Help My Family Is Driving Me Crazy

When to say yes, when to say no to take control of your life.

A family psychologist offers parents clear and simple techniques for disarming the strategies kids use to manipulate them. Every parent knows that children quickly learn how to push their buttons. Now, this invaluable and insightful book, written by a prominent clinical psychologist, identifies the specific ways kids manipulate their parents?and how to stop each tactic. These uncannily sophisticated and undermining strategies include: ? Emotional blackmail ? Shutting down ? Negotiation ? Protest ? Playing the victim ? Dividing the parents Filled with informative and practical advice, this insightful guide is designed to help parents restore harmony, discipline, and healthy relationships?and put an end to selfish, manipulative behavior for good.

Women who opt not to be mothers are frequently warned that they will regret their decision later in life, yet we rarely talk about the possibility that the opposite might also be true—that women who have children might regret it. Drawing on years of research interviewing women from a variety of socioeconomic, educational, and professional backgrounds, sociologist Orna Donath treats regret as a feminist issue: as regret marks the road not taken, we need to consider whether alternative paths for women currently are blocked off. She asks that we pay attention to what is forbidden by rules governing motherhood, time, and emotion, including the cultural assumption that motherhood is a “natural” role for women—for the sake of all women, not just those who regret becoming mothers. If we are disturbed by the idea that a woman might regret becoming a mother, Donath says, our response should not be to silence and shame these women; rather, we need to ask honest and difficult questions about how society pushes women into motherhood and why those who reconsider it are still seen as a danger to the status quo. Groundbreaking, thoughtful, and provocative, this is an especially needed book in our current political climate, as women's reproductive rights continue to be at the forefront of national debates.

How do you SACK your DAD? My dad's a new stay-at-home dad and is already a TOTAL DISASTER. He COOKS meals no one can EAT, messes up all the laundry and expects me to clean my room MYSELF. Can you believe he doesn't even take my dirty cups downstairs? Worst of all, Dad has decided I'm his new BEST FRIEND and never stops TALKING TO ME. He must be STOPPED. But HOW? "Pete Johnson is a hilarious writer"#8212Mail on Sunday

Strange as it may seem, other people are not nearly as committed to our happiness as we are. In fact, sometimes they seem like they're on a mission to make us miserable! There's always that one person. The one who hijacks your emotions and makes you crazy. The one who seems to thrive on drama. If you could just "fix" that person, everything would be better. But we can't fix other people--we can only make choices about ourselves. In this cut-to-the-chase book, communication expert Mike Bechtle shows readers that they don't have to be victims of other people's craziness. With commonsense wisdom and practical advice that can be implemented immediately, Bechtle gives readers a proven strategy to handle crazy people. More than just offering a set of techniques, Bechtle offers a new perspective that will change readers' lives as they deal with those difficult people who just won't go away.

Louis doesn't think much of it when his mum and dad ask him for tips on how to be cool. In fact, he thinks it's pretty funny watching them bump fists and use words like 'safe', 'sick' and 'wicked'. Until Dad turns up outside Louis's new school dressed like a rapper, that is . . . Suddenly they're trying to friend Louis and all his classmates on Facebook, and wearing baseball caps backwards - IN PUBLIC. Louis and his best friend Maddy are horrified. Mum and Dad have taken things too far . . . and immediate action is needed!

Ten hilarious, poignant, thoughtful stories about how our families drive us crazy, and how we love them anyway, are collected in this volume featuring some of today's most talented authors, including Joan Bauer, Jack Gantos, Mel Glenn, and Walter Dean Myers.