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Bringing Up Geeks: How to Protect Your Kid's Childhood in a Grow-Up-Too-Fast World
A breakthrough parenting book that redefines the meaning of ?geek??and inspires parents to free themselves and their kids from the ?culture of cool.?
In a world of superficial values, peer pressure, and out-of-control consumerism, the world needs more GEEKs: Genuine, Enthusiastic, Empowered Kids. Today?s ?culture of cool? has changed the way kids grow up. Rather than enjoy...more
In a world of superficial values, peer pressure, and out-of-control consumerism, the world needs more GEEKs: Genuine, Enthusiastic, Empowered Kids. Today?s ?culture of cool? has changed the way kids grow up. Rather than enjoy...more
Paperback, 336 pages
Published
July 1st 2008
by Berkley Trade
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Oh, this is a good one. I love everything I've read so far. This author is on a mission to 'save the innocence' of childhood. I love it!
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The subtitle of this book is "How to Protect Your Kid's Childhood in a Grow-Up-Too-Fast World," and defines geeks as Genuine, Enthusiastic, Empowered Kids.
This book made me feel validated as a parent. As if we are actually doing not too badly as we decide how to raise our children.
The author, a parenting columnist and mom of 4, has 10 rules for raising "geeks":
Rule 1: Raise a brainiac
Rule 2: Raise a sheltered kid
Rule 3: Raise an uncommon kid
Rule 4: Raise a kid adults like
Rule 5: Raise a late bl...more
This book made me feel validated as a parent. As if we are actually doing not too badly as we decide how to raise our children.
The author, a parenting columnist and mom of 4, has 10 rules for raising "geeks":
Rule 1: Raise a brainiac
Rule 2: Raise a sheltered kid
Rule 3: Raise an uncommon kid
Rule 4: Raise a kid adults like
Rule 5: Raise a late bl...more
I have loved this book so far - nothing new to me - this is how I have been raising my kids - 6 down 2 to go. I am trying not to slack off with the last two kids - it is difficult not to relax and let them raise themselves - since so much of their influence has been their older siblings -- but now that we are down to just the last two at home it is going to be harder. They will need more attention from me and their dad since they will not be getting it from older sibs. I especially like that all...more
Nov 09, 2008
Nicole
added it
A book that makes you go "Duh!". 3rd graders shouldn't have cell phones, 3-year-olds should not own video gaming systems, and high school kids shouldn't be on their laptops 24/7 playing World of Warcraft while their IPod earbuds are jammed in their ears and their quick-text cell phones are at the ready. But all this seems normal in today's culture, which is why most parents don't think twice about indulging their kids' rude, materialistic attitudes. While reading the chapters with titles like "R...more
Anybody who knows me would look at this title and think this would be right up my alley. However, I found the style haphazard at best and offensively arrogant at worst.
From the very beginning where she explains that there are categories of parents in the world, it put me off. Even though I would wager my own parenting choices are very close to the authors, the way she labels other parents is arrogant and ill informed.
I tried to give her the benefit of the doubt, but the whole book just left a...more
From the very beginning where she explains that there are categories of parents in the world, it put me off. Even though I would wager my own parenting choices are very close to the authors, the way she labels other parents is arrogant and ill informed.
I tried to give her the benefit of the doubt, but the whole book just left a...more
I don't read parenting books. I have parenting books on my shelves by FRIENDS I keep meaning to read and haven't. (Sorry, friends.) But I picked this up because of the title. I thought it was going to be a book about nurturing your kid's geek tendencies. Not the biting-the-heads-off-chickens kind of geekery; the confidently-obsessed-with-something-brainy-and-self-directed kind of geekery. I was hoping for specific strategies to help my kid find her passion, nurture that passion and deal with kid...more
Well, this isn't the type of book I would normally pick up but my sister in law loves it and so I requested it and it came right away.
