Customer Reviews
Not so much super powers but super help - By: Wrath, 21 Nov 2008 
This is a superb book which offers an insight into situations which many people currently feel helpless to deal with when faced with. It follows closely with the current change of thinkingin secondary education where they are trying to explain to children emotions probably ten years too late. Possibly modern teachers would read this book & nod along recognising scenarios. As a parent I found it very helpful to be able to re-think talking to my child. It has helped me to talk with them as opposed to at them. At this early stage I can not state that there are definite changes but I hope they will be helpfulin our relationshipin the future. My only real criticism of the book isin the language used. I recognise much of the terminology from my job but I am unsure whether most people would. The chapter summaries are excellent but perhaps a future edition could be edited with a wider audiencein mind?
Efficient habits for better parenting and a happier childhood - By: Mr. J. C. Clubb, 21 Nov 2008 It must have been sheer luck that "Superpowers for Parents" ended up on my recommended list. Of all the books on psychology & parenting, this has to be considered a standout piece. I teach self defence to children & through my studies & coaching experience I have found that building the right attitude is by far the most efficient way for children to learn. Dr. Briers' excellent new book is completelyin line with my approach to teaching, which is refreshing as the self defence world - much like the parenting/psychology world - is still very muchin reactive mode. This isin the face of the great results being foundin business leadership & sport. In order for humans to better respond, interact & to get the results that make them happy they have to learn to charge of their feelings & to understand others.
We arein a time of rising youth violence & greater depressionin our young. Programmes like "Super Nanny", "Brat Camp" & the like have become prime time viewing, feeding the demand provided by Generation X parents. Dr. Briers, although is never dismissive of such methods as the "naughty step", argues that too much emphasis is being placed on handling the symptoms of bad behaviour. His book deals with the root of the problem, developing skillsin both parents & children that will help prevent the problems from developing later on. It removes the "guilty parent" attitude that resulted from an extreme interpretation of the famous methods of Dr. Spock combined with the liberalism of the 1960s & the Baby Boomer generation of parents. Dr. Briers shifts parenting towards the development of empathy the base for good relationships & interdependency.
With thisin mind "Superpowers for Parents" is comparable with Dr. Stephen Covey's "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People"in that the author has a clear understanding of what is meant by the now buzzwords "proactive" & "empowerment". Like Covey, Dr. Briers understands the partiality of the "carrot & stick" approach, the age old punishment & reward system. Dr. Briers' methods are all about teaching children to take control of their feelings, emotions & eventually their lives. The activities suggested are far from revolutionary rather they are heavy nods towards common sense. However, this is long overdue. In my own book on children's self defence I make a strong emphasis on helping children develop independent attitudes. This is vital to prevent children from becoming physically vulnerable. "Superpowers for Children" demonstrates that developing this type of attitude also prevents children from becoming psychologically vulnerable.
In conclusion this book provides a much needed guide on preventing & understanding bad behaviourin children. However, more than this, it is a very positive book for today's parents bringing the true meaning of discipline back to parenting. Discipline, as Dr. Briers explains, has too long been associated with punishment & taking orders. It is one of the four tenets I teachin my children's classes & my book, & I completely agree that discipline is more about effective mentoring & developing self-discipline than anything else. After all one can only really benefits from discipline if one is willing receive it.
I highly recommend this book to all parents & prospective parents.
NLP-style parenting - By: David Burton, 21 Nov 2008 
One way to look at this book is as an antidote to the likes of Super-Nanny. However, that's only because the focus is a little different.
Where some other books seem to take the view that children are beings to be moulded into model examples of perfect behaviour, this instead attempts as much to get you to understand their emotional situation as to help deal with their behaviour.
It comes across as somewhat unusual, because it stresses the individual personality of a child & their willingness & capability to understand.
Many of the emotional techniques for guiding from a darker emotional state to a calmer or happier one are solidly basedin the Neuro-Linguistic Programming techniques which have been popular for many years nowin personal psychology books. I haven't seen so much attempting to push those techniques specifically for use with children.
I actually like a book to say that you're not a failure if your child isn't perfectly behaved ALL of the time, & explaining that if a child is well behaved at school then unruly at home, that there are other explanations for this separation of behaviour than just the quality of parenting.
Although the books are really aimed at parents of children a little older than mine (who are all under 4), some of the techniques are useful - illustrating common mistakes which may make a child distressed & potentially even worse behaved, & how to better look at their perspective to better understand the situation. While I won't be stopping using the naughty chair, it has provided an illuminating new view on how to approach bad behaviour or reluctance to cooperate.
If your child is at school & suffering from exam stress, bullying, difficulties settling into a new school, etc, then the discussionsin here may well be of particular use, as it focusses on developing more positive, pro-active psychological approaches to life.
Not Just For Kids! - By: angel leaf, 20 Nov 2008 I ordered this book because I am conscious that I will one dayin the nearish future have children & I am scared that I will be a bad mother. I watch all these programmes on tv about Super Nanny etc & I wanted to see what skills I needed to develop before I put anymore thought into having my own kids.
I began reading this & applied some of the psychology type skills to my boyfriend, just to see if I was capable, & strangely, my boyfriend began to open up about things that he would normally have not talked about! Men it seems also find it hard to describe feelings so I have embarked on attempting to teach my boyfriend the skills that this book outlines to teach your children, of course I haven't told him this :) So far I can report much successin helping him to communicate with me more & therefore diverting tantrums & understanding when a storm may be brewing that I would have previously not noticed. Plus when I do have my own children, I will be an expert at these techniques !
I fully recommend this book for any woman :)
I don't feel like a superhero! - By: Smallvillenews, 20 Nov 2008 
This book does not give parents superpowers!
I read the blurb for the book & thought it sounded quite intriguing, being an occasional user of the naughty step/area technique, I was interestedin reading how to avoid this altogether, as the book claims.
To start with the book has an introduction, that goes into an introduction, into an introduction... it was continuously stating "in this book I aim to do this", "the aim of the book is this", "in this book I hope to equip you with", etc, etc, to the point where I'm thinking well get on with giving me these "superpowers" then instead of just talking about what you hope to do.
Basically the book is telling you how to encourage your children to recognise & become familiar with how they are feeling & gettingin touch with their own emotions, with a view to them then being able to avert trouble themselves when they feel they are getting angry, for example, so that they can take control of their own behaviour.
Whilst I think there are some good tipsin the book for helping you to to talk to your child about their emotions, I do not think it is going to achieve the results it claims to make. In my opinion even a child that is aware of their own emotions, will still kick up a stink if they are upset or feel angry. Being self aware does not automatically induce self control, as this book suggests.
Also, I found it disturbing that the author statesin his book that he & his colleagues actually took partin producing the shows like "supernanny" for the BBC & actually endorsed the use of "the naughty step"... surely if his book is as good as he makes out, he would have used his own advicein these shows, especially when it states it rules out the need of the "naughty step". Sounds a bit contradictory to me!
If you really want to learn to be a good parent, just love your children & do your best for them... maybe try a free parenting course if you are struggling... but don't waste your money on faddy books that don't really teach you anything but common sense really!!
