Book Review: The Explosive Child: A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated, Chronically Inflexible Children by: Ross W. Greene

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Behaviorally challenging kids are challenging because they’re lacking the skills to not be challenging.
The Explosive Child – Ross W. Greene

Initial Thoughts: And… I am back with another book on parenting! As I’ve said before, I am not a parent and not expecting any children. I feel a bit like Michael Scott from The Office during the episode with the gift baskets. He tries to make small talk with a client about his children and says awkwardly that he has a few of his own that he wants someday. I know there is no such thing as a perfect parent. After all, we are all imperfect humans with our own baggage and problems. However, I believe that it is important to try to become the best person possible to give our children the best possible chance at life. For me, that means reading parenting books in preparation for the future. For the record, I do not believe I will be a better parent than someone else who hasn’t read parenting books.

Summary

An experienced therapist offers groundbreaking and compassionate techniques for helping chronically inflexible children, who suffer from excessively immoderate tempers, showing how brain-based deficits contribute to these problems and offering positive and constructive ways to calm things down.

The Review

As a huge disclaimer… I don’t have children and probably won’t have children for a while. This book simply interested me because I am weirdly curious about parenting techniques and hope to have children someday. This book is for parents who are at their wits end. Parents with a child who is unruly and out of control.

The author uses case studies to illustrate parenting techniques. He tells the story of a family with two children. The eldest, Jennifer, age 11, constantly has melt downs over things as simple as waffles. Her parents are terrified of her and find themselves discouraged at every turn.

Dr. Greene proposes a compassionate approach where children and parents work together instead of against each other. He promotes active listening and problem-solving as a team. I really enjoyed how his strategies were able to be built upon and could be tailored to fit the child’s individual needs. After all, children grow at different rates, and what is easy for one child may be difficult for another. The title of the book is a bit misleading and I wish it could be changed. The Explosive Child makes it seem as if the child is a monster and that the child needs to be put in their place.
This book can be also used by parents who do not have “explosive” children. There could be times when a parent needs to correct certain behaviours that could be deemed as “explosive” or unruly. This book provides excellent constructive strategies. I would recommend this book to parents or to future parents with an interest in parenting techniques.

Final Rating: