Use this alphabetical index to find books that have been reviewed for the Harried Parent's Book Club.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J-L | M-N | O | P-Q | R | S | T | U-V | W-Z
Believe in My Child With Special Needs
Cover image courtesy of Brookes Publishing Co.
By Mary A. Falvey; 167 pages. Subtitle: Helping Children Achieve Their Potential in School.
Bottom Line: When it comes to inclusion, Falvey is a true believer, convinced that children with disabilities can and must learn with their non-disabled peers. She makes a compelling case, and it's gratifying to read a book that's so relentlessly upbeat about our children's abilities. If your district has made a true commitment to inclusion, this will be an invaluable resource. If not, it may just break your heart.
Bottom Line: When it comes to inclusion, Falvey is a true believer, convinced that children with disabilities can and must learn with their non-disabled peers. She makes a compelling case, and it's gratifying to read a book that's so relentlessly upbeat about our children's abilities. If your district has made a true commitment to inclusion, this will be an invaluable resource. If not, it may just break your heart.
Beyond Behavior Management
Cover image courtesy of PriceGrabber
By Jenna Bilmes; 258 pages. Subtitle: The Six Life Skills Children Need to Thrive in Today's World.
Bottom Line: This is a book written for early childhood teachers, and not intended as anything but. While teacher books are often of interest and service to parents, too, this one is pretty well tied to the classroom. It's interesting, hopeful reading, but without a lot of practical application for parents. The rating's purely a parent's perspective on a non-parenting book.
Bottom Line: This is a book written for early childhood teachers, and not intended as anything but. While teacher books are often of interest and service to parents, too, this one is pretty well tied to the classroom. It's interesting, hopeful reading, but without a lot of practical application for parents. The rating's purely a parent's perspective on a non-parenting book.
The Bipolar Child
Cover image courtesy of Random House
By Demitri Papolos, M.D., and Janice Papolos; 474 pages. Subtitle: The Definitive and Reassuring Guide to Childhood's Most Misunderstood Disorder.
Bottom Line:The classic book on early-onset bipolar disorder has added more than 22,000 words for its third edition, encompassing new treatments, new research, and new laws. Remaining the same is the reassuring, non-alarmist tone and practical advice about an often alarming and befuddling disorder. If you're looking to learn everything you can, it's a lifesaving resource.
Bottom Line:The classic book on early-onset bipolar disorder has added more than 22,000 words for its third edition, encompassing new treatments, new research, and new laws. Remaining the same is the reassuring, non-alarmist tone and practical advice about an often alarming and befuddling disorder. If you're looking to learn everything you can, it's a lifesaving resource.
The Bipolar Teen
Cover image courtesy of The Guilford Press
By David J. Miklowitz, Ph.D., and Elizabeth L. George, Ph.D.; 356 pages. Subtitle: What You Can Do to Help Your Child and Your Family.
Bottom Line: In many ways, teenagers are naturally bipolar, swinging from manic excitement to depression just as a normal expression of adolescent hormonal chaos. But if your teen swings more sharply and disastrously, a diagnosis of bipolar disorder may be appropriate. This comprehensive, accessible, and somehow upbeat book tells you how to get one and what to do with it -- at home, in the doctor's office, and at school.
Bottom Line: In many ways, teenagers are naturally bipolar, swinging from manic excitement to depression just as a normal expression of adolescent hormonal chaos. But if your teen swings more sharply and disastrously, a diagnosis of bipolar disorder may be appropriate. This comprehensive, accessible, and somehow upbeat book tells you how to get one and what to do with it -- at home, in the doctor's office, and at school.
Bipolar Kids: Helping Your Child Find Calm in the Mood Storm
Cover image courtesy of PriceGrabber
By Rosalie Greenberg, M.D.; 294 pages. From the Cover: "A child psychiatrist with twenty-five years' experience offers advice and understanding for parents of bipolar children."
Bottom Line:Call this The Bipolar Child-lite. It's shorter, more easy-going, informative but not overwhelming. That's great, if you need to ease into the subject, or just want more ideas and encouragement. But it's also light on nuts-and-bolts, nitty-gritty advice for those in the trenches. Still, there are worse ways to pass your time than swapping stories with an amiable and appreciative psychiatrist.
Bottom Line:Call this The Bipolar Child-lite. It's shorter, more easy-going, informative but not overwhelming. That's great, if you need to ease into the subject, or just want more ideas and encouragement. But it's also light on nuts-and-bolts, nitty-gritty advice for those in the trenches. Still, there are worse ways to pass your time than swapping stories with an amiable and appreciative psychiatrist.
Blue Sky July
Photo courtesy of New American Library
By Nia Wyn; 197 pages. Subtitle: A Mother's Story of Hope and Healing
Bottom Line: "When I hold it in my hands, I still remember the time the world seemed upside down to me, and it was a meditation, a kind of therapy." That's how Welsh writer Wyn describes this book, a chronical of the first seven years in the life of her son, Joe, who has severe cerebral palsy but nowhere near the gloom-and-doom life that was predicted for him. If you still remember those upside-down times or are going through them still, it may represent a comforting meditation for you as well.
