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Parenting, Inc.
 
 

Parenting, Inc. (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "Keen to start off on the right bootie, you make sure to register at Babies "R" Us, your local baby emporium, Babycenter.com, or all three..." (more)
Key Phrases: pump station, parenting industry, baby signing, Baby Einstein, United States, New York (more...)
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)

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Parenting, Inc. + Baby Bargains, 8th Edition: Secrets to Saving 20% to 50% on Baby Furniture, Gear, Clothes, Toys, Maternity Wear and Much, Much More!

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Paul (Pornified: How Pornography Is Damaging Our Lives, Our Relationships, and Our Families), mother of two, probes the business of parenting, exposing the high price of raising kids in our consumer-driven nation. Paul points out that it costs upwards of a million dollars to raise a child in the U.S. these days, especially if one buys into the theory that baby must have everything on the market. Following the money, Paul dissects the booming baby business, including smart toys that don't really make kids smarter, themed baby showers and parenting coaches and consultants. The text is a tireless rundown of parents' seemingly bottomless pocketbooks when it comes to bringing up baby, and according to Paul this is not just an upscale, cosmopolitan phenomenon—throughout the country parents are reaching deep into their pockets to fuel this spiraling craze. Though Paul incorporates the pithy quotes of a number of experts, such as psychologist David Elkind's observation, Computers are part of our environment, but so are microwaves and we don't put them in cribs, readers may find themselves wishing for more commentary and less litany. But Paul isn't preachy, although she does reveal that what babies really need is holding, singing, dancing, conversation and outdoor play. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.


Review

"Like Judith Warner's Perfect Madness, this sine qua non for new parents is highly recommended." -- Library Journal

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Times Books (April 1, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0805082492
  • ISBN-13: 978-0805082494
  • Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #598,096 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

More About the Author

Pamela Paul
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Customer Reviews

13 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (13 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars You don't need an $800 stroller., April 2, 2008
Do they have bugaboo strollers where you live? They've hit New York like an invasion of cockroaches -- $800 cockroaches in artfully named colors like "mocha" and "timbre". Ten years ago you couldn't have spent $800 on a stroller if you had tried, but by 2005 or 2006 they had become the norm in many communities.

This book tackles the question of how this happened. Why do parents think that they need an $800 stroller? Why do they think their kids should watch "Baby Einstein" videos? Does the baby really need $80 face cream? Bugaboo strollers are treated in particular detail, with their initial marketing plan and the response by consumers dissected in fascinating detail.

My favorite chapters talked about the companies that supply this stuff -- from entrepreneurs (especially moms) who had a good idea and are looking to turn it into a profit, to the most cynical and crass corporate marketing machines. Many of the products discussed in the book may harm children, but the companies that sell them spend millions of dollars convincing parents that their children will be somehow at risk without them.

Modern society has weakened the extended families and tight-knit communities that once played an important role in the raising of children. Many parents have no good source for advice about the baby that is about to arrive, or has just arrived. Corporations have gleefully filled the void, and neither the kids nor the parents benefit from this.

To be clear -- this book is even-handed, and where Paul sees value in a good or service, she gives detailed credit to the people responsible. Her discussions of the bad stuff are, for me anyway, more fun to read.

I loved the book. About the only thing I wanted more of was the discussion of "kids as fashion items," where toddlers are dressed in expensive clothes and paraded about by egocentric parents. I still do not understand why people do such things.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Sobering look at raising kids, April 26, 2008
By S. D. Haltzman (Rhode Island) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Pamela Paul, who has written lucidly and piercingly about other issues in American culture, here examines the money and mentality of raising children. She begins by discussing baby sign language, and, right away I thought about the choices I made for my children. I never did get around to teaching my kids sign language, I didn't buy the most expensive cribs or cradles. Did I screw up?? Did I damage my children? Paul reassures me that, no, my kids will do just fine, thank you.
This book is interesting from a sociologic perspective. But it's also practical. I think that any new parent (or parent of a pregnant child) should read it to get a clearer vision on what children "must" have, and what children truly need.
The bottom line: children need more of what money can't buy. And if you spend less time going out to earn the money, maybe you'll be home more to give your kids what they need: you!
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15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Right on the money! , April 4, 2008
By Holly Gordon (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This book finally puts into words what I (and so many others) have been thinking. When did having a baby necessitate a seemingly endless shopping list of 'must buy' consumer goods? And it doesn't stop after infancy. Rather the pressure to over-educate, over-stimulate, and over-indulge in some communities seems to ramp up apace with a child's growth chart. Paul puts all this spending in perspective and offers some context to what has become a multi-million dollar industry: pampering the under 5's. When there are children starving around the world, such excess seems all the more out of whack. Pamela Paul gives you the facts in an anecdote-filled, interesting and comprehensive way. It's up to you to come to your own conclusions. The best kind of zeitgeist journalism.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Right on, with a few caveats
As many have remarked, the author does an excellent job of pointing out the absurdities of our current child-centered age. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Shannon Chamberlain

3.0 out of 5 stars Worrisome information on carseat
I'll say right up front, I didn't read the whole book. I flipped through it at the library while my daughter was looking for books. Read more
Published 4 months ago by leighann

3.0 out of 5 stars Parenting Gone Crazy
Anyone who has been a parent for more than a few years has probably noticed a change in style among many of today's new parents: a more anxious, urgent, competitive, and... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Carl Orr

4.0 out of 5 stars Get past the intro...
This book came to me highly recommended, and frankly - I agree with its title, subtitle and all of the precepts it puts forth. Read more
Published 16 months ago by R. Russell

4.0 out of 5 stars Parenting, Inc
I read this book from the perspective of a first-time grandfather of a toddler. I expected a number of changes in the art, science, and practice of parenting in the generation... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Michael Fulda

5.0 out of 5 stars Parenting,Plus
Pamela Paul captures the culture of commercialism for child-rearing.The anxieties of being a parent have been capitalized on by manufacturers; and, parents are distracted from the... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Ms. Natalie Garfield

5.0 out of 5 stars Chose your role models carefully
I think author Pamela Paul was brave to go up against "Big Baby" (her phrase not mine) and argue against Baby Einstein or buying fancy car seats, for example. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Susan Kappelstein

1.0 out of 5 stars This book is such a great topic, too bad it fell short. Not as good as it could have been!
After the first few pages the author lost her outrage and personal voice.

Without the author using a more personal voice it reads like she just fell into line with... Read more
Published 19 months ago by ma2one

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read!
For anyone who has kids, is thinking about having kids, or has even watched friends and relatives going through the pressure of parenting, this is a fascinating read. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Nicholas Weiss

5.0 out of 5 stars Aha! Moment for Grandma
Now i get it! This book is a must-read for grandparents who have been observing strange things going on in the world of parenting. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Debra Stern

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