Today I am sharing my thoughts on a book which really impressed me. Don’t get deceived by the book title “Toxic Childhood. How the modern world is damaging ourĀ children and what we can do about it” –Ā this book is definitely not an invitation to raise kids in old style!Ā The author is analysing modern issues that are very interesting to me, such as the mental health of modern children, the impact of the rapid digital media, poor diet, aggressive marketing, consumerism, the decline of the free-range kids, lack of exercise, tired families, the educational rat race and many other toxic factors affecting today’s children.
Å iandien dalinuosi mintimis apie knygÄ , kuriĀ tikrai stipriai mane sužavÄjo. Neapsigaukite perskaitÄ knygos pavadinimÄ “Nuodinga VaikystÄ. Kaip Å”iuolaikinis pasaulisĀ žaloja mÅ«sų vaikus irĀ kÄ galime dÄl to padaryti” – Å”i knygaĀ tikrai nÄra kvietimas augintiĀ vaikusĀ remiantis senaisiais metodais. Knygos autorÄ analizuojaĀ modernias problemas, kurios mane labai domina, tokias kaipĀ psichologinÄ vaikų sveikata, marketingas, beprotiÅ”ku tempu besivystanti skaitmeninÄ medija, agresyvus marketingas, prasta mityba, didelis vartojimas, pavargÄ Å”eimos, prastÄjanÄios sÄ lygos nevaržomai vaikysteiĀ lauke, mažÄjantis judÄjimas, edukacinÄs lenktynÄs ir kiti nuodingiĀ faktoriai, kurie ÄÆtakoja Å”iuolaikinÄ vaikystÄ.
Quotation from the book / IŔtrauka iŔ knygos
“She was standing on the steps of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence – a short, dark-haired girl, slightly overweight, sulkily licking an ice cream. I guessed from her face she was no more than ten years old, but the angry scowl and scrunch self-consciousnessĀ looked more like aĀ teenager, wracked with adolescent angst. <…?> And across her little girl’s chest was printed her message to the world: “IĀ ā¤Ā my attitude problem”.
In the building behindĀ her were some of western civilisation’sĀ greatest treasures – paintingsĀ by Botticelli, Leonardo, Michelangelo -with presumably her parents dragged her acrossĀ Europe (maybe across the world) to see. She clearly wasn’t remotely interested. <…> Her feelings about life were written all over her: anger. self-obsession, boredom, lack of engagement – the multiple trademarks of the brat.
Poor child. Poor parents. Poor western civilisationĀ – indeed the whole of the developed world <…> In a global culture whose citizens are wealthier,Ā healthier and more privileged than ever in human history, children grow unhappier every year. From the disgruntled and discontented to the depressed and dysfunctional, we seem to be raising a generation with nothing to love but its attitude problem.”
It is the best of times; it is the worst of times. We live in a world of comfort, convenience and promise but it’s not the best world for children. So what’s going wrong? An author believes there isn’t one simple answer. It’s a complex cultural problem, linked to the incredible speed of human progress and increasingly competitive consumer capitalism. The book is packed with interesting insights, presents up-to-date researches on various topics. After each topic, an author provides suggestions on detoxifying childhood – from babies to teenagers. It’s very clear, that an author has a really great knowledge and is passionate about the topic she is researching and sharing her knowledge with worried parents. An author touches another topic, I am very interested in – the way mass media affect children’s lives, through the influence of marketing on their play, friendships, family relationships and culture of childhood in general. But I will share a separate post on that!
Ā All in all, this book is an absolute treasure and I would recommend it to read for every single mother, who wants to understand what is happening with our children today and how to raise them healthy, happy and itelligent.
Dabar yra patys geriausi, ir patys blogiausi laikai. Gyvename komforto, patogumo ir daug žadanÄiame pasaulyje, taÄiau Å”is pasaulis nÄra pats geriausias mÅ«sų vaikams. Tai kas gi blogai? AutorÄs manymu, nÄra vieno paprasto atsakymo. Tai yra kompleksinÄ kultÅ«ros problema, susijusiĀ su neÄÆtikÄtinu žmonijos progreso greiÄiu ir vis konkurencingesnioĀ vartojimo. Knygoje gausu ÄÆdomių, priverÄianÄių susimÄ styti ÄÆžvalgų, kurios paremtos naujaisiais tyrimais. Skaitant knygÄ tikrai jauÄiasi, kad autorÄ daug gilinosi ir turi didelÄÆ Å¾inių bagaÅ¾Ä nagrinÄjama problema. Beje, po kiekvienos temos autorÄ dalinasi patarimais, kaip “sumažinti vaikystÄs nuodingumÄ ” ir Å”ie patarimai skirti visiems vaikams, nuo kÅ«dikio iki paauglio. AutorÄ palieÄia ir dar vienÄ , mane Å”iuo metu labai dominanÄiÄ temÄ – apie tai, kaip medija ÄÆtakoja vaikų gyvenimus, nuo žaidimų iki požiÅ«rio ÄÆ draugystÄ, Å”eimos santykius ir vaikystÄs kultÅ«rÄ apskritai. TaÄiau apie tai, plaÄiau pakalbÄsiu atskirame ÄÆraÅ”e, nes tema tikrai to verta.
Pabaigai pasakysiu tik tiek, kad Å”i knyga yra visiÅ”kas lobis ir tikrai nuoÅ”irdžiai rekomenduoju jÄ paskaityti visoms mamoms, kurios nori suprasti, kad vyksta su mÅ«sų vaikų pasauliais Å”iandien ir kaip juos užauginti sveikus, laimingus ir protingus. Daug analizuoti knygos ir nereikia – paskaitykite paÄios, bus tikrai ÄÆdomu.
You can find this book in your local library (as I did!), buy used one on eBay or a new oneĀ here.
Disclaimer.Ā Please note, I have not been paid for this post nor been given a book in exchange. As always, I have shared my honest opinion.
Love,
E.
Love,
E.
