets, and accompany them on their journeys into ever wider worlds. But friends can also gossip and betray, tease and exclude. Children can cause untold suffering, not only for their peers but for parents as well. In this wise and insightful book, psychologist Michael Thompson, Ph.D., and children’s book author Catherine O’Neill Grace, illuminate the crucial and often hidden role that friendship plays in the lives of children from birth through adolescence. Drawing on fascinating new research as well as their own extensive experience in schools, Thompson and Grace demonstrate that children’s friendships begin early–in infancy–and run exceptionally deep in intensity and loyalty. As children grow, their friendships become more complex and layered but also more emotionally fraught, marked by both extraordinary intimacy and bewildering cruelty. As parents, we watch, and often live through vicariously, the tumult that our children experience as they encounter the “cool” crowd, shifting alliances, bullies, and disloyal best friends. Best Friends, Worst Enemies brings to life the drama of childhood relationships, guiding parents to a deeper understanding of the motives and meanings of social behavior. Here you will find penetrating discussions of the difference between friendship and popularity, how boys and girls deal in unique ways with intimacy and commitment, whether all kids need a best friend, why cliques form and what you can do about them. Filled with anecdotes that ring amazingly true to life, Best Friends, Worst Enemies probes the magic and the heartbreak that all children experience with their friends. Parents, teachers, counselors–indeed anyone who cares about children–will find this an eye-opening and wonderfully affirming book.
Outlines simple, counterintuitive approaches to raising happy, healthy, and successful children through parental demonstrations of respectful examples and child-directed activities that facilitate early independence and problem-solving skills.
The author of Punished by Rewards and The Schools Our Children Deserve returns with a provocative challenge to the conventional ways of raising children. Kohn argues that all children have the need to be loved unconditionally, yet conventional approaches to parenting, such as punishment and reward, teach children that they are loved only when they please and impress parents. Kohn cites powerful research detailing the damage this can cause. Unconditional Parenting pushes parents to question their ideas of parenting and offers practical solutions to problems.
Updated and revised with seven new chapters, a new introduction, and a new resources section, this landmark book is invaluable for women facing a custody battle. It was the first to break the myth that mothers receive preferential treatment over fathers in custody disputes. Although mothers generally retain custody when fathers choose not to fight for it, fathers who seek custody often win—not because the mother is unfit or the father has been the primary caregiver but because, as Phyllis Chesler argues, women are held to a much higher standard of parenting. Incorporating findings from years of research, hundreds of interviews, and international surveys about child-custody arrangements, Chesler argues for new guidelines to resolve custody disputes and to prevent the continued oppression of mothers in custody situations. This book provides a philosophical and psychological perspective as well as practical advice from one of the country’s leading matrimonial lawyers. Both an indictment of a discriminatory system and a call to action over motherhood under siege, Mothers on Trial is essential reading for anyone concerned either personally or professionally with custody rights and the well-being of the children involved.
This book is a manual for parents who are divorcing. Written by a licensed clinical forensic psychologist and a Ph.D.nurse/counselor its purpose is to help parents save their children unnecessary anguish throughout the divorce process. The advice and direction contained here are eminently practical-detailing what adults can expect from a custody battle; what they will encounter in themselves and in their children (emotionally, physically, mentally) during divorce; helping parents to make sense out of their children's questions; offering guidance in making decisions for themselves and their kids; and explaining the ultimate importance of putting the child's needs first. What makes this book different and invaluable is that the authors refuse to take a sugar-coated or willy-nilly approach. They have witnessed, firsthand, too much pain an suffering in families during divorce to hold back their strong, direct words and warnings. "We are not afraid to take a stand," they declare up front. "In fact, we believe it is our duty to underscore the needs of your children so they don't get lost or disappear underneath legal paperwork." While they fully understand that adults do not set out to cause damage to their children, they also know that any divorce, if not handled properly, will absolutely cause serious problems to children. Such "proper handling" must include a strategically-planned blueprint that maps out a child's need for emotional health and well-being. In The Best Interest Of The Child guides the divorcing adults in the drafting of such a blueprint. Without it, they plead, "your children's lives will quickly stagnate or suffocate in the mire and muck created by spousal mud-slinging and attorney-posturing." The tone of the book, while uncompromising, also generates strong credibility for the author's words, and easily inspires confidence in their readers. Years of experience as therapists and family counselors allow the authors to present their material with authority, sanity and genuine wisdom. Topics covered include: what to expect when you are divorcing; the stress and fear that children take on; the need for extra vigilance and care toward children; softening or preventing the custody "battle"; the hidden needs of children; and dealing with an uncooperative spouse.
Feminist Baby is back in the follow-up to the New York Times bestseller by two-time Emmy Award-winning author Loryn Brantz. Feminist Baby is learning to talkShe says what she thinks and it totally rocks! Feminist Babies stand up tall"Equal rights and toys for all!" Feminist Baby is ready for more adventures -- and this time she has friends! Still strong and independent, readers will love Feminist Baby as she continues to teach about feminism in a fresh, accessible way.
Play dates, soccer practice, day care, political correctness, drudgery without facts, television, video games, constant supervision, endless distractions: these and other insidious trends in child rearing and education are now the hallmarks of childhood. As author Anthony Esolen demonstrates in this elegantly written, often wickedly funny book, almost everything we are doing to children now constricts their imaginations, usually to serve the ulterior motives of the constrictors. Ten Ways to Destroy the Imagination of Your Child takes square aim at these accelerating trends, in a bitingly witty style reminiscent of C. S. Lewis, while offering parents—and children—hopeful alternatives. Esolen shows how imagination is snuffed out at practically every turn: in the rearing of children almost exclusively indoors; in the flattening of love to sex education, and sex education to prurience and hygiene; in the loss of traditional childhood games; in the refusal to allow children to organize themselves into teams; in the effacing of the glorious differences between the sexes; in the dismissal of the power of memory, which creates the worst of all possible worlds in school—drudgery without even the merit of imparting facts; in the strict separation of the child’s world from the adult’s; and in the denial of the transcendent, which places a low ceiling on the child’s developing spirit and mind. But Esolen doesn’t stop at pointing out the problem; he offers clear solutions as well. With charming stories from his own boyhood and an assist from the master authors and thinkers of the Western tradition, Ten Ways to Destroy the Imagination of Your Child is a welcome respite from the overwhelming banality of contemporary culture. Interwoven throughout this indispensable guide to child rearing is a rich tapestry of the literature, music, art, and thought that once enriched the lives of American children. Ten Ways to Destroy the Imagination of Your Child confronts contemporary trends in parenting and schooling by reclaiming lost traditions. This practical, insightful book is essential reading for any parent who cares about the paltry thing that childhood has become, and who wants to give a child something beyond the dull drone of today’s culture.
