Book Review: Get Out of My Life, but First Could You Drive Me and Cheryl to the Mall?: A Parent's Guide to the New Teenager

This book review is part of a series that covers the topic of Teenagers and Parenting. Teenagers and Parents share a special kind and amount of communication, compassion, and space while a child prepares for adulthood responsibilities. Sue Atkins is the Teenagers and Parenting.nnGet Out of My Life, but First Could You Drive Me and Cheryl to the Mall?: A Parent's Guide to the New Teenager, Anthony E. Wolf, is a valuable resource for people interested in Teenagers and Parenting, and it is available through Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.nnFrom the PublishernA brand new edition of the bestselling guide to raising teenagersnWhen Anthony E. Wolf's witty and compassionate guide to raising adolescents was first published, its amusing title and fresh approach won it widespread admiration. Beleaguered parents breathed sighs of relief and gratitude. Now Dr. Wolf has revised and updated his bestseller to tackle the changes of the past decade. He points out that while the basic issues of adolescence and the relationships between parents and their children remain much the same, today's teenagers navigate a faster, less clearly anchored world. Wolf's revisions include a new chapter on the Internet, a significantly modified section on drugs and drinking, and an added piece on gay teenagers. Although the rocky and ever-changing terrain of contemporary adolescence may bewilder parents, Get Out of My Life gives them a great road map.nnnThe Chapel Hill News - Susie WildenA book that friends with adolescents have sworn is their survival bible ... One friend told me, 'I swear, it's like he was sitting in my kitchen writing down our exact words.' The dialogue and analysis are completely on-target and so full of sense ... Wolf's tone is playful, astute, and made me scurry to find his [other] book[s].nnThe Boston Globe - Beth WinshipnFunny, sound, and compassionate, Get Out of My Life will truly help you talk with your kids and not get mad all the time.nnDorothy ZeisernGet Out of My Life has Spock's common sense, the insight of Freud, and the wit of Bombeck. I welcome this book.nnJoanne M. CunardnThe collective wisdom of thirty years' experience is crystallized in Dr. Wolf's classic book with a superbly reasoned exploration of adolescence told through probing portrayals of common day-to-day family experiences. This book is easily the best escort for parents baffled by the world of their adolescent, yet hoping to understand, guide, and enjoy their child.nnPublishers WeeklynThis updated edition (a chapter on gay and lesbian teenagers and the ramifications of the electronic world have been added) will be as useful to parents as the 1992 version. Wolf, a clinical psychologist who works with adolescents (Why Did You Have to Get a Divorce? And When Can I Get a Hamster?), clearly has a feel for both the angst of young people who must deal with an evermore complex world and the difficulties parents face when a cooperative loving child morphs into a teenager who lies, talks back and avoids parental company. Humorous and insightful, Wolf describes what is, rather than what mothers and fathers of rebellious and thoughtless adolescents wish would be. He is forthright in stating that "you do not win the battle for control with teenagers... usually the best you get is imperfect control." Despite the best efforts of parents, today's adolescents frequently drink, experiment with drugs and are sexually active. According to the author, however, it is still important to have rules even though a teenager may break them. If parents clearly state their expectations of behavior and restate them when a teen disobeys, their son or daughter will, to some extent, internalize the rules and abide by them sometimes. In addition to providing excellent advice on particular situations, including divorce, school problems and stepparenting, he makes the often obnoxious manner in which teens communicate with their parents understandable as a rite of passage that they will eventually outgrow. (Aug.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information. nn