FOR THE LOVE OF CHILDREN: A Realistic Approach to Raising Your Child

Ford is a Reality Therapist and father of eight, Englund is a writer, and together, via ""a process of rapport and self-transcendence,"" they have cooked up this newfangled endorsement of the old verities--responsibility, discipline, work, play, and faith. Agreeing with Urie Bronfenbrenner, they knock television not only for what it encourages but for ""the behavior it prevents."" Upholding the importance of facing the consequence of one's actions and of recognition for work done, they give several standard illustrations. Not everything here is so easy to swallow; in emphasizing responsibility and independence, they suggest mighty early beginnings: ""The first month of a child's life is the crucial time for him to begin to learn the responsibility that comes from self-reliance.' In other words, let him cry until he really sounds desperate. The rest is a solid Glasser (Reality Therapy) diet of non-critical remarks and upright examples, plus some slippery comments on faith and a fine chapter on play. Italics for emphasis--too often--and little that hasn't been said before.