Review: NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children by Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman

NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children by Po Bronson


My rating: 4.25/5.0

Publisher: Twelve
Publication Date: September 3, 2009
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 352
My Review:

I received this as an audio book for review from Hachette Books.

First as an audio book - this is a good one. It is read by the author Po Bronson and he does a great job reading it. His voice is enjoyable to listen to and just works perfect with the book. I mean it's his book and he knows exactly how he meant things to be written and eventually spoken.

Second as the book itself - this is a good one for parents. I learned a lot of things about my parenting while listening to the book. Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman have done a lot of research and have gone around and witnessed others research in the field of child development. They are taking these new cutting-edge findings and laying them out for parents today. This book really spoke to me as I want my boys to do well and I want to be the best parent I can. I often found myself coming in after listening to this in the car and sharing some of the wisdom with my husband. We are both trying to put some of the wisdom from this book into practice.

The chapters are put together well and the research is wonderful. The authors explain the concepts well and give examples of each trait they look at. I enjoyed every minute listening to this audiobook and I hope I have come away with some really useful information.

So if you are a parent struggling in this world of pushing children and you are unsure what to do, I really suggest you grab this book and read it. I think it should be required reading for new parents as it is so simple yet I think the parenting techniques are very effective and will be practiced in my house.

About the Book:

In a world of modern, involved, caring parents, why are so many kids aggressive and cruel? Where is intelligence hidden in the brain, and why does that matter? Why do cross-racial friendships decrease in schools that are more integrated? If 98% of kids think lying is morally wrong, then why do 98% of kids lie? What's the single most important thing that helps infants learn language?

NurtureShock is a groundbreaking collaboration between award-winning science journalists Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman. They argue that when it comes to children, we've mistaken good intentions for good ideas. With impeccable storytelling and razor-sharp analysis, they demonstrate that many of modern society's strategies for nurturing children are in fact backfiring--because key twists in the science have been overlooked.

Nothing like a parenting manual, the authors' work is an insightful exploration of themes and issues that transcend children's (and adults') lives.