Reviews - Achtung Baby: An American Mom on the German Art of Raising Self-Reliant Children

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82 reviews for:

Achtung Baby: An American Mom on the German Art of Raising Self-Reliant Children

This was a fascinating look at both the German family dynamic and Germany as a country. There are definitely things I agree with and would like to implement, some of which I unfortunately can't due just to location or living in the states. But a lot of good information and things to keep in mind.
It reminded me of Sarah Moss memoir Names for the Sea but with more of a focus on the raising of children, if you liked that one you may enjoy this one.

andreairashea's review against another edition

4.0

I loved this book! Could have used a little more humour, and it was very focused on Berlin, but what thorough research! I'm thinking I need to do a presentation based on this with my colleagues in our family center...

bbergher's review against another edition

4.0

It takes a while to get going, but when the author starts to talk about how Germans approach fear in all of its forms, it becomes extremely valuable. I took many ideas (and quotes) from it.
The book is a bit too anchored on the school system and experience though, which makes it less relatable or actionable than it could for someone not living in Germany (compare it to Raising Bebé, which is similar, but in France).
Still, a light and worthwhile read.

overbookedmama's review

4.0

In Achtung Baby, Zaske recounts some of the differences she noticed between German and American parenting while raising young children in Berlin. She seems to prefer the German method of parenting that is based in giving children more freedom to encourage self-reliance. However, she points out that letting go of parental control is still something all parents struggle with, it is just more culturally accepted and encouraged in Germany. There are a lot of elements of Zaske’s take on German parenting that I hope to incorporate into my own parenting. Letting go of the need to be a helicopter parent will allow for more joy and less stress in our family life.

ln2's review against another edition

4.75

informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

ladyadventurings's review against another edition

3.0

I thought this might be a breezy collection of stories about raising children in Berlin, but it actually was a quite extensive, well-researched and thoughtful book covering almost all thinkable topics of raising kids and the comparison between USA and Germany. There is lots a parent could take away from this as it is essentially a parenting book, but also could be very useful for internationally-minded childhood educators.

chrissyd40d9's review against another edition

4.0

This book convinced me that I'm not crazy to think my child is capable of walking to and from school by himself, and now we have a goal to look forward to together.

alexieaaron's review against another edition

5.0

When I first started reading "Achtung Baby" I thought I’d just skim it and see where and how I screwed up rising my kids. What happened instead was that I was drawn into the book. I think it’s the way Sara uses her own experiences, her conquests and failures, to illustrate the differences in the way the United States and Germany were educating their young children. Her words and descriptions put me beside her family, where I witnessed each developmental stage with them and started to understand why Germany is teaching their youngest citizens this way.

This book backs up the methods explained with studies and articles by the leading authorities in their fields. Sara includes them in such a way not to drag down the reading.

"Achtung Baby" raises some very important questions and could be used to start a discourse about lessening our helicopter-parenting style and bringing back the joy of learning for our children.