I like a lot of the author's ideas about how little kids don't need every gadget and gizmo out there (she seriously hates iPods), and kids need to have a strong sense of who they are and be comfortable with it.
Yes, yes, that's all good. She thinks kids who aren't trying to be cool are geeks, and that's what we should all hope our kids grow up to be. Happy, secu...more
I like a lot of the author's ideas about how little kids don't need every gadget and gizmo out there (she seriously hates iPods), and kids need to have a strong sense of who they are and be comfortable with it.
Yes, yes, that's all good. She thinks kids who aren't trying to be cool are geeks, and that's what we should all hope our kids grow up to be. Happy, secu...more
Hicks' parenting guide has some of the best advice regarding childrearing, especially concerning kids and electronic media. I agree with most of her common-sense parenting, but I was rather dismayed by her style of writing. Hicks is a newspaper columnist, and her essays in this book have that same kind of slapdash, written-quickly-on-deadline feeling. Her guidelines for parenting are based almost entirely on what has worked for her own family, and she conducted very few interviews. She admits fr...more
I enjoyed this book and agree with much of the advice in the book. However, just because I agree with it doesn't mean I thought this was a well written book. My major problem with it is the sheer number of times the author said she wasn't an expert. It started to make me wonder why I should listen to her at all. Much of the book seemed to be convincing the reader that this was a good idea and not enough time explaining what it actually means to implement it. Too many of the examples and stories...more
There wasn't too much that was really ground breaking in this book, but it did affirm a lot of the feelings and thoughts I have about parenting. It was reassuring in that way. It also motivated me to get focused on some things that I thought I would try to address later, such as teaching the kids better table manners.
The writing itself is at times funny, at times a little preachy, and at times informative. Much of it seems to make sense, as again, Hicks is sort of preaching to the choir with me...more
The writing itself is at times funny, at times a little preachy, and at times informative. Much of it seems to make sense, as again, Hicks is sort of preaching to the choir with me...more
I found myself agreeing with many of the general principles discussed here, but it could have been more concise and somewhat less opinionated. In some chapters, there was just too much ranting about or pointing out examples of bad behavior, rather than discussing ways to deal with it (i.e., chapters on bad manners and over-reliance on technology). More suggestions about managing or balancing kids tech (which for better or worse is here to stay) rather than so much contempt for it would have been...more
Although this book wasn't what I expected -- it's not about intellectual geeks but unpopular "goody goodies" -- I liked much of the opening chapters of this book. And Hicks is straightforward that the book is primarily about her own subjective experiences, not research of factual evidence. She argues for traditional authoritarian parenting, the importance of teaching good manners, sheltering children from media influences and rejecting materialistic values. The problem is that she takes this ph...more
Lots of things I liked and a few I didn't. I am all for raising a child to be as enthusiastic and empowered as possible while protecting their childhood. The forced and premature "grown up" environment is a challenge for every parent today. However, at times I feel the author is a bit over the top and at times inconsistent.
An oddity: She is anti Bratz dolls (I agree here), but she is ok with Barbie (!).
I also disagree with one of her key through lines: popular = cool, and the one does not nece...more
An oddity: She is anti Bratz dolls (I agree here), but she is ok with Barbie (!).
I also disagree with one of her key through lines: popular = cool, and the one does not nece...more
This book is much better than the title would indicate. The author explains why we have to actively parent our children instead of letting them go with the flow of the crowd. The book talks about studying, family time, morals, faith, priorities, manners...all the parenting topics. She covers the topics in ways that I do not think I've ever seen them covered. For example she discusses the need to plan time when your family is together at home. Not on vacation or doing a scheduled activity, just h...more
Apr 23, 2010
Wendy
is currently reading it
So far, there are some major issues with this book that are drawing from me a strong protest; sometimes it leaves me completely slack-jawed (not the least of which is the labeling of children in any fashion). However, as with all parenting books, I'm sticking with it to glean what pearls I can.
