Your Two-Year-Old: Terrible or Tender [Paperback]

Louise Bates Ames (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 15, 1980

Are two-year-olds really so terrible, or does the world have a slightly skewed view of this sometimes difficult, sometimes adorable lot? Drs. Ames and Ilg, recognized worldwide as authorities on child behavior and development, offer parents practical advice and enlightening psychological insights on children this age.
 
What are two-year-old girls and boys thinking and feeling? How do they see others around them? With humor and compassion, the authors describe the general characteristics of these complex toddlers: their physical growth trends, their emotional and psychological maturation. Also included are insights into how two-year-olds behave with family and other children, and advice on how to handle them, as well as tings to avoid.
 
Included in this book:
• A two-year-old’s view of the world—and himself
• Bath and dressing routines
• Sex differences
• Stories from real life
• A list of age-appropriate toys and books
• A bibliography for parents
 
“Louise Bates Ames and her colleagues synthesize a lifetime of observation of children, consultation, and discussion with parents. These books will help parents to better understand their children and will guide them through the fascinating and sometimes trying experiences of modern parenthood.”—Donald J. Cohen, M.D., Director, Yale Child Study Center, Irving B. Harris Professor of Child Psychiatry, Pediatrics, and Psychology, Yale School of Medicine

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Louise Bates Ames is a lecturer at the Yale Child Study Center and assistant professor emeritus at Yale University. She is co-founder of the Gesell Institute of Child Development and collaborator or co-author of three dozen or so books, including The First Five Years of Life, Infant and Child in the Culture of Today, Child Rorschach Responses, and the series Your One-Year-Old through Your Ten- to Fourteen-Year-Old. She has one child, three grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.
 
Frances L. Ilg wrote numerous books, including The Child from Five to Ten, Youth: The Years from Ten to Sixteen, and Child Behavior, before her death in 1981. She was also a co-founder of the Gesell Institute of Child Development at Yale.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Dell (July 15, 1980)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440506387
• ISBN-13: 978-0440506386
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.4 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,554 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful reference, May 24, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Your Two-Year-Old: Terrible or Tender (Paperback)

Yes, this series of books can be a bit out of date in places. But if the reader recognizes and accommodates that, these are still -- by far -- the best books of their kind on the market. Like the others in this series, this book addresses the timeless issues of appropriate developmental milestones, including cognitive abilities, interaction with others, attention span, language recognition, interpersonal relationships, etc.

The text is reasonably neutral and instructive on hot topics such as discipline, sleep habits, and diet.

We have found this series of books to be an outstanding resource. If you look in the back of the popular Doris Herman book about preschool, you will find that she does, too.

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dated but Succinct, Relevant & Nonjudgmental, March 3, 2004

By 

Oak Parker "safmom" (Oak Park, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Your Two-Year-Old: Terrible or Tender (Paperback)

This book is great at describing child behavior for this turbulent year. Its strength is in giving comfort to parents that they are probably doing a pretty good job. Yes, everyone tells you twos are hard, but this book spells out exactly how and why. Really leaves you with a sense of comfort that the spoiled egocentric behavior is not lifelong, but a necessary development.

The book does not claim to offer a solution or be the perfect expert (thank you!), but gives a few suggestions to parents to get through this period of development. I left my reading of it feeling much better about my parenting job.

Some of the language is dated (as are most classics), but I hang onto the statement, "every mother of a 2 1/2 year old needs plenty of breaks." Although one commentator questions the author's suggestion to limit choices at 2 1/2, she seems to limit that to this tough period where the child has a lot of new things happening. Limiting choices really helped in our case.

I recommend this book for any parent with a two year old.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent reference series, May 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Your Two-Year-Old: Terrible or Tender (Paperback)

This series of books (Your "X" Year Old) is a helpful reference for the parent. While in certain places the information seems dated or offbeat, generally the books are very helpful. They are at their best when recounting detailed observations of what "typical" two year olds say and do. Suggestions for "techniques" of getting through daily tasks with the two year old are helpful. A needed reassurance that neither you, nor your child, is abnormal.