Rating: 
Summary: IT WORKS!
Review: If you don't want to fall into the yelling and spanking routine so many of us knew as children, this is a great book to read. It details how good and bad behaviors start, how to begin at birth to know your child so they will feel safe and respected. The most captivating section for me was to see the difference in what happens when you respond to your baby's cries and when you don't. Many people think you are teaching your child the good lesson of self-reliance when you don't respond, but you are really teaching your child not to trust you. This book was really what I was searching for -- the guidebook for the technique I knew in my heart to be how I wanted to raise our children. Before reading this book, I was already implementing much of what it outlines, but I needed the specifics. It helps to read this book while your child is young because if you can get started right, it is easier to guide your children. However, if you are having trouble with an older unconnected child, there are strategies for you, too. An easy read and a logical explanation of its ideals.
Rating: 
Summary: Author appears to be extremely sexist and classist.
Review: While much of the advice in this book is quite useful, it is difficult to get beyond the author's outdated views of gender roles within the parenting relationship. The author bases theories and notions on the assumption that mothers stay at home and take primary responsibility for care of the child. This book completely ignores the economic realities of most american families, as well as the desire or more and more fathers to take an active role in their child's life. The author writes to an all white, all middle class, all traditional gender roles audience, which is not the reality for most of us.
Rating:
Summary: An indispensable guide for parents
Review: What a treasure trove of information! The authors write clearly, with a warmth and credibility I've seldom seen matched in other parenting tomes. It isn't just academic training that uniquely qualifies William & Martha Sears to write on the subject of parenting, although they're pretty impressive (he's a Harvard-trained pediatrician who's been in practice for over 20 years and is a faculty member at the USC School of Medicine and she's a R.N., certified childbirth instructor and lactation consultant). They're also the parents of eight children. These guys have been right there in the trenches! They've had 8 opportunities to ascertain what works and what doesn't and they've done a wonderful job of putting it all together in their book. There has never been a discipline challenge I've either personally encountered or heard about that hasn't been addressed. It's an incredibly thorough reference. In the beginning, the emphasis is on helping the child forge a secure attachment to his parents through attachment parenting. The authors explain how a secure parent-child bond is the basis for later discipline, giving many illustrative examples from their own experience. The most outstanding aspect of this book is the Searses' ability to provide a window into your child's mind as he hurtles from one developmental stage to another. It's so helpful to be able to stay one step ahead of your child! Understanding how your child thinks makes you become much more patient and competent. And once you understand, the book gives you a huge number of suggestions on how to correct all kinds of undesirable behavior ranging from tantrums in every conceivable scenario to bad language and more. There are even tips on facilitating tooth brushing and face washing! When I was done reading this book, I realized how much my range of disciplinary options had expanded. Being a mom has definitely become more enjoyable for me. Whatever your parenting style, this book is a definite must-have. The Baby Book by the ! same authors is another fantastic reference to have on hand.
Rating:
Summary: A book for parents who want to stay connected to their child
Review: This book is an excellent book for the parent who desires to stay connected to his child while disciplining... as parents so many of our discipline methods are punitive...Dr. Sears along with his wife describes techniques to use that show respect for the child while correcting, eliminating and or preventing the undesirable behavior. The Sear's stress the importance of staying connected to one's child in order to know the child better. In doing so we are able to better discipline. I have used many of the techniques with my own children with wonderfully postive results..This book has helped to become a much better parent and my two daughters better behaved and a joy to be around. I can't recommend this book highly enough. Dr. Sears knows his stuff... Sherry
Rating:
Summary: Could be helpful in certain situations.
Review: We bought this book because the reviews called it "essential" but we found it to be useless when we tried to put its ideas into practice. The authors do detail problems and offer solutions but their advice is actually quite vague. We bought the book to try to get some help but following the advice in the book just made us frustrated. They don't have suggestions for people like us, whose discipline issues aren't as pat as those in the book. For parents who are starting out, this might be a helpful book to read but for us, whose problems are more established, the book really wasn't any help at all.
Rating:
Summary: Such a wonderful reference for such a wonderful book!
Review: My husband and I purchased this book when it first came out. We were skeptical at first, but soon came to realize that Dr. Sears' ideas hit the nail on the head. He is so caring for children and reminds us that discipline is a life long teaching not just a "please the parents now" theory. We hope that we can raise caring and nurturing parents for our future grandchildren.
Rating:
Summary: Not for children under 1
Review: Our child's under one, and just getting to the discipline stage. There's nothing for a child under age one, unless you want to be told the value of attachment parenting (which I do not believe in). I've got a successful "Baby Whisperer" child so far. I'm keeping the book (I got it as a gift), but only because when I skipped around, it seemed to have some advice we might find useful when our child's older. If I hadn't have gotten it as a gift, I wouldn't have bought it because of the attachment philosophy, but I'm new to the world of discipline techniques so I'll keep it.
Rating: 
Summary: I really disliked this book . . .
Review: I have to agree with the negative views posted here. I wanted to add my review to help balance out the numerous positive reviews. I too consider myself an "attached" parent - I nursed both my girls for at least one year each (while working full time) and work very hard to be an effective parent even though I'm not home with them every day. As other reviewers have said, this book does the attached parenting thing to death. It more than implies that if you're an attached parent, you'll simply know what it is your child wants or needs and if you don't know, you must not really be an "attached" parent. In my experience, that isn't reasonable - no matter how good a parent you are, there are times when you simply aren't going to understand what your child wants. That's ok! The real world does not revolve around our little darlings, no matter how much we'd like it to. The advice to simply and gently "redirect" a toddler from something he or she wants is totally laughable if you have a toddler like I did who does not understand the subtlety of a gentle redirection! In the real world, children need both negative and positive reinforcement to learn right from wrong and safe from unsafe. This book misses the mark by a mile in that respect.
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Summary: Attatchement Parenting is ridiculous!
Review: First of all I have to ask, what is it about attatchment parenting that all these parents are buying into?? I read some of this book because a friend recommended it. My friend has a 2 year old that still does not sleep during the night and usually sleeps with them. Well, until the husband has had enough and can't sleep then moves to the other bedroom. Sorry but shouldn't you be putting your marraige first? Teaching your children that they are the center of the universe creates children who can't put themselves to sleep at night or they have a hard time learning to feel comfortable and safe when their parents aren't holding them all the time or the child screams and cries because you walked out the door for one second to throw the trash out! So I guess the parenting I use is the same as my parents used and grandparents used and we all seem to be fine and working properly in society. My Dad spanked me on occasion and it didn't damage my psychey one bit. My little girl is 2 and she plays by herself nicely when I need her to (like when I am trying to get dinner ready etc.) she is a joy for everyone to be around and she does not throw temper tantrums. I truly think any parent can have that but I highly doubt you will get that using Dr. Sears methods. From what I have seen it has turned children into selfish brats and their parents say it is just a phase! Come on parents, YOU are the parent you do not have to bow down to the demands of a two year old child. Set some boundaries and you and your child will be much happier for it!
Rating: 
Summary: Disapointed, Not enough techniques or new ideas
Review: I loved Dr. Sears massive tomb of a baby book so when my daughter started walking and I needed help with discipline I immediatly chose Dr. Sears' book. I was very disapointed.
I can sum up the book in a sentence. If your child is "attachment parented" then they will be good. (oh and don't spank)
Well my child was attachment parented and she still slaps me across the face. She is 2 so she doesn't understand timeouts, redirecting works with some things but not others, and positive reinforcement is a slow slow process.
I suggest that you buy Sears' Baby Book and stear clear of this one. The baby book will give you a chapter or so on his discipline ideas.
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