Against Terrible Odds: Lessons in Resilience from Our Children - Softcover

Saul Levine; Heather Wood Ion

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0923521488 ISBN 13: 9780923521486

Publisher: Bull Publishing Company, 2001

Synopsis

The media thrives on stories of children at risk, and conventional wisdom relegates such children to failure. Challenging these characterizations, the authors show how 12 traumatized children developed into productive, caring, and responsible adults.

About this title

Synopsis:

"Against Terrible Odds" is an exploration of resilience, the capacity in every child to overcome his or her traumatic experiences. We are introduced to the lives of children who have lived through the horrors of war, incest, poverty, and racism, yet have become successful and thriving adult human beings. The media thrives on stories of children at risk, whose early years have been marked by the brutality, suffering, abuse, and trauma which tabloid journalism has made into daily headlines. They are labelled victims and then relegated to failure because it is believed such children could not possibly rise beyond their circumstance. Everyone is saddened by these stories, but we accept them as part of the fabric of social disintegration.But, what if the stories are not all sad? What if there are stories of children, like the ones in this book, who found many different ways to transcend their years of suffering, using a variety of resources, and ultimately prevailing against the odds.

Organised very simply around a five themes - War, Affliction, Trauma, Poverty, and Prejudice, the book pursues a simple idea - we can all learn from, and be inspired by, the most unlikely heroes who have made a difference as individuals.

About the Author:

Saul Levine, MD, is the author of four books and numerous professional articles. He is the director of psychiatry and behavioral science programs at Children's Hospital in San Diego. Heather Wood Ion is a writer, cultural anthropologist, and bioethicist. She is a consultant and frequent speaker on improved health care delivery systems.

About this edition

• Publisher: Bull Publishing Company
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0923521488
• ISBN 13: 9780923521486
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 300