Product reviews for Growing Minds

Every day we seem besieged by the ‘latest breakthrough discoveries in neuroscience’. It can feel overwhelming. Growing Minds: The Science of Raising Thriving Teens makes this abundance of findings manageable and actionable. Ancient wisdom is skillfully integrated, too. When the authors point out that teens need to know from their parents that ‘our love is non-negotiable, even in conflict’, they are sharing both good science and the deep wisdom that predates science. Throughout the book, thoughtful explanations of how the brain and nervous system work (giving us the ‘why’) are paired with practical guidance to help parents create the conditions for their teens to flourish (giving us the ‘how’). For example, if teens say that they have no friends, the book provides seven tools to change that dreadful, but increasingly common, situation. There are dozens more tools for so many issues, but also sage advice on how to use them (such as keeping rewards unpredictable) – all in the service of promoting flourishing.

If you are looking for a gift for a friend or relative raising teens, this is it! What the authors have offered to the world is a work of love of the highest order.