Bottom Line: "When I hold it in my hands, I still remember the time the world seemed upside down to me, and it was a meditation, a kind of therapy." That's how Welsh writer Wyn describes this book, a chronical of the first seven years in the life of her son, Joe, who has severe cerebral palsy but nowhere near the gloom-and-doom life that was predicted for him. If you still remember those upside-down times or are going through them still, it may represent a comforting meditation for you as well.
Breaking Bread, Nourishing Connections
Cover image courtesy of Brookes Publishing Co.
By Karin Melberg Schwier & Erin Schwier Stewart; 280 pages. Subtitle: People With and Without Disabilities Together at Mealtime.
Bottom Line: While describing how mealtimes for people with disabilities can be more meaningful than just shoveling in food on schedule, this upbeat book details the important emotional element of eating together. It's about being part of a family, part of a relationship, part of a community -- things that are as important to humans, and as sustaining, as the physical act of eating.
Bottom Line: While describing how mealtimes for people with disabilities can be more meaningful than just shoveling in food on schedule, this upbeat book details the important emotional element of eating together. It's about being part of a family, part of a relationship, part of a community -- things that are as important to humans, and as sustaining, as the physical act of eating.
Breakthrough Parenting for Children With Special Needs
Cover image courtesy of Judy Winter
By Judy Winter; 258 pages. Subtitle: Raising the Bar of Expectations.
Bottom Line: Winter combines her talents for journalism and parenting in a book that is part inspiration, part how-to, and wholly optimistic about your family's survival as you take on the challenge of raising a child with special needs. It's a particularly useful guide to those just starting out on the journey of dealing with special needs, and hearing from everybody that it's too hard and their life is over and their situation is tragic. Breakthrough Parenting offers a much-needed antidote to all that gloom and doom.
Bottom Line: Winter combines her talents for journalism and parenting in a book that is part inspiration, part how-to, and wholly optimistic about your family's survival as you take on the challenge of raising a child with special needs. It's a particularly useful guide to those just starting out on the journey of dealing with special needs, and hearing from everybody that it's too hard and their life is over and their situation is tragic. Breakthrough Parenting offers a much-needed antidote to all that gloom and doom.
Brothers and Sisters: A Special Part of Exceptional Families
Cover image courtesy of Brookes Publishing Co.
By Peggy A. Gallagher, Thomas H. Powell and Cheryl A. Rhodes; 367 pages. From the Book Cover: "Brimming with inspiring personal stories, facts and wisdom from the literature, and practical advice, this book will help professionals and families understand and celebrate the special bond between siblings."
Bottom Line: There's no doubt that the needs of siblings of children with disabilities are many and undervalued, and a book that will help parents nurture and honor every one of their children is something we desperately require. This book isn't it, but it's a start, and one that offers food for thought.
Bottom Line: There's no doubt that the needs of siblings of children with disabilities are many and undervalued, and a book that will help parents nurture and honor every one of their children is something we desperately require. This book isn't it, but it's a start, and one that offers food for thought.
Building Bridges Through Sensory Integration
Cover image courtesy of PriceGrabber
By Ellen Yack, Shirley Sutton and Paula Aquilla; 208 pages. Subtitle: Therapy for Children With Autism and Other Pervasive Developmental Delays.
Bottom Line: Sensory integration problems can be a factor in many of the behaviors seen in kids with PDD, from hand flapping to perseveration to refusal of eye contact. Building Bridges focuses on the implications of SI for those on the autism spectrum, while providing an overview of sensory dysfunction that will be useful to any parent.
Bottom Line: Sensory integration problems can be a factor in many of the behaviors seen in kids with PDD, from hand flapping to perseveration to refusal of eye contact. Building Bridges focuses on the implications of SI for those on the autism spectrum, while providing an overview of sensory dysfunction that will be useful to any parent.
Building a Joyful Life With Your Child Who Has Special Needs
Cover image courtesy of Jessica Kingsley Publishers
By Nancy J. Whiteman and Linda Roan-Yager; 208 pages. From the Cover: "Provides strategies for parents to understand and accept their range of feelings, reframe painful thoughts, and find balance and personal meaning in their own lives while raising their child with special needs."
Bottom Line: You may have read books and completed questionnaires and written essays about how your child experiences things and what he or she needs to be happy and content. But when's the last time you figured those things out about yourself? This handy workbook is all about doing just that. Get a pencil.
Bottom Line: You may have read books and completed questionnaires and written essays about how your child experiences things and what he or she needs to be happy and content. But when's the last time you figured those things out about yourself? This handy workbook is all about doing just that. Get a pencil.
