• The Case for the Only Child

  • Your Essential Guide
  • By: Susan Newman
  • Narrated by: Elizabeth Hanley
  • Length: 5 hrs and 31 mins
  • 4.1 out of 5 stars (38 ratings)

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The Case for the Only Child  By  cover art

The Case for the Only Child

By: Susan Newman
Narrated by: Elizabeth Hanley
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Publisher's summary

Although parenting approaches change, attitudes about only children remain stuck in the past. The negative stereotypes - lonely, selfish, bossy, spoiled, socially maladjusted - make parents think their child will be at a disadvantage when compared to those who grow up with siblings.

The Case for the Only Child debunks the myths, taking into account the many changes the nuclear family has experienced in the face of two-family incomes, women who have children later, and the economic reality of raising children in our modern world. Combining often-surprising findings with real-life stories, compassionate insight, and thought-provoking questions, Dr. Susan Newman provides a guide to help you decide for yourself how to best plan your family and raise a single child.

  • Provides fascinating facts and statistics to show the reasons for the rapid risein the number of singletons
  • Explores pressure from friends, relatives, and strangers to have a second child...and how to deal with it
  • Demystifies the realities of raising and being an only child with personal stories and current research
  • Explores the highly debated question: Does a child need a sibling?
©2011 Susan Newman (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

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What listeners say about The Case for the Only Child

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    3 out of 5 stars

Title reflects content exactly, NOT a How-to book

It's a good book to help relax with your choice or accept your circumstance of an only child. Studies and anecdotal evidence offered makes argument for feeling okay with one child family. However, I was looking for a book on how best to raise an only child. This book is not it. Previous reviews indicated but I did not believe that a case for having an only child and being content could last all 5+ hours. It was compelling and calming but left me without any help to raising our only child.

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    3 out of 5 stars

A great resource for help on only children

This book had a lot of statistical information on why or why not to have an only child. I have been on the fence for a while now on whether or not to have another child and this book was very insightful on factual information. I am a really logical person and like to have statistics presented to me to get my decisions. Great book and I am glad that I listened to it.

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    4 out of 5 stars

Very helpful, but biased

This book is helpful for those parents out there trying to decide about how many children to have. There is a great amount of anecdotal information (grounded theory research), and other statistics. My only complaint is that the book assumes you want to decide to have an only child (and that you might be feeling guilty about that decision), not a stance of neutrality on the issue (let alone people who are coming to the issue because of circumstances not of their choosing), which might have been more helpful.

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great book for someone struggling

great book for somebody struggling with the thought of only having one child be it by choice or not.

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Women role models?!

Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi should never be referred to as women to admire. This book needs to be updated as it is beyond embarrassing for actual strong, honest, confident and kind women.

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