Personal Child

When foster carer Cathy Glass is asked to foster Darcy-May, a two-day-old baby, she is very concerned. The baby is coming to her straight from the hospital and will have no contact with her teenage mother, Haylea. Even more worrying, she will be brought to Cathy with a police escort, as it’s vital her extended family don't know where she is.

Aged nine Joss came home from school to discover her father's suicide. She's never got over it. This is the true story of Joss, 13, who is angry and out of control. At the age of nine, Joss finds her father's dead body. He has committed suicide. Then more recently her mother remarries, and Joss bitterly resents her stepfather, who abuses her mentally and physically.

In The Gardener and the Carpenter, pioneering developmental psychologist and philosopher Alison Gopnik argues that the familiar 21st-century picture of parents and children is profoundly wrong - it's not just based on bad science, it's bad for kids and parents, too. Drawing on the study of human evolution and her own cutting-edge scientific research into how children learn, Gopnik shows that although caring for children is profoundly important, it is not a matter of shaping them to turn out a particular way.

Being a parent is usually all about giving of yourself to foster your child's growth and development. But what happens when this isn't the case? Some parents dismiss the needs of their children, asserting their own instead, demanding attention and reassurance from even very young children. This may especially be the case when a parent has narcissistic tendencies or narcissistic personality disorder.

We all know that parenting can be one of the most rewarding experiences in the life of anybody. Parenting an ADHD child without the proper knowledge and tools, on the contrary, can be a nightmare. We need to shift our perception of ADHD, probably the most misunderstood and mishandled syndrome.

Although having Asperger syndrome (AS) can make romantic relations difficult, having a fulfilling relationship with an Asperger man is certainly not impossible. A woman in love with a man with AS may interpret his difficulties with communication and socialisation as a lack of interest in the relationship. He may vacillate between being gentle and caring to seeming cold and distant. She may find his behaviour hard to understand, resulting in feelings of loneliness, isolation and confusion.

In The Formula: Unlocking the Secrets to Raising Highly Successful Children, Harvard economist Ronald Ferguson, named in a New York Times profile as the foremost expert on the US educational "achievement gap," along with award-winning journalist Tatsha Robertson, reveal an intriguing blueprint for helping children from all types of backgrounds become successful adults.

When a parent singles out a child for special privileges and attention, that child is often unaware that the relationship is unhealthy - even incestuous. As adults, these children struggle to feel validated, because while they have not been directly abused, they feel a sense of violation and crossed boundaries - usually done in the name of 'love' and 'caring'. The parent's love feels more confining than freeing, more demanding than giving, more intrusive than nurturing. Yet these children suffer from what psychologist Kenneth Adams calls The Silent Seduction.

Why do some children thrive and others struggle? The answers may surprise you. New research indicates that the seeds for adult success are actually planted in the toddler years. Dr. Tovah Klein's research and firsthand work with thousands of toddlers explains why the toddler brain is best suited to laying the foundation for success. Dr. Klein reveals the new science behind drivers such as resilience, self-reliance, self-regulation, and empathy that are more critical to success than simple intelligence.

The secret to raising the happiest kids in the world? Whatever it is, it's somewhere in the Netherlands. Kids in the US face lots of pressure to excel - often at the expense of happiness. But does it have to be this way? Not in the Netherlands! In The Happiest Kids in the World, expats Rina Mae Acosta and Michele Hutchison - both married to Dutchmen and bringing up their kids in the Netherlands - examine the unique environment that enables the Dutch to turn out such well-adjusted, independent children.

Trap Stilton is really trapped! He's caught in Count von Ratoff's castle and it's up to Geronimo to save him. Scamper alongside Geronimo on a journey through Transratania that is guaranteed to make your whiskers stand on end. Mice of all ages will enjoy this entertaining read.

Carson McCullers was all of 23 when she published her first novel, The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter. She became an overnight literary sensation, and soon such authors as Tennessee Williams were calling her "the greatest prose writer that the South [has] produced." The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter tells an unforgettable tale of moral isolation in a small southern mill town in the 1930s.

You love your mother, but she drives you crazy. She controls, criticizes, and butts into your life constantly. Then when you try and set boundaries, the pushback and resulting guilt are so bad you tell yourself...it's just not worth it. Is your mother narcissistic, borderline, or just plain difficult? Are you empathetic, sensitive, and kind? If so, chances are you have fallen into one or all of the hidden psychological traps that constitute the Good Daughter Syndrome.

Post-traumatic stress, anxiety, low self-esteem, substance abuse, depression, a lack of confidence, and many other mental and physical ailments may be a result of childhood trauma you have endured. Uncovering, accepting, and healing this childhood trauma will allow you to let go of the pain, releasing yourself from the guilt, shame, and self-destruction you have been living with. This book will provide you with tools and strategies to heal your childhood trauma allowing you to live fully.

Are you tired of yelling matches and feeling like you're losing control when your child acts out? Do you ever wish there was a pause button, so you could breathe and respond calmly to your child's outbursts? If so, "Anger Management for Parents with Kids 3-7" is the audiobook you need. This practical guide, grounded in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), will equip you with essential skills to transform tantrums into teachable moments—even if you've tried everything else.

Faber and King have tailored How to Talk’s tried-and-trusted communication strategies to some of the most challenging childhood moments. From tantrums to technology to talking to kids about tough topics, How to Talk When Kids Won’t Listen offers concrete strategies for these and many more difficult situations.

Just as sturdy scaffolding is necessary when erecting a building and will come down when the structure grows stable, good parenting provides children with steady and warm emotional nourishment on the path toward independence. Never-ending parental problem-solving and involvement can have the opposite effect, enabling fragility and anxiety over time.

In Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World, Kristen shares the ups and downs in her own family's journey of discovering why it's healthiest not to give one's kids everything. Teaching them the difference between "want" and "need" is the first step in the right direction. With many practical tips and anecdotes, she shares how to help kids become hardworking, fulfilled, and successful adults.

Dr. Bryson boils things down with authority, demystifying the issues in three distinct sections: an objective summary of the schools of thought on the topic, including commonly held pros and cons; a clear and concise primer on "What the Science Says"; and a bottom-line conclusion. When the science doesn't point clearly in one direction, she guides you to assess and apply the information in a way that's consistent with your family's principles and meets your child's unique needs.

In the hands of Sophocles, the master dramatist, the anguished tale of a man fated to kill his father and marry his mother retains its power to shock and move beyond any Freudian reference.