The Geography of Childhood

Rating:
Summary: Praise for "The Geography of Childhood"
Review: "Two of America's great natural history writers have collaborated on a much-needed exploration of children's need for wild places....This is a great book."--Books of the Big Outside

"'The Geography of Childhood' is neither doomsday tract nor polemic, but rather an excursion into the natural world that rekindles our attachment to animals, birds, plants, open spaces and the earth. It will connect parents with the precious resource of their children's relationship to living things, while raising consciousness of what may be missing in our own lives."--Salt Lake Tribune

"A sensitive examination of what a relationship to nature can mean for children in the post-industrial age."--Boston Book Review

"['The Geography of Childhood'] clarifies and enlivens our reflections not just on children and habitats but also on science, education, parenthood, gender studies and much else."--Calgary Herald

"[Nabhan and Trimble] define in clear prose why children need contact with 'the wild' for full development of their understanding of the spaces in which we live....A thoughtful and thought provoking book that should appeal to parents and teachers everywhere."--Books of the Southwest

Rating:
Summary: interesting, pretty pictures, but blah
Review: As the reader breebree mentioned, it is more of a reflection and definitely not a guide to parenting. I found this book to have interesting insights as the authors thought back to their childhoods with a different perspective, and observed the reactions of their children and those of others to their landscape. There were a bunch of cute little nostalgic tales but not a lot of impact. There are messages in there, but they're diffuse. I wish they had put more emphasis on their points or otherwise offered a more concrete discussion than just offering personal examples, muse a bit, and leave it there. It gave enough perspective to discuss our childhoods in small groups but beyond that I didn't find much use for this book.

I was even more disappointed when I discovered that many of Nabhan's stories were presented in Cultures of Habitiat, a book tat was printed later but I had read first.

This is a rambling, musing, anecdotal, diffusely reflective book. Not my cup of tea.

Rating:
Summary: I loved it!
Review: At first glance, this book seems to be another in a long line of published material telling parents how to be good parents. But it really seemed like a personal reflection of what makes life great through a child's eyes. Instead of trying to raise a child through adult methods, this book shows that through simply remembering what being a child was and why it was fun is enough to help you understand what your child is thinking. Through this understanding, you will become a great parent. I was very pleased with my purchase and recommend this book to anyone that has had any contact with children.

Rating:
Summary: I loved it!
Review: At first glance, this book seems to be another in a long line of published material telling parents how to be good parents. But it really seemed like a personal reflection of what makes life great through a child's eyes. Instead of trying to raise a child through adult methods, this book shows that through simply remembering what being a child was and why it was fun is enough to help you understand what your child is thinking. Through this understanding, you will become a great parent. I was very pleased with my purchase and recommend this book to anyone that has had any contact with children.

Rating:
Summary: The landscape through a child's eyes
Review: Gary Nabhan and Stephen Trimble have penned a fine collection of essays on how children perceive and play in their environment. References are made to psychological studies that support a child's need for wild places, but the real value I see in this book comes from the authors' own anecdotal experiences with their children. If you are a parent of small children, you will especially enjoy the ideas you will get for places to take children to play and explore. Read this book and you will begin to learn why children need to experience wild places. And why, as adults, if we share the "hands-on" experiences with our kids, our own connection to the landscape becomes more deeply rooted.

Rating:
Summary: The landscape through a child's eyes
Review: Gary Nabhan and Stephen Trimble have penned a fine collection of essays on how children perceive and play in their environment. References are made to psychological studies that support a child's need for wild places, but the real value I see in this book comes from the authors' own anecdotal experiences with their children. If you are a parent of small children, you will especially enjoy the ideas you will get for places to take children to play and explore. Read this book and you will begin to learn why children need to experience wild places. And why, as adults, if we share the "hands-on" experiences with our kids, our own connection to the landscape becomes more deeply rooted.

Rating:
Summary: About "The Geography of Childhood"
Review: In this unique collaboration, naturalists Gary Nabhan and Stephen Trimble investigate how children come to care deeply about the natural world. They ask searching questions about what may happen to children denied exposure to wild places--a reality for more children today than at any time in human history. Teresa Jordan, author of "Riding the White Horse Home, hails "The Geography of Childhood" as a "passionate book, filled with the love of two fathers who know how to listen to children--their own and others--and to the earth. Every parent, every person should read it."