We live in an affluent community (albeit in the "cheap seats") where high school students drive Lexuses and Porsches. Kids grow up so incredibly fast around here, and it's less about who you are and far t...more
We live in an affluent community (albeit in the "cheap seats") where high school students drive Lexuses and Porsches. Kids grow up so incredibly fast around here, and it's less about who you are and far t...more
Better titled "How to Ruin the Lives of Your Children for Their Own Good", this is a fantastic, though sometimes harsh, guide to raising children who are responsible, polite, and principled. While the author acknowledges that some of the actions needed to keep your kids from being too heavily influenced by our sex-obsessed culture, the media, constant marketing and their own peers, will hurt their ability to be considered "cool" and "popular" with their friends, her book provides a guide to rais...more
GEEKS- Genuine, Enthusiastic, Empowered Kids, that is. The author describes how raising kids not to follow the "culture of cool" is best for them in the long run. As parents, we usually know what is best for our kids, but because it often means swimming upstream, we can be guilty of taking an easier way out. This book gives welcome support to parents who make decisions that run counter to popular ways of thinking. It was a great read. You can check out Marybeth Hicks' weekly newspaper column at...more
I love this book. I read it a couple of years ago and I'm reading it again and I think I'll be reading it every year. Great support for slowing down childhood and connecting around things that really matter. Also a good look at the issues that are coming in the next phase -- kindergarten social stress, the desire to have "cool" electronics to fit in, etc.
Somewhat related: I also ran across this list from wired of Geek Books to read your kids before age 10:
http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/03/.....more
Somewhat related: I also ran across this list from wired of Geek Books to read your kids before age 10:
http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/03/.....more
I agreed with pretty much everything Hicks had to say about keeping kids kids, not mini-adults, no matter the cost to their social life. Kids don't have to be "cool" to have great childhoods and wonderful friends, and the odds of their success are actually higher. Her writing was very conversational in tone, a little "folksy" at times. Nothing really new here, but it was nice to have some ideas affirmed - often with studies to back them up - and refreshing to hear someone not of my faith reitera...more
I LOVED this book. Many parenting books are too text book and I have to skip through and read the parts that I feel pertain to me. Not so with this book. It was an entertaining read from beginning to end. I felt vindicated for years of frustration with how some people choose to raise their children. There are people who I would LOVE to read this book, but I realize it most likely would not do a bit of good. It's more important for kids get what they want than to be brought up with values, appare...more
Marybeth Hicks is clearly a very chatty and opinionated person. She's not a child development expert, so pretty much all of her conclusions are based on her observations of her four kids. I don't mean to discount the value of that, except to say that she doesn't back things up with footnotes or the opinions or data from any other sources.
That said, a lot of the book rings true and makes a lot of sense.
But I guess her kids spend a lot of time on sleepovers. And she gets really preachy about the w...more
That said, a lot of the book rings true and makes a lot of sense.
But I guess her kids spend a lot of time on sleepovers. And she gets really preachy about the w...more
"Raising Geeks" was a difficult book to read and not at all what I expected. It validated some of my parenting style, made me unearth some deeply-held anxieties, and truly made me think -hard- about a lot of parenting issues I had so far left undecided. Although I definitely did not agree with all her assertions, reading this book made me a more confident and forward-thinking parent.
However, I hesitate to recommend this book for many, many reasons. For one thing, it was very conservatively-biase...more
However, I hesitate to recommend this book for many, many reasons. For one thing, it was very conservatively-biase...more
This book was re-affirming to me as parent. The author's parenting views and styles seem to align fairly well with mine. I agreed with almost everything she said. One exception however, is in reference to raising a news-junkie. Although I want my children to be aware of what's going on in the world, I do not agree with all of her recommendations. Perhaps living in Las Vegas gives me a tainted view, but I do not need my elementary-aged children reading about drug busts at strip clubs, and other s...more
First of all, let me just exclaim, "NO INDEX!?!?!" Who publishes non-fiction these days with NO INDEX? sheesh
Now on the to regularly scheduled review. ;)
From the introduction:
"The fact is, raising uncool children takes effort.
