Ouch, I don't want my kids to live to please anyone elses, not even a parent, they should be allowed to build a self esteem from their young age. It just seemed like so many other things he was suggesting were different from the societal norm that it seems like he could have given it some weight as at least being beneficial to your children and worth the effort to make it work. The authors’ sense that children are slipping from adult grasp, becoming a sort of lost generation, will resonate with parents, especially those battling with excessive screen time or teenage estrangements.

Parents have full responsibility in the existence and the behaviour of their child, since they had choice in giving birth to the child, had full controll over the enviroment he borns into, also over the effects that influenced the child's mind - while the kid had not. The way they look is dictated by the way other children look rather than by parents’ cultural heritage.The words that peer-oriented kids use for such a child are highly critical, words like weird, stupid, retarded, freak, and geek. Practice makes perfect, and it would be nice to get it figured out before you really need it, you know?

This “peer orientation” undermines family cohesion, interferes with healthy development, and fosters a hostile and sexualized youth culture.Just as he did in the beginning of the book saying that culture turns the children away, and later using himself as an example, writing about how his daughter asked him after they spent a holiday together: Father, why did you leave me? These kids never have the ability to actually grow up, to embrace their true selves, to mature into a unique, confident individual. I found I was not convinced by the case they made as they sounded more like opinions than ideas that would hold up to rigorous scrutiny. If that requires more energy than you have, Maté insists this is not an energy issue, but “an attitude issue”. I also think that young children have a natural desire to be connected to the family ecosystem and developing independence and the ability to participate can build connection rather than distance as the authors implied early in the book.

It also made me resolve to be a better friend to other kids - to get to know my friend's kids better or other kids at church who could benefit from another caring adult in their life.

Also he often claims how obidient and respectful were kids in the 20th century, to support his argument. Not only do I fear that this is true as I watch children interact with my own kids or with each other, but I fear that we as a society condone this way of thinking. The issues brought up in this 2014 edition only feel more relevant now, as technology and social media are increasingly present during kids’ development. Once a child has shifted his attachment from parents to peers, parenting power is lost and the parent's input is no longer valued.