Paranoid Parenting: Why Ignoring the Experts May Be Best for Your Child

Rating:
Summary: Interesting subject
Review: Frank Furedi lectured to me at the University of Kent, using this book as the basis for a series of lectures about trust in contemporary society. His dynamic style of teaching prompted me to read this book and some of his other work, all of which I have been very impressed with. His style is very readable for people who do not have a sociological/psychological background, and the subjects that he chooses to investigate are very interesting.

If this is something that you are interested in, then I highly recommend it, but I also recommend it for anyone who has children/looks after children as it will open your eyes to the truths behind what the media tells us. An insight into how to keep your children safe in todays society, and when you have gone too far, this book is a good buy.

Rating:
Summary: I think there may be better books on the same topic
Review: I was not very impressed with the quality of this book. The author makes some excellent points about the fearfulness of parents today and has some basic insights into why this is so (the breakdown of the adult community being a significant one), and also how "I couldn't live with myself if something happened" can be a selfish statement by someone who cannot allow their child freedom because of their own extreme fear of risk.

However, I got the feeling that he had done an enormous amount of research but not spent enough time thinking carefully about it all and crafting his book. I got the sense that he was mainly finding research to back up his opinions in some places, and also that he was trying to sensationalize and be a little outrageous in places which wasn't helpful. The book also sprawls and wanders a bit. I didn't feel that the author took the writing of it all that seriously, which made me sorry I paid full price for it!

He also makes a lot of statements about child development and parenting issues that do not actually seem very educated. I think he would have been better off sticking to his speciality, sociology.