Tough Times, Strong Children: Lessons from the Past for Your Child's Future

Harvard child psychologist Kindlon, co-author of the bestselling Raising Cain, here gives thoughtful, hands-on advice to parents who want to help their children cope with the stress brought on by the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and other traumas. ""The more we understand about how children cope with adversity,"" Kindlon writes, ""the better able we'll be to help our kids face the challenges of an uncertain future."" He offers a straightforward overview of the development stages of stress and the various psychological and physical effects stress has on children, and interweaves information from scientific research with vignettes about his daughters' and wife's ways of coping with grief, fear and strife. Models of coping methods come through the personal stories of trauma survivors-those who lived through such dark moments as the Holocaust, the Depression or a polio epidemic. Kindlon emphasizes that children, ultimately, are resilient, but that it's crucial that parents help them ""make the best out of bad situations."" This practical and informative guide should assist them in doing just that. (Mar.)