When the Bough Breaks: The Cost of Neglecting Our Children [Hardcover]

Sylvia Ann Hewlett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1991

An analysis of how the United States has fallen far behind other countries in its commitment to children challenges the government for spending five times more for the elderly than for children. Reprint. National ad/promo.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Hewlett seeks to arouse the government and the public to action with this powerful, solidly documented study, a BOMC alternate in cloth, of America's neglect of its children.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Hewlett, an economist, consultant, lecturer, and a volunteer with homeless children, has produced a powerful, extensively researched and often shocking book that explores the plight of a vast number of our children today. She delves into a multitude of problems--substance abuse, emotional instability, and broken homes--that contribute to parental and public neglect. Hewlett also outlines ways society can help to rectify the situation, including educational reform, changes in workplace, and government policies. The author's "no holds barred" approach to the harsh reality of neglect stirs the emotions and will no doubt cause public reaction. This book will be of great interest to professionals and general readers, as it is a well-documented, compelling study that fully analyzes a nationwide problem.
- Jo-Anne Mary Benson, Osgoode, Ontario
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 346 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books; First Edition edition (June 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0465091652
• ISBN-13: 978-0465091652
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,485,641 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sylvia Ann Hewlett is an economist and the founding President of the Center for Work-Life Policy, a non-profit think tank where she chairs the "Hidden Brain Drain," a task force of 67 global companies committed to global talent innovation. She also directs the Gender and Policy Program at the School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University. Dr. Hewlett is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the World Economic Forum Council on Women's Empowerment. She is the author of nine Harvard Business Review articles and 11 critically acclaimed nonfiction books including "Off-Ramps and On-Ramps" and "Winning the War for Talent in Emerging Markets" (Harvard Business Press). Her writings have appeared in the New York Times, the Financial Times, Foreign Affairs, and the International Herald Tribune, and she is a featured blogger on Harvard Business Online and Forbes. In 2011 she received the Isabel Benham Award from the Women's Bond Club and Woman of the Year Award from the Financial Women's Association. She is a frequent guest on television, appearing on Oprah, Newshour with Jim Lehrer, Charlie Rose, the Today Show and CNN headline News. Hewlett has taught at Cambridge, Columbia and Princeton universities. A Kennedy Scholar and graduate of Cambridge University, she earned her PhD in economics at London University.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What an eye opener!, November 30, 2005

By 

Amy Leone (PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: When the Bough Breaks: The Cost of Neglecting Our Children (Paperback)

One of the things I like about this book is that instead of diminishing the role of men it points out their importance. It also shows government policies can make a big difference in the lives of children. It is full of shocking statistics. Did you know that 27% of kids don't graduate high school? That Medicare will pay for an 80 year old man to have bypass surgery while a poor woman cannot get free prenatal care? That if a pregnant women seeks treatment for drug addiction it is not easily available? However, once children are born prematurely or drug-addicted, society picks up a huge tab for that. Read this book and find out why and what changes the author recommends. Truly a remarkable contribution.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book, though a little dated, July 9, 2005

By 

Paul M. Day (Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: When the Bough Breaks: The Cost of Neglecting Our Children (Paperback)

Sylvia Ann Hewlett is one of the few economists concerned with this topic. This, along with her book "The War on Families", frame the issues quite well. Read both books for the entire perspective, since this book is older... But the problems remain...

Her idea that American families suffer from both a Time Deficit and a Resource Defict is one I still use in explaining these issues. Those twin deficits are still around today, and no one seems to address them. The increasing working hours and declining social services are not current political issues... We can add to that the increasing dependence on duel incomes: where both parents HAVE to work to make what they could in previous generations.

I suggest reading these books along with Neal Postman's "The Disapperance of Childhood". That book goes into the origins of childhood and how the creation of the mass media and institutionalization threatens it.