Product Description

Jean Liedloff, an American writer, spent two and a half years in the South American jungle living with Stone Age Indians. The experience demolished her Western preconceptions of how we should live and led her to a radically different view of what human nature really is. She offers a new understanding of how we have lost much of our natural well-being and shows us practical ways to regain it for our children and for ourselves.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #343405 in Books
• Published on: 1986-01-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Customer Reviews

Hold your baby!
My husband and I read this book 9 years ago, before the birth of our son, and it spoke to our hearts. Employing the simple idea that a baby who starts life in the womb shouldn't be abruptly separated from the mother after birth, we maintained almost constant contact with him for the first few months. I was amazed at some of the resistance, resentment, even hostility, people sometimes demonstrated when informed that we slept with our newborn and never left him to cry. All their protests were based on nothing but groundless fears -- "You'll roll over and smother him! You'll 'spoil' him!" Etc. Well, he became naturally more and more independent and separate at his own pace, not an arbitrarily imposed one (that's the "continuum" part), and weaned himself from the breast at 11 months, rather than at a time decided by the "experts" or demands of employment. He is now 9 years old, and is a wonderful, happy, secure, well-adjusted boy, and I never cease getting compliments from everyone who meets him on how considerate, engaging, empathetic, kind, and well socialized he is. I credit Liedloff's book for all of this. If I could give one message to all would-be parents, I would say: Don't buy into the lie that material things are what's important to provide your child, and if you yourself are so wrapped up in financial gain that you won't temporarily sacrifice it to bond with him the first year of life, you're selling yourselves short. Invest the first 6 months to 1 year of his life raising him in your arms, and you will be giving him, and yourself, more than a billion dollars could ever buy.

This book should be on every parent's bookshelf.
This book changed the way I viewed parenting. I was fortunate enough to read it shortly before the birth of my first child, and then I read it again, and then I got rid of the crib, baby swing, feeding chair--all "necessary" baby equipment, with the exception, of course, of the car seat. My son was in contact with a loving human (myself, my husband, or his grandparents) for about 95% of his pre-crawling life, including sharing our bed at night. (At two and a half, he is making a smooth transition to his own bed.) I received countless comments from other mothers about his quietness when in arms, and his general contentment which seemed to surpass that of their children. Aside from the terrific ideas presented in this book, the writing itself is highly readable and extremely interesting. I give this book to anyone I care about who is expecting. I am eternally grateful that my midwife loaned her worn copy to me. Vive Liedloff!

I was touched by reading about my own childhood experiences
I am not a mother, but I am a doughter (26 years) and a human being. From this perspective I have the strong feeling that Jean Liedloff's findings touch the deep truth of our souls. I was an extremly difficult child for my parents to cope with. They had to get up about 10 times a night because laying alone in my bed I was screeming and vomitting. The doctor could only tell them that I was a nervous child. All my youth I lived with the belief that I was a difficult and somewhat bad child. After all, from what people would judge, I have developed into a quite decent person, anyhow. Nevertheless, I feel that Jean Liedloff's idea of holding a new born child and submitting unquestioned support and love by this, brought into action by my parents, would have saved my family a lot of stress and would have given me a much better basis for my live. Emotionally, I can remember the feeling of being left alone and I know that it still affects me in my life today. I don't know yet whether I should give the book to my mother, for she would hate herself for the way she treated me, although she always had the very best intentions. I only know that I am convinced about this way of being there for your children physically and that I will act in this way if ever I become a mother. All parents or future parents should read this book to at least be inspired to think over their ideas of parenthood. Living by Jean Liedloff's findings should not become a dogmatic rule but a support for a better direction in parenthood. What would probably be important to parents, I could imagine, is to be able to exchange their experience, to get practical hints (this is something the book could have focused on some more!), and generally to live in a society that respects and supports children and their parents more.