The other day my librarian said, "You have to read this book!" and dashed off to the shelves to find it. I have a number of other great parenting books that I’m reading right now, but I couldn’t say no to that level of enthusiasm! So I stared to read Carl Honoré’s Under Pressure: Rescuing Childhood from the Culture of Hyper-Parenting , and quickly found myself agreeing with her.

In this thought-provoking book, Honoré covers issues from hovering parents who are pushing their kids into sports, higher achievement at schools and taking the fun out of childhood, to the early sexualization of our girls. On every subject he offers interesting insights and memorable examples, such as the father who wanted to encourage his kids in tennis, and helped them out by doping their opponents. Eventually, one of the opponents died a car accident caused by the drowsiness, and he was charged. His insights and examples give us a chance to reflect on our own choices and those of the parents around us. (more…)