edited by Elisabeth L. Scharlatt
Enlightening and supportive, this droll compendium of anecdotes, ideas and advice on parenting includes photos, cartoons and individually bylined essays from such people as Margaret Mead, Dr. Seuss, Franz Kafka, J.R.R. Tolkien, Mark Twain, Dustin Hoffman, ordinary folks and, most important, a few kids. The authors deal with subjects like day care, schools, food, sex and travel, supplanting theory with practical solutions. For example: To end crying, take a bottle and enlist the child's help in collecting tears; before giving medicine, put an ice cube on the tongue to deaden tastebuds. Scharlatt, a senior editor at a publishing house and mother of one, questions the myth that parenting is "fulfilling and natural." She makes a good case that it is "bewilderingly, painfully hard" but not without rewards. Providing an excuse to peruse this Whole Earth Catalog of mom-and-dadism is one. (Simon & Schuster, $17.95; $7.95 soft)
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