Field Guide to the American Teenager: A Parent's Companion - Hardcover

Riera, Michael; Diprisco, Joseph; Di Prisco, Joseph; Riera, Michael.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0738202673 ISBN 13: 9780738202679

Publisher: Da Capo Lifelong Books, 2000

Synopsis

Adolescence can be shocking and painful both to experience and, as a parent, to observe. Addressing the isolation, fear, and silence that parents endure at this developmental stage, authors Michael Riera and Joseph Di Prisco go beyond the stereotypes and expertly guide parents to a better appreciation of what they are seeing--and perhaps missing--in their teenager's frustrating if not completely troubling behavior. Through stories and conversations, Field Guide to the American Teenager dramatizes teens living their lives on their own terms and illuminates for bewildered and sometimes beleaguered parents the "extraordinary-in-the-ordinary" reality of everyday teenage life. Complete with original suggestions for how to improve parent-child communication, Field Guide lets parents stand briefly in their teenager's shoes, ultimately guiding families toward genuine mutual respect and understanding.

About this title

About the Author

Michael Riera, Ph.D., is one of the country's foremost authorities on understanding children and teenagers. Mike has written or cowritten five books related to teenagers and their parents. Currently, he is the head of the Brentwood School, an independent K-12 day school in Los Angeles.

Website: MikeRiera.com

Joseph Di Prisco, Ph.D., is an educator and writer who has taught for more than twenty years in public, independent, and Catholic schools, middle school through college. He lives in Berkeley, California.

Reviews

Seasoned educators Riera and Di Prisco cover many of the heavy-hitting topics that teens face, including drinking and driving, sexual issues, eating disorders, decision-making, violence and drugs. In fact, as the authors recognize, these issues "come with the territory of adolescence." It's not easy being a teenAor the parent of a teen. Riera and Di Prisco use an unusual format to present each issue, employing extended anecdotes and simulated conversations to illustrate each teen dilemma. This method is unique, but it may frustrate parents searching for easy answers; the truth is there are no pat answers when it comes to teens, for "every teenager is happy and moody and tense and confused in different ways." Still readers will find intelligent observations about teens; the authors have a solid grasp on what makes adolescents tick. The issue-oriented organization of the text is helpful, though each chapter's attention to the details of a particular teen's problem may leave some readers wishing that more time was spent on a general analysis of the problems all teens confront. The appendixes, which break down teen behavior into developmental characteristics, are particularly useful. The authors' over-riding themesAthat parents should influence, not control their teen's life; that teens need to be trusted, guided, and lovedAare invaluable for parents facing this challenging time in their child's life. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

A lively, wise, and user-friendly translation of bewildering teen-aged behavior.Riera is an author, educator, and media expert on adolescence and parenting (the Oxygen network and other major TV shows), while Di Prisco is a writer who has taught adolescents for decades. For all the significant issues taken up, there are realistic scenarios that provide tools for discussion. In the "Drinking and Driving" chapter, the authors tell us why the Designated Driver takes too much marijuana (offered by a girl he likes) and why his inebriated friend is willing to drive home (not miss curfew). Another frightening case involves school violence: a high school freshman hesitates to report a gun because he fears being pegged as a "narc." Other areas where teenagers test their newly expanded limits involve date rape and drug use. Riera and Di Prisco assure us that it's rarely about getting sexual release or getting high, but rather a matter of social status and self-worth. Since high-school students are unlikely to discuss problems with adults, the authors advise us to get information more subtly, from friends and peers. If communication across the generation gap is strained, we are warned that the young of different ages tend to "talk over and past each other." More common crises taken up here include academic cheating, eating disorders, clashes with a job supervisor, depression, and romantic heartbreaks. When it comes to problems that they didn't cause, like parental divorce or being born with a learning disability, young people slowly learn to accept that life isn't fair-but is survivable. Sure, parents are helpless before the mystery of their child's love life, but empathy never prevents Riera and Di Prisco from advising parents to set firm guidelines. "Parenting is not a science; it's an art": the authors avoid smug formulae and write in a colloquial, jargon-free style. -- Copyright © 2000 Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

"Field guide" sounds like a quick, index-dependent, easy-answer reference tool. Not so! Riera (Surviving High School) and Di Prisco, both educators and writers, realize that there are no easy answers to questions about raising teens. Each chapter begins with a story that could happen anywhereDe.g., a high school freshman hesitates reporting a gun for fear of being labeled a "narc"Dand includes conversations between teens and adults to help clarify these real-life incidents. The authors present solid insights into teens' motivation, weapons use, integrity, race issues, eating disorders, drinking, depression, date rape, and sexuality. Teens have sex, the authors assert, not for physical pleasure but for social status. Riera and Di Prisco understand that adolescence is a disorderly path, that peers are more important to teens than parents, and that longing for "normalcy" makes teens feel completely abnormal. This excellent work is to be thoroughly read, reread, and thought about; for public libraries.DLinda Beck, Indian Valley P.L., Telford, PA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Da Capo Lifelong Books
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0738202673
• ISBN 13: 9780738202679
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320