by Melinda Wenner Moyer
G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2025. 299 pages. Nonfiction.
In the blink of an eye, our kids will be adults facing countless serious threats--climate change, gun violence, political polarization, and disinformation, to name but a few. We're not going to be able to solve all these intractable problems before our kids grow up--so how are we to prepare them for an impossibly complex and scary future? Plagued by this question, award-winning science journalist Melinda Wenner Moyer interviewed parenting experts and researchers across multiple fields--psychology, education, information literacy, technology, business, and even addiction. What she discovered: even in these uncertain times, we can still teach our kids how to take care of themselves, fight for what they believe in, and bridge divides in ways most adults aren't equipped to do. In Hello, Cruel World!, Moyer provides practical, comprehensive, science-backed tools to help our children handle the world they will inherit. By being activists in our parenting, we can set our kids up to not just survive, but also build a better world for themselves and future generations.
I’ve read a few parenting books in my time as a parent and this book stands out to me. I appreciate the author's approach. She presents the findings of many different scientific studies. Rather than making sweeping conclusions or using fear tactics to sway the reader to her agenda, her writing is nuanced and even keeled. The author has no agenda except support for parents. As parents, we want to raise children who will become adults that can take care of themselves as well as others. This book is a hopeful read and offers simple recommendations that I found very helpful as a parent trying to do her best.
If you like Hello, Cruel World! you might also like:
by Michele Borba
G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2021. 306 pages. Nonfiction
The difference between those who struggle and those who succeed comes down not to grades or test scores, but to seven character traits -- confidence, empathy, self-control, integrity, curiosity, perseverance, and optimism. These traits will allow kids to roll with the punches and succeed in life and they can be taught to children at any age. In Thrivers, Dr. Borba offers practical, actionable ways to develop these traits in children from preschool through high school, showing how to teach kids how to cope today so they can thrive tomorrow.
by Michelle Icard
Harmony/Random House, 2020. 300 pages. Nonfiction.
The fourteen essential conversations to have with your tween and early teenager to prepare them for the emotional, physical, and social challenges ahead, including scripts and advice to keep the communication going and stay connected during this critical developmental window.
JK
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