cover image Donde Estan las Instrucciones Para Criar A los Hijos? = Where Are the Instructions for Caring for Children?

Donde Estan las Instrucciones Para Criar A los Hijos? = Where Are the Instructions for Caring for Children?

Isabel Gomez-Bassols. Kensington Publishing Corporation, $10 (218pp) ISBN 978-1-57566-748-5

A licensed child psychologist with a national daily call-in radio program on the Radio Unica Network, Gomez-Bassols offers excellent advice about childrearing for parents, based on frequently asked questions from her show. She believes that whenever a child is born parents are also reborn. This is true whether or not it is a first child, since each parent-child relationship is unique. She also feels that parents bring issues from their past into their families, so they must analyze and learn from these issues to create a good present and future. For Hispanic parents, the issues in question may encompass political unrest and war in their countries of origin, immigration, and adjusting to a new culture. In addition to addressing those issues, Gomez-Bassols discusses discipline, developmental stages, communication techniques, and topics specific to Hispanic parents, such as raising bilingual children and dealing with prejudice. She also provides information on divorce and step-parenting. This useful book encourages parents to recognize that each child requires a parenting style suited to his/her individual personality. For another classic book on parenting try Hijos: Que hacemos, que les decimos (Kids: What Do We Tell Them, What Do We Do?, Ediciones B/Vergara). Highly recommended for all parenting collections in bookstores and libraries. Barbara M. Bibel, Oakland P.L., CA