Customer Reviews

Childhood Revealed: Art Expressing Pain, Discovery & Hope

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When I first saw Childhood Revealed, I was amazed at the wonderful artwork. But, then I read some of the descriptions with the pieces, realized who had made the art, and was very moved. So many of us take our health for granted - but, even more so, I think we take the mental health of our children for granted. I feel so lucky that my own two children do not suffer like those in the book. But, sharing this book with them created an opportunity to talk about the problems that some children, even their own classmates have. I learned a lot from Dr. Koplewicz's first book, "It's Nobody's Fault." This one helps bring a unique personal insight into the lives of these very special children.

This book shows us that children have astonishing powers to communicate their innermost experiences. It is a privilege to view this glimpse into children's lives. Anyone who reads this book -- and anyone who has ever had contact with a child should read this book -- will be filled with profound respect for the honesty and dignity of children as they struggle with life challenges. Despite the focus on children with mental health problems, this book is not gloomy or depressing -- in fact, it is inspiring to see how much hope shines through. I am still moved to tears every time I read this book.

Having scored with his well-presented previous book "It's Nobody's Fault",Dr. Koplewicz, his collegues and a few famous friends are back with a moving and powerful book of art and expression that deserves to be displayed on any coffee table. With thoughtful insight on the topic of mental health coming from notables such as NBC's Katie Couric and Whoopi Goldberg, to the average teenager who has expressed his or her pain and thoughts through art, the book presents their story in a tastefull collection. The meaning behind this book paints a picture that should should not go unnoticed-the treatment of mental health among our youth. Pick up this book for just one moment, and you are sure to be moved.

Through art, the reader learns and experiences aspects of mental illness. The young artists give great insight into their pain yet the overall message is hope. Outstanding effort by all.

As a child psychiatrist, I struggle on a daily basis to gain access to the psychological lives of the young patients I treat. Childhood Revealed offered me the unique opportunity to share in the emotional experiences of the courageous children who contributed their surprisingly honest words and remarkably beautiful artwork. I would recommend this inspirational book to anyone who is curious about the inner lives of children, as well as to anyone who is interested in how mental illness impacts child development, self-image, and self-esteem.

I found this book a few years ago in my local library, when I was 13 or 14. It stuck in my mind, and now an Early Childhood Ed. student, it was brought back to me when I was faced with a research assignment. An amazing book - The age of children spanning from 4 - 18, and Art works with a variety of themes and a variety of differences in the children. One of my lecturers commented in a class not involved with my research that she had never seen a book so beautifully put together of children's art. It was definately worth the wait, the price was great, considering it wasn't available in Australia, and the shipping reasonable. It definately helped me, and will continue on to be an amazing coffee table book after my studies!

As the Editor in Chief of Parents magazine I have no hesitation in recommending Childhood Revealed. It is an incredibly beautiful and moving book and it should be read by all parents. Dr Koplewicz has provided a rare glimpse into the hearts and minds of children and teenagers struggling with psychiatric illness. The book is an important reminder of our responsibility to the 10 million children and their families who need our support and understanding.

Childhood Revealed gives parents an opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of their children by demonstrating the variety of feelings that can be expressed with a picture. I found both the message and diagnosis to be thought provoking and illustrative of the level of attention and understanding our children need.

Sure the images are quite beautiful and the information is compelling in this book. It would look really great on your coffee table, the color reproductions are excellent. However, selling the art of children with mental illness and trauma and other serious problems does bring up some questions about ethics. And why were not the therapists who gathered the work for these "editors" not given more credit for their contributions (they were only listed in the back, as if they were a sidebar when indeed their efforts made this book happen). It seems that only the authors came out ahead in this endeavor, both through publicity and royalties.
I am wondering if these authors will next be capitalizing on the art of children who witnessed the WTC terrorist attacks. Seems like a logical follow-up to this book, although I hope they have the morals to handle the material in a less sensational, self-serving way.

The images in this book are very moving and the stories are poignant. But the reader is left to wonder-- is it really in the children's best interest to have their stories and images laid out in a coffee table book? Children do not understand informed consent and the use of their images, which are treated for the most part sensitively, so one is left considering the question, how or were their rights addressed in using their artwork in this way? I think this book is worth the purchase, I am, however, wondering what the authors' agenda was in getting it published.