Education
The best new parenting books you may have missed
04 May, 2022
Parenting isn’t easy – luckily, a lot of smart people are doing it too. Even luckier, those smart people have written books; books that we can read and learn invaluable lessons from. If it’s been a while since you added to your ‘must read’ list or you’re always looking for the next amazing parenting book, check out these picks.
‘We’ve Got This: Stories by Disabled Parents’ by Eliza Hull
How do two parents who are blind take their children to the park? How is a mother with dwarfism treated when she walks her child down the street? How do parents who are deaf know when their baby cries in the night? In ‘We’ve Got This’, twenty-five parents who identify as deaf, disabled or chronically ill discuss the highs and lows of their parenting journeys and reveal that the greatest obstacles lie in other people’s attitudes. The result is a moving, revelatory, and empowering anthology.
‘The Montessori Baby: A Parent’s Guide to Nurturing Your Baby with Love, Respect, and Understanding’ by Simone Davies and Junnifa Uzodike
Filled with the values, advice, and aesthetic that have made ‘The Montessori Toddler’ a parenting bestseller, ‘The Montessori Baby’ is here to help new parents find the support and peace they crave. Cowritten by ‘Montessori Toddler ‘author Simone Davies and fellow Montessori educator Junnifa Uzodike, ‘The Montessori Baby’ draws on the child-led principles of the Montessori educational method to foster a first year defined by love, respect, understanding, and a surprising sense of calm.
‘The Starting School Book’ by Sarah Ockwell-Smith
Starting school is a huge important milestone for children and their parents. The best school years happen when everyone involved feels happy and engaged with the whole experience, and yet, with so much information to digest and so little guidance available, the process can be incredibly confusing. In this reassuring and practical guide for parents of school-age children, Sarah Ockwell-Smith provides clear and helpful advice for each stage of the process.
‘The Power of Showing Up’ by Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson
Parenting isn’t easy – showing up is. Your greatest impact begins right where you are. Now the bestselling authors of ‘The Whole-Brain Child’ and ‘No-Drama Discipline’ explain what this means over the course of childhood. In an age of scheduling demands and digital distractions, showing up for your child might sound like a tall order. But as bestselling authors Daniel Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson reassuringly explain, it doesn’t take a lot of time, energy, or money.
‘The Good Enough Parent: How to Raise Contented, Interesting and Resilient Children’ by The School of Life
Raising a child to be an authentic and mentally robust adult is one of life’s great challenges. It is also, fortunately, not a matter of luck. The Good Enough Parent is a compendium of lessons, including how to say no to a child one adores, how to look beneath the surface of bad behaviour to work out what might really be going on and how to encourage a child to be genuinely kind.
‘Mama Rising: Discovering the New You Through Motherhood’ by Amy Taylor-Kabbaz
First published in 2019, ‘Mama Rising’ is now loved by thousands of mamas around the world, and has sparked a global movement of Mama Rising® Facilitators sharing its powerful message. Understanding the ancient yet thoroughly modern insight into motherhood will change everything – it will explain that pull to be there for your child’s every moment, yet also crave your independence, stop the guilt and the comparison and allow you to soften into the gift of motherhood.
‘Raising Good Humans: A Mindful Guide to Breaking the Cycle of Reactive Parenting and Raising Kind, Confident Kids’ by Hunter Clarke-Fields
A kinder, more compassionate world starts with kind and compassionate kids. In ‘Raising Good Humans’, you’ll find powerful and practical strategies to break free from “reactive parenting” habits and raise kind, cooperative, and confident kids. You’ll also discover strategies for cultivating respectful communication, effective conflict resolution, and reflective listening. It’s an essential, must-read for all parents – now more than ever.
Check out our 10 educational books we recommend for children!