I enjoyed the book and it did enlighten me more about the self esteem trap which I totally fell into with my son in the 70's. My intentions were good (although ultimately self serving) praise manipulates kids as much as punitive forms of discipline (the latter being how I was raised.) This book is written in a theory style vs. practicum except for her suggestion of give your child a religion first and later on he can choose to rebel against it, which I agree with. I made that mistake too - so now that I have a religion where I do fit and I speak of it - he ridicules me from time because he has not had a grounding in it. Also, for some reason I did not think it was helpful in this book when the author shared how she was raised. Her other background info was good though. Interesting points & different persoecyivd than many mainstream parenting books. This book's title isn't a good fit with the bulk of the parenting & child psychology points the authors focuses on throughout the book. I think the best summary of her thoughts is that there is something to be says for embracing & celebrating "ordinary." I agreed with many of her discussion of character building or life skills that are lost today. She isn't saying to not praise & encourage which could be construed by the summary/descriptions. Its a bit dense as a book which makes it a little harder to go through than some other parenting books but I found it thought provoking and refreshing in the sense it is completely different than others ivd read. I like getting lots of ideas & perspectives. While Buddhism is important to her, I love that she supports all different religions & even non-religion from the stand point of having a clear foundation of values & answers to life questions incorporated into the family experience.
I am really enjoying this book. I like the way the author puts forth the information too.
—iamoriqinal
Very good info. Author is Buddhist.(WCCC library)
—jenbaby
Easy to read, digest and share with the children.
—Nina
