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duparker's review
3.0
A lot of good observations in this book, with some interesting connections, but I wish there was more depth to it. Rather than just dissect the title, which really says it all, I had hoped for some discussion about how to instill grit, curiosity and character into kids to help them through their education.
The book is well written, and for a deep topic it is a fast read, and is very accessible, which is nice, but I don't see a need to pick it up again.
The book is well written, and for a deep topic it is a fast read, and is very accessible, which is nice, but I don't see a need to pick it up again.
jkn303's review
3.0
The book is interesting and somewhat entertaining, but pretty long on theory and pretty short on anything practical.
mnstucki's review
4.0
I frequently take for granted what I already know by virtue of my educational and professional background. For me this book was mostly a good review of a lot of aspects of child development that I was already familiar with. I don't think any parent could go wrong by listening to it. Interestingly, some of the experts that he interviewed while writing this book have since gone on to write books of their own which are also on my TBR list, including [a:Angela Duckworth|14132767|Angela Duckworth|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1461691947p2/14132767.jpg]'s [b:Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance|27213329|Grit The Power of Passion and Perseverance|Angela Duckworth|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1632024090l/27213329._SY75_.jpg|45670634].
Merged review:
I frequently take for granted what I already know by virtue of my educational and professional background. For me this book was mostly a good review of a lot of aspects of child development that I was already familiar with. I don't think any parent could go wrong by listening to it. Interestingly, some of the experts that he interviewed while writing this book have since gone on to write books of their own which are also on my TBR list, including [a:Angela Duckworth|14132767|Angela Duckworth|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1461691947p2/14132767.jpg]'s [b:Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance|27213329|Grit The Power of Passion and Perseverance|Angela Duckworth|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1632024090l/27213329._SY75_.jpg|45670634].
Merged review:
I frequently take for granted what I already know by virtue of my educational and professional background. For me this book was mostly a good review of a lot of aspects of child development that I was already familiar with. I don't think any parent could go wrong by listening to it. Interestingly, some of the experts that he interviewed while writing this book have since gone on to write books of their own which are also on my TBR list, including [a:Angela Duckworth|14132767|Angela Duckworth|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1461691947p2/14132767.jpg]'s [b:Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance|27213329|Grit The Power of Passion and Perseverance|Angela Duckworth|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1632024090l/27213329._SY75_.jpg|45670634].
tobinlopes's review
3.0
As a parent I thought I should read this. I'm fairly glad I did. As a researcher I like to read summaries and impacts of research that isn't in my field and extremely useful.
The first half of the book was filled with details, results, and guiding principles for parents. The second half, about p. 90, was a series of stories about kids exhibiting grit and curiosity. While interesting it did seem as if Tough was simply trying to make sure to hit a word/page count in order to make a publishable book. Many of the stories could have appeared in an extended Sunday morning paper article.
Overall I was glad I read it and will apply what I learned. But like much non-fiction, the book simply didn't hold up for more than half it's length.
I gave it a 7.5/10 on my personal scale.
-tpl
The first half of the book was filled with details, results, and guiding principles for parents. The second half, about p. 90, was a series of stories about kids exhibiting grit and curiosity. While interesting it did seem as if Tough was simply trying to make sure to hit a word/page count in order to make a publishable book. Many of the stories could have appeared in an extended Sunday morning paper article.
Overall I was glad I read it and will apply what I learned. But like much non-fiction, the book simply didn't hold up for more than half it's length.
I gave it a 7.5/10 on my personal scale.
-tpl
retiredlibrarylady's review
4.0
Lots of research on how children need supportive adult relationships to succeed.
nina_rod's review
2.0
The title should be different. If you are looking for a parenting book about how children succeed, this ain't it. The author has a long list of reasons about how children don't succeed and supporting scientific studied and examples. Author basically blames single mothers, poverty, abuse and bad parenting. I eventually had to abandon the book and chalk it up to being duped by the title.