Raising Happy Children: A Parent's Guide [Paperback]

Javad H. Kashani (Author), Donna V. Mehregany (Author), Wesley D. Allan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 15, 1998

Happy Children Come from Happy Homes

This encyclopedic guide will help you to raise happy, confident, emotionally healthy children. Beginning with the basics of building a happy family, you'll learn that no matter what type of family unit you have (single-parent, blended family, traditional), you can provide the proper values and emotional stability that your child needs.
        
This book offers detailed instructions on dealing with every aspect of the psychological well-being of kids, from birth to adulthood, including:
Handling everyday issues on the playground, at school, and at home
Coping with and finding help for serious mental health problems
Setting a good example and fostering emotional security in your child

Discussions on specific entries give you both the general knowledge and the specific advice you need to help your child cope with a wide array of emotional problems. As indispensable as a first-aid manual, this invaluable resource will enable you to soothe the psychological cuts and bruises of growing up.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Raising Happy Children is a hefty compendium of parenting advice designed to give parents "quick hit" answers and information on every possible parenting subject. Through a multitude of bullet-point and numbered lists, the authors cover the gamut from abuse to bedwetting to hair pulling to potty training to violent behavior, and everything in between. The emphasis is on raising "happy" kids--that is, kids who are confident, emotionally healthy, and able to cope with a wide array of emotional problems. The team of authors is comprised primarily of child psychologists, and their psychological skills and bent are best expressed in the first section of the book, which focuses on parental happiness as the key to a successful family life (check out their stress reduction techniques). Throughout the book, the authors take a safe, fairly conservative perspective on child rearing, and too often they express opposing opinions (they don't condone spanking, yet give advice for parents who do, such as, "Do not spank your child more than once a day"). Still, this book provides a vast array of encapsulated advice, and will find a happy home with parents who need a solid, encyclopedic reference book. --Ericka Lutz

From Publishers Weekly

Many child-rearing books focus almost exclusively on children. Childhood mental-health professionals Kashani, Mehregany and Allan and writer Kelly base this densely packed, informative handbook on the novel premise that happy families begin with happy parents, however. The first chapter succinctly enumerates the traits of happy parents as well as "Mistakes that Create Family Unhappiness." Indeed this and the other chapters in Part One, "Laying the Groundwork for a Happy Family," form just as much a self-help and marital manual as a parenting guide, giving a profound new meaning to the term "family values." Part Two, "Parenting Wisely from Day to Day," offers wise advice on subjects ranging from building a child's self-esteem to limiting TV viewing and paying an allowance (which, the authors believe, should not be contingent on chores being done). Given that "almost one in every five adolescents is impaired with a psychiatric condition," parts three and four offer an encyclopedic listing of mental and familial disorders, along with information on dealing with mental-health workers and an extensive bibliography. This is a first-rate reference with a refreshing, healthy point of view.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press; 1 edition (December 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0609802097
• ISBN-13: 978-0609802090
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,305,412 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent review of pertinent topics in raising children, January 30, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Raising Happy Children: A Parent's Guide (Paperback)

the authors who are experienced child psychiatrists bring together medical aspects of children's behavior with practical and useful advice. the result is a highly readable book that belongs to every parent and clinician's reference shelf.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A reminder of the foundation of parenting and relationships., March 26, 1999

By 

Alicia D. Thompson, MD ([e-mail]) (Columbia, Missouri) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Raising Happy Children: A Parent's Guide (Paperback)

This book presents in an ease to read format numerous common sense and pracitcal principals that seem to have been lost with the disinegration of the family unit. It is a pleasure to read. Highlighted specific points will be easily remembered due to the author's caring appraisal of children, families and relationships. This book provides a smile and hope for anyone who is inovolved in the care of children.