The Idle Parent: Why Less Means More When Raising Kids - Hardcover

Hodgkinson, Tom

3.68

1,224 ratings by Goodreads

9780241143735: The Idle Parent: Why Less Means More When Raising Kids

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 024114373X ISBN 13: 9780241143735

Publisher: Hamish Hamilton, 2009

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In The Idle Parent Tom Hodgkinson provides a revolutionary and wholly sensible approach to childcare, based on the idea of D.H. Lawrence and many others that the best thing we can do for children is to leave them alone.

Of course, this doesn't mean that we should completely neglect them, but rather that we should provide them with the space and time to grow up self-reliant, confident, happy and free. To do so we need to stop worrying and start nurturing the natural instincts towards creativity and independence in every child. And in so doing we will find ourselves becoming happier and better parents.

This is the perfect guide for anyone grappling with parenthood and wondering why the existing manuals are so dispiriting.

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Review:

'Wise, funny, practical and personal, The Idle Parent puts the fun back into parenting.'

From the Back Cover:

Modern life is wrecking childhood.
Why can't we just leave our kids alone?

If you've ever wondered why so many of today's children are unhappy, spoilt, stressed and selfish, then the answers and the remedy are to be found in The Idle Parent.

Tom Hodgkinson wants us to leave our kids be, to give them the space and time to grow into self-reliant, confident, inquisitive, happy and free people. Full of practical tips of what to do and (more importantly) what not to do, Tom will not only help your kids be happier, but also help you, their parents, live happier and more fulfilled lives.

'Wise, practical, funny, personal, it will make you a much better parent' Oliver James

'An inspiring book, genuinely subversive. Time to put away "silly adult things" and embrace childhood in all its messy glory' London Lite

'A recipe for bright, happy people with need of neither television nor shrink. Who could ask for more?' Evening Standard

'An original, thought-provoking book' Toby Young, Mail on Sunday

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