A parenting guide that addresses the change that has occurred in acceptable discipline practices over the second half of the twentieth century, and describes a method designed to make setting limits and assigning responsibility more pleasant for both parents and children.

Parenting is a puzzling task. The rules are always changing, expert opinions vary widely and strategies that work with child number one are rarely effective for child number two. But help is on the way! Mark Chamberlain begins his delightful book by describing How To Host an Alien, offering understanding of those confusing little beings we call our children. How to Neutralize Parent Paralyzers teaches parents to work past stumbling blocks of guilt, feelings of inadequacy, and perfectionism. Readers will learn such tricks of the trade as learning to pounce when a child is behaving rather than misbehaving, how to channel children's attention back to choices they can make, and how to make bad behavior costly. (The author's own mother finally posted a sign, 10 cents per slam, on the back door to curb door slamming habits.) Kids Are from Jupiter is a funny, sympathetic, sensible and enormously practical guide for Earthling moms and dads everywhere. A must-read for anyone attempting to understand the world of children. . . . Creative, informative, and downright helpful -- you will not read it unchanged. -- Stephen R. Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People