If you're a Dr. Phil fan this book is for you. No doubt. It is a "paint by number" type of book. However, after reading it I find myself thinking that families are very dynamic and sometimes complex systems - I know mine is. A simple paint by the numbers / step-by-step approach certainly falls short of being too helpful in anything but the most trivial matters of familial functioning. I enjoyed Family First and recommend it as it doesn't hurt to read. Personally I prefer greater depth than what I found in Family First. Another reviewer suggested a book "Systemic Parenting" by Mark Gaskill. I also picked up a copy of that book. These books work well together! Gaskill definitely fills the gaps left open by Phil. Actually, I think it would have been helpful to read Systemic Parenting before reading Family First - I would even suggest that many of Phil's ideas came from reading Systemic Parenting. It is certainly an, if not the, original. Gaskill's discussions on topics like intimacy, emotional safety, emotional process, thinking errors, and interactions styles probably would have positively contributed to my family's use of the questionnaires found in Family First.