Book Review: The Whole-Brain Child

As parents, we all want to nurture our children’s development. We want to create healthy and happy children.

So, when a best selling neurologist writes a book to benefit our child’s mental health, we should check it out.

This book, The Whole Brain Child, is based on brain development and does spend time explaining basic brain function, but it’s practical in its application. The book is really broken down into 12 strategies for child rearing, with its style focused on the integration of heart and mind.

It’s all about integration in this book – integrating the parts into the whole, integrating the right and left sides of the brain, integrating memory, integrating the ‘upstairs and downstairs’ brain, and integrating self and others.

The underlying premise is for parents to respond instead of react to their child and to take opportunities to make the most of learning moments by leaning into them.

There are many stories, graphic novel type illustrations, charts, outline and bullet pointed sections to highlight the key strategies to help parents wade through the brain development speak.

There is a helpful age related chart in the back of the book depicting the essential strategies for different stages: preschool, early school, later school, etc.

I would recommend this book for parents of young children or those struggling to figure out their parenting style.