Books. I love them. Like most bibliophiles, books have fed me spiritually, imaginatively, and educationally since I could read, and more recently they have helped me evolve into a better mom and a better individual. So in honor of books and other bibliophiles out there, this week is going to about books, sharing them, writing about them and giving them away.
Today, I am going to review and giveaway a book that came to print only a few short weeks ago. It is a must have for any mindful parent's bookshelf. It's about parenting, it's about social norms, and it's about changing the way we are with our children.
Parenting for Social Change
by Teresa Graham Brett is a wonderful, thoughtful, and honest book for any parent who wants to change and transform their parenting from a place of control, to a place of respect and dignity. Teresa offers her experience, her insight, and her authentic self from her own journey from parental control to parental partnership. Her writing is informative, clear, and cites valuable research on how dominance damages children. She challenges us to question our own social views and how we may treat children as "adults-in-training", rather than human beings with their own right to expression, opinion, and choice. I see so much of myself in her stories and examples as a former authoritarian parent. But, I must say, societal messages are so pervasive, as are our messages from childhood, that even the most peaceful of parents would benefit from reading this book to re-examine the subtleties of conditional love. Here is one of my favorite paragraphs from her book, pg. 96:
"Let's be clear: our work as parents isn't about doing things differently so our children will change. It's not about finding the magic words or methods that will ensure compliance and eliminate disagreements. Instead, it's about examining ourselves so that we can see how our ways of being with children have been constrained by our previously held beliefs, values, and attitudes. We do this so that we can experience authentic relationships with the children we love so that they can live their own lives, free of our baggage."
I actually met Teresa last year at the Rethinking Everything unschooling conference is Texas last September. She is one of the most gentle and authentic people I have ever met. I am so honored to have been able to share this book with you, and am equally honored to offer a chance for you to own a copy. Please leave a comment on this post if you would like a copy of Parenting for Social Change!! I will close comments by noon EST on Tuesday and announce the winner Wednesday!
P.S. Please visit Teresa at her website for more reviews, information, articles, ideas, etc.!! Good luck and I'll be back tomorrow with my top ten life changing books :)!!
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| "Change your thoughts, and you change your world." ~ Norman Vincent Peale |
Today, I am going to review and giveaway a book that came to print only a few short weeks ago. It is a must have for any mindful parent's bookshelf. It's about parenting, it's about social norms, and it's about changing the way we are with our children.
Parenting for Social Change
by Teresa Graham Brett is a wonderful, thoughtful, and honest book for any parent who wants to change and transform their parenting from a place of control, to a place of respect and dignity. Teresa offers her experience, her insight, and her authentic self from her own journey from parental control to parental partnership. Her writing is informative, clear, and cites valuable research on how dominance damages children. She challenges us to question our own social views and how we may treat children as "adults-in-training", rather than human beings with their own right to expression, opinion, and choice. I see so much of myself in her stories and examples as a former authoritarian parent. But, I must say, societal messages are so pervasive, as are our messages from childhood, that even the most peaceful of parents would benefit from reading this book to re-examine the subtleties of conditional love. Here is one of my favorite paragraphs from her book, pg. 96:"Let's be clear: our work as parents isn't about doing things differently so our children will change. It's not about finding the magic words or methods that will ensure compliance and eliminate disagreements. Instead, it's about examining ourselves so that we can see how our ways of being with children have been constrained by our previously held beliefs, values, and attitudes. We do this so that we can experience authentic relationships with the children we love so that they can live their own lives, free of our baggage."
I actually met Teresa last year at the Rethinking Everything unschooling conference is Texas last September. She is one of the most gentle and authentic people I have ever met. I am so honored to have been able to share this book with you, and am equally honored to offer a chance for you to own a copy. Please leave a comment on this post if you would like a copy of Parenting for Social Change!! I will close comments by noon EST on Tuesday and announce the winner Wednesday!
P.S. Please visit Teresa at her website for more reviews, information, articles, ideas, etc.!! Good luck and I'll be back tomorrow with my top ten life changing books :)!!
MJ, I don't want to be entered in the giveaway as my youngest is almost 13 and my oldest 28 and I am now entering the grandparent stage, but I did want to say that I look forward to this week's posts.
ReplyDeleteAs a fellow book lover this sounds like fun.
Warmly,
Tracey
Wow--I haven't read this one, but I loved the quote you shared! It sounds very powerful. Thank you so much for sharing it, and for all your posts. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm a book lover so I look forward to your posts this week and discovering new books!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this book. I look forward to your other reviews. The quote is incredibly insightful!
ReplyDeleteI had the pleasure of working with TGB at the University of Michigan. She is an awesome colleague, parent and person! I can't wait to read her book!
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a wonderful book. I love the quote, too, and it's something I'm really trying to act on more often. In the moment though it so often all flies out the window and I just try to dominate over the kids, which a) never works and b) I hate. Thanks for sharing the book!
ReplyDeleteYour comment on my blog today was the first time I saw a blog URL, so here I am. And looked what I landed on. I love books, too. I admit, in our small house, I am trying to do with fewer books, as we run out of space! I would love to read this one, however. I love the quote you pulled. I think it took me until a year and a half ago to realize how I parented my children needed to be how my husband and I thought and felt (felt!!!) we needed to parent our children, not what everyone kept telling us and insinuating to us. There is too much judgment. All I want, is for my kids to grow up healthy, happy, loved, and feeling the confidence they need to step out and be who they want to be! It is something I know as an adult daughter that we will always always be conscious of.
ReplyDeleteWarmly,
Nicola
I love your topic for the week! Thanks for the giveaway!
ReplyDeleteAndrea andj_rene@hotmail.com
ha... i'm also trying to think of ways to downsize my book collection (entering book giveaways notwithstanding, ahem.) hopefully i will have further motivation to do so if i win this book and need to find a spot for it on the shelf- sounds like my kind of parenting book. (and i'm a nerd for parenting books in general!)
ReplyDeleteI have read only a small handful of parenting books, so I really look forward to more recommendations from you. This one sounds like a gem - thank you so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds right up my alley! Thanks for your review!
ReplyDeleteThank for this great list. The ones I hadn't heard of immediately went on my library queue.
ReplyDeleteOooh sounds like a very interesting book indeed! I don't think that I've actually heard of this one before so even if I'm not the lucky gal I'm going to have to see if our library has a copy I can borrow :)
ReplyDelete