REALITY CHECK: (This one is for me to you…) For the past three years I’ve been working on a parenting book that turned out to be one of the most difficult projects of my life. I probably should have read my own chapter on Perfectionism (hmmm), but my goal was to get this book perfect. It turned out to be 710 pages (ah!) with every bit of the best parenting advice I’ve ever given to parents. And I also included the advice I offered from 75 of my Today segments as well as literally hundreds of top research findings. It’s done! Now writer anxiety kicks in: what will the reviewers say? You go through a process of biting your nails, kicking yourself for signing a contract and wondering if you should be in another line of work. Having someone else review your work–especially the first reviewer–is daunting at best. Well, the first review just came in and I’m breathing. Publishers Weekly just sent this out on the wires. Relief!!! It’s great YES! (I feel like a little kid. “I did it!”) Phew…. Here it is:
The Big Book of Parenting Solutions: 101 Answers to Your Everyday Challenges and Wildest Worries Michele Borba. Jossey-Bass, $19.95 paper (710p) ISBN 978-0-7879-8831-9 Publishers Weekly
Borba, author and Today Show regular, employs a cookbooklike approach in her latest volume: rather than read through the entire tome, parents can flip to topics pertinent to their family. Borba opens with a friendly overview, noting that contemporary parents feel more stressed and find their roles increasingly difficult (June Cleaver, she points out, didn’t have to deal with cyberbullying or Facebook). With characteristic wit, Borba identifies the “seven deadly parenting styles,” including helicopter, buddy, incubator, bandage, paranoid, accessory parenting (judging themselves by their kids’ accolades) and secondary parenting (relinquishing power to such outsiders as marketers or the media). In nine sections on family, behavior, character, emotions, social scene, school, special needs, day-to-day and electronics, the author urges readers to roll up their sleeves and get back to basic, instinctual parenting. As she tackles 101 issues ranging from sibling rivalry, lying and peer pressure to cell-phone use and TV addiction, Borba helps readers identify the reason underlying the behavior or problem, and work with 10 essential principles of change. With her no-nonsense yet compassionate voice, Borba once again delivers an indispensable resource for parents of toddlers to 13-year-olds. (Sept.) Publishers Weekly
The Big Book of Parenting Solutions is available now for advance orders — on online stores or at amazon.com http://bit.ly/ne8w