Protecting the Gift : Keeping Children and Teenagers Safe (and Parents Sane)

Rating:
Summary: A book all parents should read
Review: Review: This is one book that EVERY parent should read. It not only gives you permission to take the necessary steps to protect your children, but it compells you to do so. Read it! And then read it again!!! You will have your eyes opened to what you can do to empower yourself and your children where their safety is concerned. At the very worst, you'll not be left with the agonising thought "If only I had done more" - by simply picking up this book and reading it you are doing more.


Rating:
Summary: If you want to protect your kids - this is the book to read
Review: I admit there were some aspects of this book that illicited a fair amount of fear, but don't let that stop you!! The main point being, once you are aware of the dangers you are better equiped to handle the situation should it arise. I love the fact that De Becker stressed the use of the parents INTUITION and empowered parents to ACT on thier intuition even if it may "seem" irrational. Because of this book I am able to talk to my kids effectively about staying safe and how to avoid having them walk around in a state of fear (stranger danger etc), but have them feel strong and confident enough to deal with a "worst case senario".

The information and research he presented about who the abusers are and how the pretators "prey" on children is something every parent should be aware of and its all here in this book.

Many parents get stuck in the "it wouldn't happen to my child" mind set, and the subject of child abuse is too awful to even think about- which is unfortunate because you can't protect your kids if you don't know what the most likely dangers are. There is no question that this book will help it's readers become SKILLED PROTECTORS of thier children.

Rating:
Summary: Must Read ALL Parents
Review: I give this now to all expectant parents. This book is life-changing. As a mother, it posed questions that I have never thought of asking. I now have the guts to ask what is most important in keeping my son safe. deBecker gives parents 'permission' to be assertive parents.

Without frightening us deBecker brings to our attention what we need to know to keep our children safe. He focuses on our instincts and his discussions make such obvious sense.

I'm at the airport posting this review and looking forward to my long flight now that I have this book. Halfway through I simply cannot put it down.
[...]

I have started to give this book as a gift to every new parent I know.Excellent excellent book.

Rating:
Summary: Should be required reading
Review: I agree with the Amazon review that this book can be terrifying, but it is necessary. Once you get past this only then can you gain the knowledge that you need to keep yourself and your child safe. Where I do not agree with Amazon's review is when it says that these things "rarely occur." While stranger abduction rarely occurs, sexual abuse among children is sadly VERY common and if unprotected, too likely to occur to our children. This book really debunks some long held myths and shows you signs to look for. It will help you protect yourself and teach you how to show your child to protect herself/himself as well. Sadly, I've recommended this book to countless friends, only a handful are willing to read it. Some are afraid to confront their biggest fears, others are cynical stating "It's only common sense, why would I pay $10 to read that!" Then I ask them "Should your child talk to strangers?" They always answer incorrectly and I tell them they should just cough up the $10. Your child's safety is priceless. $10 is an AMAZINGLY low price to pay to educate yourself.

Rating:
Summary: Powerful! Enlightening!
Review: The parts of this book that were hard to read were the very parts that I needed to educate myself on. I feel much more equipped to recognize danger and to teach my children how to be safe. Most importantly, DeBecker teaches us to trust our instincts. Great reading! ESSENTIAL to parents.

Rating:
Summary: ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL to ALL Parents!
Review: Gavin De Becker has compiled a very thorough, interesting, readable, and *essential* guide to keeping children safe in our world. While there are parts of this book that may be unpleasant to read [nobody likes to read about bad things happening to children], it will instruct and prepare parents to keep their children out of harm's reach. I found the book very empowering and have already implemented many of his suggestions. This book also reduces fear in the sense that it helps parents seperate common yet improbable fears [child abduction by strangers] from the very real fears that they may be turning a blind eye to [like molestation by a family member]. It helps parents understand what they need to do to prevent this kind of tragedy and yet also helps them seperate 'media hype' from reality. I am extremely glad to have found this book and read it and I feel that my children are far safer because of it. If every parent would read this book our world would be a much safer place for children!