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Review
"An explosive new book... Many of the findings in Nurtureshock are not what we parents expect or want to hear, but we have to hear it" --Daily Mail
"A wake-up call for parents... the Freakonomics of child-rearing... a fantastic read" --Good Morning America
"A wake-up call for parents... the Freakonomics of child-rearing... a fantastic read" --Good Morning America
Review
"The least touchy-feely [parenting book] ever... hard to put down and easy to take seriously."
--"A.V. Club," The Onion
--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
--"A.V. Club," The Onion
--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
28 of 31 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Upon receipt of this book I immediately took issue with the title, how could everything we think about raising our children be wrong ? Surely we have an innate sense of how to raise our own children, or do we ? This book provides a hefty challenge to so many of our previously indisputable parenting principles. For instance the cornerstone of any relationship is communication, the childs first words are usually uttered as a result of parental influence, other factors are at play of course but for the first couple of years the majority of language will be learned through the parents. So we buy DVD's to help with language development and needlessly prop up a multi-billion dollar industry. Sitting our children in front of this " educational tool " while we potter around the house with a clear conscience, happy in the knowledge that junior is busy learning and will be a step ahead of all the other kids. Wrong, a scientific study has shown that the use of such aids will actually decrease the childs vocabulary and proves detrimental to their development. Talking to your child while making eye contact is far better and cheaper too !
Other areas to be discussed are, why the wrong type of praise can actually hinder the childs development, why children sleep on average one hour less than thirty years ago and the effect it has on their health, IQ and emotional well being. The contentious issue of race and how it's handled by parents, why kids lie and why siblings really fight. My personal favourite was the chapter on how gifted children are assessed and educated, the claims by educators to have it down to a fine art yet the studies show they are wrong 73% of the time ! We are shown why teen rebellion is a goood thing, how self control can be taught and how watching kids DVD's can make young children more aggressive.
I'm the proud parent of a seven week old and I must admit to being daunted by parenthood, I've had a head full of preconceptions and misconceptions about parenting for quite some time and I imagine we all believe we are the best parent. Beliefs are fallible but experience is a great teacher while guidance is invaluable, this book does not pontificate, it's not verbose but yet it encourages further inquiry. Holes are poked in the delusion of good parenting and I think by reading this book with an open mind, you will have done more for your child than any tiny tot educational DVD could hope for.
Other areas to be discussed are, why the wrong type of praise can actually hinder the childs development, why children sleep on average one hour less than thirty years ago and the effect it has on their health, IQ and emotional well being. The contentious issue of race and how it's handled by parents, why kids lie and why siblings really fight. My personal favourite was the chapter on how gifted children are assessed and educated, the claims by educators to have it down to a fine art yet the studies show they are wrong 73% of the time ! We are shown why teen rebellion is a goood thing, how self control can be taught and how watching kids DVD's can make young children more aggressive.
I'm the proud parent of a seven week old and I must admit to being daunted by parenthood, I've had a head full of preconceptions and misconceptions about parenting for quite some time and I imagine we all believe we are the best parent. Beliefs are fallible but experience is a great teacher while guidance is invaluable, this book does not pontificate, it's not verbose but yet it encourages further inquiry. Holes are poked in the delusion of good parenting and I think by reading this book with an open mind, you will have done more for your child than any tiny tot educational DVD could hope for.
42 of 49 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I was really looking forward to this one, having read all of Po Bronson's previous stuff (was mostly highly impressed), and being highly interested in the topic. My expectations might have been coloured by that in the sense that I was expecting a more comprehensive treatise on all interesting developments in child psychology over the last 20 years.
Overall a 4/5, for the simple fact that the result that came out from the research that went in, was a bit too sparse in my opinion. While I have no trouble agreeing to all the findings and very much like the process of showing how iterative efforts are necessary at uncovering working principles, as opposed to intuitively appealing concepts, which tend not to be borne out of practice, I have expected a more thorough analysis of the issues.
Another negative for me was a somewhat lacking introduction, where the authors would explain in more detail, why the specific aspects discussed were chosen, whether those are all the areas, where a change of perspective took place, and if not, why the authors considered those most important.
On the plus side, the conclusions drawn do not ever seem flimsy and complete references are included. The authors also successfully avoid the current trend towards endlessly repeating the same basic concept with different examples, so the 239 pages of content have been thoroughly combed through with Occam's razor. The style, however, seems to strongly mirror what they would have used in the newspaper articles, which predated this book (and were based on the same research), which makes the book very readable but I personally found less than optimal in the book format, where I felt the authors would provide much more depth to the reasoning and the conclusions.
To summarise, if one reads the book as a parent in search of tips how to make their child nurturing more effective, the book delivers to the full. If one is interested in a more abstract fashion in what developments took place in child / developmental psychology in the last 20 years but does not have the time to follow the relevant literature on a regular basis, the book is still OK but not a 5 star.
Overall a 4/5, for the simple fact that the result that came out from the research that went in, was a bit too sparse in my opinion. While I have no trouble agreeing to all the findings and very much like the process of showing how iterative efforts are necessary at uncovering working principles, as opposed to intuitively appealing concepts, which tend not to be borne out of practice, I have expected a more thorough analysis of the issues.
Another negative for me was a somewhat lacking introduction, where the authors would explain in more detail, why the specific aspects discussed were chosen, whether those are all the areas, where a change of perspective took place, and if not, why the authors considered those most important.
On the plus side, the conclusions drawn do not ever seem flimsy and complete references are included. The authors also successfully avoid the current trend towards endlessly repeating the same basic concept with different examples, so the 239 pages of content have been thoroughly combed through with Occam's razor. The style, however, seems to strongly mirror what they would have used in the newspaper articles, which predated this book (and were based on the same research), which makes the book very readable but I personally found less than optimal in the book format, where I felt the authors would provide much more depth to the reasoning and the conclusions.
To summarise, if one reads the book as a parent in search of tips how to make their child nurturing more effective, the book delivers to the full. If one is interested in a more abstract fashion in what developments took place in child / developmental psychology in the last 20 years but does not have the time to follow the relevant literature on a regular basis, the book is still OK but not a 5 star.
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
As an expert Educational Consultant I read this book expecting in advance that it would yet another publication that professed common sense when indeed the common sense expressed by many such publications is far from common. I was therefore pleasantly surprised to find instead that Bronson has fashioned an articulate, well argued and substantive account of what those who work in Education and advise families when things are not going well at school, as I do, already knew. Even so, there is much to learn from Bronson - it is no surprise to anyone that teenagers do better if they get an extra hour's sleep in the morning - but while the chapter summaries might appear predictable in some ways, the information that Bronson uses to back up his assertions are profound, his sources sure, and his conclusions will argued and clear.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
One of the best book for parents
Loved the fact that it is analysing only facts and hard core research and it is not another one of these books where so called "experts" tell you how to raise your kid. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Elpi
Nurtureshock
One of the best books I've ever read about children. Reminds me of Freakonomics. Absolutely brillliant. I would say a must have for a parent.
Published 19 months ago by Jevgenija Andrejeva
Interesting and informative
Not usually a reader of non-fiction but had read so many good reviews about this book (and some excerpts) that I decided to buy it. Found it really easy to read and interesting. Read more
Published on 15 April 2010 by J B
An Must for Parents and Teachers
A thoroughly enjoyable read as well as packed with lots of interesting research. As a mum of 3 and a teacher this book really helped me understand so much more about my children's... Read more
Published on 24 Mar 2010 by S. Duncan
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