The books listed in this section are general parenting guides, full of tremendous practical help and insight. I have found all of these titles to be terrific. However, two words of caution: 1) These books tend to not address the impact on children of exposure to a man who abuses their mother, including the role that abuse plays in as much as half of divorces, and 2) With the exception of Real Boys, these books do not offer detailed guidance to parents who have a gay or lesbian teen (though Reviving Ophelia touches on the issue briefly).
You can also find additional parenting resources in your phone book, such as parental stress hotline numbers, Parent’s Anonymous, and various kinds of parent education classes, or do an Internet search for “Parent Education.”
How To Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk
Siblings Without Rivalry (Avon).
The Courage to Raise Good Men (Penguin)
Consider this book a must read for any parent of a son, especially one who has been exposed to a man who mistreats his mother.
Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls (Grosset/Putnam).
Real Boys: Rescuing Our Sons from the Myths of Boyhood (Random House).
How to Mother a Successful Daughter (Three Rivers).
How to Father a Successful Daughter (Fawcett Crest).