Rating: 
Summary: A great start for info on ADD and its meaning to us all
Review: This was the first of Thom Hartmann's ADD books I read, and it immediately took top place on my list of recommendations on the subject. As an ADD adult, it not only gave me solace and (more importantly) significant encouragement, but it also impressed me as a valuable tool for helping others understand what it means to be ADD (both in children and adults).
I've just seen today on Amazon his other books (good ADD books can be hard to find in bookstores!), and I've just ordered them all! If you're ADD, order this or his others now. Don't be tempted to wait for them to arrive in your library. If you're ADD, then you probably know you may never get around to it!
Rating:
Summary: Sanity Saver
Review: Being a child brought up in a home where children were "to be seen, but not heard", I was at my wits end with my two boys. Both are ADHD and can you imagine a "Farmer Parent" raising 2 "Hunter BOYS". This book gave me a perspective I had not yet considered and aided me in getting my kids the help they need to succeed and live a fulfilled life. I am recommending that my family (the family that raised me) read this book and learn to embrace the diffence and talents that my boys have. I have now learned to appreciate what a special gift to the world my boys are.
Rating:
Summary: Never Knew ADD was a negative
Review: Being ADD my entire life, I was cherished and praised for being able to do numerous things at once. With good parents and wonderful teachers that taught me how to complete things in steps I found life easier than most persons. Being ADD has always been an asset for me. I do have a messy house at times, and my desk is always in a state of disaray, but because my mind moves constantly, I do not dwell on my mistakes, nor my losses. I am always open to new experiences and can take advantage of opportunities that others are too afraid of trying. Thom Hartmann just pointed out a few of the advantages of being ADD, there are thousands of others. Please read this book and pass it on to everyone that you come in contact with that struggles with an ADD diagnosis. I did not know that I even had ADD until 35 and then could not believe that it could be considered it a liablity. I was always in advanced placement classes in school, but I had teachers that understood children like me. They considered me with special abilities, now teachers consider it a deficit. WOW how times have changed. Lets go back to making these kids "special" again and this book is a great first step.
Rating:
Summary: Must Read!
Review: For anyone who is struggling with a diagnosis of ADD or ADHD, this book is a must! Mr. Hartmann clearly presents ADD/ADHD as a difference, not a defect. While those who have been diagnosed in adulthood have probably received it because they are struggling with certain aspects of their lives, it still doesn't mean that everything about being ADHD is bad or negative, as some people like to portray it. Clearly there are struggles and challenges to fit into a world that does seem to be "run" by "farmer-types", but if those with AD/HD only see themselves as defective, where is their hope for the future? Along with reading "Driven to Distraction" by Hallowell and Ratey, you simply must read this book if you or your child has been diagnosed with AD/HD!
Rating:
Summary: Easy to read and understand
Review: Hartmann has written a popular series of books related to ADD/ADHD by introducing an empowering perspective to those labeled ADD/ADHD. Since ADD/ADHD is based on labeling behaviors rather than identifying any physiological abnormality, Hartmann's view is quite sensible to some extent. In our current environment, these behaviors are usually seen as maladaptive and bring adults to treat children with these behaviors in a negative way. Ironically, it is the high level of stress in our environment that has been associated with triggering ADD symptoms - violent media directed at children, stress on status and achievement, disruptive family patterns, toxins, additives, and stimulants in foods, beverages, and the environment, etc. In this stressful environment many people develop the coping strategies and physioloigcal symptoms that would be expected from someone that has been in frequent danger and overusing their adrenal glands, which triggers a shortage in hormones and neurotransmitters needed to sustain attention. ADD/ADHD can best be understood from a holistic mind-body perspective, with natural holistic and psychotherapeutic interventions to assist. Giving stimulant drugs momentarily increases focus and calms behavior, but actually further aggravates the over-stressed system that led to ADD symptoms in the first place. Improved nutrition, stress management skills, and energy balancing therapies can provide lasting benefits to help those labeled ADD/ADHD become more balanced and able to adapt to their circumstances when they desire to. In more nurturing, less stressful environments these children are often seen as normal, and may actually act more calm and focused when less stressed and perceived more positively by adults. Hartmann's book provides a useful tool to help people recognize the psychological coping mechanism that can contribute to ADD patterns of behavior, although he somewhat oversimplifies the issue and doesn't clearly address the mind-body connection that is largely ignored or misunderstood by those examining the ADD/ADHD issue. Additionally, Hartmann adds his own labeling system of hunters and gatherers/farmers, which could limit how some people perceive themselves. These are roles we develop, and which are not solidly set by genetics. Genetic expression is influenced by the individual's biological and psychosocial environment [and the individual's reaction to the environment], and we deny our potential if we just say we are a born "hunter."
Rating: 
Summary: ADD as a coping style suited to hunters...