"We're committed to raising our children to have good characters and strong values. We are not raising them to be popular in elementary school and beyond. And the longer I'm a parent, the more I'm convinced these two goals often are mutually exclusive."
p. 13 "A child's upbr...more
Now on the to regularly scheduled review. ;)
From the introduction:
"The fact is, raising uncool children takes effort.
"We're committed to raising our children to have good characters and strong values. We are not raising them to be popular in elementary school and beyond. And the longer I'm a parent, the more I'm convinced these two goals often are mutually exclusive."
p. 13 "A child's upbr...more
3.5 STARS
The book was a decent read...mostly because it was a big pat on the back. Many ideas that we are already using and a couple good ways to extend our current parenting ideals through to high school.
The book is written very conversationally and was a fairly quick read. Divided into sections that make it easy enough to pick up and read what you were intersted it. Many references in the back to further reading.
Drawbacks - Author used the (more on this later) phrase way too much! Much anecdo...more
The book was a decent read...mostly because it was a big pat on the back. Many ideas that we are already using and a couple good ways to extend our current parenting ideals through to high school.
The book is written very conversationally and was a fairly quick read. Divided into sections that make it easy enough to pick up and read what you were intersted it. Many references in the back to further reading.
Drawbacks - Author used the (more on this later) phrase way too much! Much anecdo...more
I completely enjoyed reading this parenting book, and I agreed with 90 percent of what Hicks said. I think one of the things that made it so readable was that the author isn't a pro, she's a parent who has done her research, and who also happens to be a news columnist. Her premise (as you can read in the subtitle) is protecting your child from the "culture of cool" by parenting in such a way as to separate them from striving to conform to the standards of "coolness" today. In other words, keepin...more
This is a quick read covering many ways to keep the "culture of cool" from permeating your children. Marybeth Hicks, mother of 4, writes about the many ways we can shape our children to be balanced, happy and joyful. She addresses many topics like modesty in dress, balance in use of technology, raising a team player, the importance of honesty in all things (schoolwork, sports etc.) She does not come across as overbearing, but very balanced and I think that's why her choices go over well with her...more
This is such an awful book -- I only gave it two stars because at least spelling and grammar were correct. Who needs to read a book by some smug uber-theist soccer-mom who keeps her kids locked in a virtual closed until adulthood while she brags about their superiority over all other children she knows? Somebody who considers shyness to be willfully bad manners, and whose definition of geek is to force the kids to join team sports whether they want to or not? Worst parenting book since Anna Wahl...more
This has been on my to-read list for awhile and though it wasn't new ideas on parenting to me (we're already doing most of this) it was nice to know that we aren't the only ones who parent this way. Each chapter in the book is a rule on parenting a GEEK (genuine enthusiastic empowered kid):
Rule 1: Raise a Brainiac
Rule 2: Raise a Sheltered Kid
Rule 3: Raise an Uncommon Kid
Rule 4: Raise a Kid Adults Like
Rule 5: Raise a Late Bloomer
Rule 6: Raise a Team Player
Rule 7: Raise a True Friend
Rule 8...more
Rule 1: Raise a Brainiac
Rule 2: Raise a Sheltered Kid
Rule 3: Raise an Uncommon Kid
Rule 4: Raise a Kid Adults Like
Rule 5: Raise a Late Bloomer
Rule 6: Raise a Team Player
Rule 7: Raise a True Friend
Rule 8...more
I didn't really like the author's use of the terms "geek" and "brainiac" but I really appreciated her perspective of protecting our childrens' innocence. I am thankful for the few neighbors and friends that we have that have similar attitudes. Parenting would be easier if everyone would read this and think about what they are teaching their kids.
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