A solid, scientifically based method for confronting behavior problems with loving, consistent discipline.
Davis uses behavioral science theory and a smattering of Scripture verses to highlight useful, effective parenting techniques.
The perfect parent of the book’s title is a reference to God, the Father of all creation, whose approach to discipline has been proven through years of behavioral research, according to Davis (101 Self-Defense Techniques of Kung Fu, 1993). However, Davis, a Christian, doesn’t advocate that parents rely entirely on prayer and the grace of God to manage their children’s behavior. Rather, he uses biblical references to reinforce the idea that parents have an inherent obligation to properly discipline their children—and to do so with love. He opens with a brief history of what he sees as governmental, educational and social failures that have conspired to ruin growing children. The best hope for combatting the forces of a permissive, evil-filled society, he writes, is to educate parents about advancements in discipline and child development. He asserts that understanding the science of behavior is essential for identifying its underlying causes. Parents can then eliminate their children’s undesirable actions by using a wide range of methods and applications called “positive behavior support.” Davis rightfully notes that each child is different, each family is different, and what might work for some children may not necessarily work for others. Later chapters outline each technique’s specifics, including vignettes that describe a particular child and behavior, how a technique was applied, and the successful outcome. Davis is mindful that some children’s behavior may stem from an additional psychological or biological cause, and he gives brief outlines of the more common disorders, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, conduct disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and oppositional defiant disorder. The chapters that outline specific steps for creating a child’s behavior plan are particularly helpful, and emphasize the need to coordinate efforts with spouses, educators and other family members. The final chapters provide additional vignettes that serve as behavior management case studies.
A solid, scientifically based method for confronting behavior problems with loving, consistent discipline.Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0988508507
Page Count: 290
Publisher: Dr. Scott Davis
Review Posted Online: April 2, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An autobiography as toxic and addictive as any drug its author has ever ingested.
The legendary booze-addled metal rocker turned reality-TV star comes clean in his tell-all autobiography.
Although brought up in the bleak British factory town of Aston, John “Ozzy” Osbourne’s tragicomic rags-to-riches tale is somehow quintessentially American. It’s an epic dream/nightmare that takes him from Winson Green prison in 1966 to a presidential dinner with George W. Bush in 2004. Tracing his adult life from petty thief and slaughterhouse worker to rock star, Osbourne’s first-person slang-and-expletive-driven style comes off like he’s casually relating his story while knocking back pints at the pub. “What you read here,” he writes, “is what dribbled out of the jelly I call my brain when I asked it for my life story.” During the late 1960s his transformation from inept shoplifter to notorious Black Sabbath frontman was unlikely enough. In fact, the band got its first paying gigs by waiting outside concert venues hoping the regularly scheduled act wouldn’t show. After a few years, Osbourne and his bandmates were touring America and becoming millionaires from their riff-heavy doom music. As expected, with success came personal excess and inevitable alienation from the other members of the group. But as a solo performer, Osbourne’s predilection for guns, drink, drugs, near-death experiences, cruelty to animals and relieving himself in public soon became the stuff of legend. His most infamous exploits—biting the head off a bat and accidentally urinating on the Alamo—are addressed, but they seem tame compared to other dark moments of his checkered past: nearly killing his wife Sharon during an alcohol-induced blackout, waking up after a bender in the middle of a busy highway, burning down his backyard, etc. Osbourne is confessional to a fault, jeopardizing his demonic-rocker reputation with glib remarks about his love for Paul McCartney and Robin Williams. The most distinguishing feature of the book is the staggering chapter-by-chapter accumulation of drunken mishaps, bodily dysfunctions and drug-induced mayhem over a 40-plus-year career—a résumé of anti-social atrocities comparable to any of rock ’n’ roll’s most reckless outlaws.
An autobiography as toxic and addictive as any drug its author has ever ingested.Pub Date: Jan. 25, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-446-56989-7
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2009
BOOK REVIEW
IN THE NEWS
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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