Review: Hartmann has written a popular series of books related to ADD/ADHD by introducing an empowering perspective to those labeled ADD/ADHD. Since ADD/ADHD is based on labeling behaviors rather than identifying any physiological abnormality, Hartmann's view is quite sensible to some extent. In our current environment, these behaviors are usually seen as maladaptive and bring adults to treat children with these behaviors in a negative way. Ironically, it is the high level of stress in our environment that has been associated with triggering ADD symptoms - violent media directed at children, stress on status and achievement, disruptive family patterns, toxins, additives, and stimulants in foods, beverages, and the environment, etc. In this stressful environment many people develop the coping strategies and physioloigcal symptoms that would be expected from someone that has been in frequent danger and overusing their adrenal glands, which triggers a shortage in hormones and neurotransmitters needed to sustain attention. ADD/ADHD can best be understood from a holistic mind-body perspective, with natural holistic and psychotherapeutic interventions to assist. Giving stimulant drugs momentarily increases focus and calms behavior, but actually further aggravates the over-stressed system that led to ADD symptoms in the first place. Improved nutrition, stress management skills, and energy balancing therapies can provide lasting benefits to help those labeled ADD/ADHD become more balanced and able to adapt to their circumstances when they desire to. In more nurturing, less stressful environments these children are often seen as normal, and may actually act more calm and focused when less stressed and perceived more positively by adults. Hartmann's book provides a useful tool to help people recognize the psychological coping mechanism that can contribute to ADD patterns of behavior, although he somewhat oversimplifies the issue and doesn't clearly address the mind-body connection that is largely ignored or misunderstood by those examining the ADD/ADHD issue. Additionally, Hartmann adds his own labeling system of hunters and gatherers/farmers, which could limit how some people perceive themselves. These are roles we develop, and which are not solidly set by genetics. Genetic expression is influenced by the individual's biological and psychosocial environment [and the individual's reaction to the environment], and we deny our potential if we just say we are a born "hunter."
Rating:
Summary: Feel good about your ADD
Review: Hartmann's "Hunter in a Farmer's World" theory is incredibly enticing to people who have ADD. I was just recently diagnosed (as an adult) and though my initial feelings upon finding that there was a chemical/biological reason for my spaciness were those of relief, I still felt somewhat... broken.But after reading this book (and buying into Hartmann's theory...whether it is scientifically sound or not I am not qualified to say, but it has the ring of common sense about it) I started to see the positive aspects of this "disease." In fairness, Dr's Hallowell and Ratey addressed the positive aspects of ADD in Driven to Distraction (also a must-read) but Hartmann drives the idea home in a very approachable way. The book is a joy to read and is very inspiring. Now whenever I'm feeling a bit down about ADD, I scan a few pages of the book at random and leave the house confident that my hunter instincts can carry me through anything. I still use my medication for when I have to deal with the farmer world, but the rest of the time, I hunt!! Thom Hartmann teaches us how to maximize the potential of our gift: ADD.
Rating: 
Summary: Balderdash!
Review: I don't believe I've ever read anything so clearly unscientific. The author is using his own strange new-age hypotheses to make a case for being "hunters in a farmer's world"... it's preposterous. There are MANY many other books on the market about ADD and ADHD that are far superior to this one: Anything by Dr. Hallowell, Dr. Nadeau, or Dr. Amen. I was extremely disappointed with this book, as I don't consider myself a hunter or a farmer or any other stilted, inappropriate metaphor. It's time we stopped trying to label this as something other than what it is, and then work on coping mechanisms, and other forms of treatment. This book is the stuff quacks and crackpots are made of. It's awfully self-aggrandizing too. Don't waste your money or your time.
Rating:
Summary: Balderdash!
Review: I don't believe I've ever read anything so clearly unscientific. The author is using his own strange new-age hypotheses to make a case for being "hunters in a farmer's world"... it's preposterous. There are MANY many other books on the market about ADD and ADHD that are far superior to this one: Anything by Dr. Hallowell, Dr. Nadeau, or Dr. Amen. I was extremely disappointed with this book, as I don't consider myself a hunter or a farmer or any other stilted, inappropriate metaphor. It's time we stopped trying to label this as something other than what it is, and then work on coping mechanisms, and other forms of treatment. This book is the stuff quacks and crackpots are made of. It's awfully self-aggrandizing too. Don't waste your money or your time.
Rating:
Summary: Everyone should read this Book!
Review: I loved everything about this book! For the first time in my life I was free from bad feelings about myself! I never knew I was ADD, and I really, really did not want to believe it after a therapist suggested it. After all, I've had a fairly successful life and with all the bad things that have been said and written about ADD, I said, "Nah-not me-couldn't be me!" but when I came to Amazon.com to purchase the book "You mean I'm not lazy, crazy, or stupid" and this book was suggested, I liked what I read about it and ordered it. Boy, what a revelation! Read this book-now, if you are a hunter(ADD) and soon, if you are a farmer(not ADD).
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