PIFE Readings

We have found the following material to be effective in helping parents. If you have other suggestions, make sure to let us know.

Compass – A Handbook on Parent Leadership by James B. Stenson, Scepter, 2003. ISBN: 1-59417-000-2
Compass summarizes the lessons and experiences of parents to help them succeed as leaders for their children. The author relates thirty years of experience with parents who have lived as great leaders in family life and have succeeded with their sacred mission: to raise their children right. How they did it and why they did it are the focus of this book: forming character, countering the consumer culture, understanding discipline and dealing with the influence of mass media. In Compass, he shares his insights about leadership in family life and how this parental guidance is vitally important. More...

Character Building: A Guide for Parents and Teachers by David Isaacs, Four Courts Press; 2nd edition, 2001. ISBN: 1851825924
An experienced parent and teacher gives practical direction on how to teach children of all ages the human virtues: generosity, fortitude, optimism, perseverance, orderliness, responsibility, respect for others, sincerity, modesty, moderation, flexibility, loyalty, industriousness, patience, justice, obedience, prudence, audacity, humility, simplicity, friendship, understanding, and patriotism. Contains questions for self-assessment and teaching tips for each virtue. [Buy from amazon.ca]

Parenting for Character - Equipping your child for life by Andrew Mullins, Finch Publishing, 2005. ISBN: 1876451661
In this book, Andrew Mullins, Headmaster of Redfield College, Sydney, Australia, argues that parents need to help build character: it does not just evolve. He explores how to encourage young people to think independently and make choices that are good for themselves and others. In his experience, young people are damaged by too readily accepting their peer group's values or messages from the media. They are able to take control of their lives once they acquire well-developed habits of thinking, decision-making and acting. The book draws on parenting principles from classical times to the present and offers advice from many sources including Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch, Confucius, Cicero, Goethe, Winston Churchill and John Paul II.

To Be a Father: 200 Promises That Will Transform You, Your Marriage, and Your Family, by Stephen Gabriel, Spence Publishing, 2006. ISBN: 189062666X
Washington economist and father of eight Stephen Gabriel delivers a short, concise, and concrete book a father can sink his teeth into. He says, "We are meant to tackle this program one promise at a time. Fortunately, most of us fathers are not so terribly inept that we have to start from scratch on all 200 promises. We are probably doing reasonably well on a number of them already. So, it's not such an onerous feat. Yet, it's good to revisit all of them from time to time and see which ones resonate. If we are sensitive to that inner voice of accusation, we'll know what we have to work on next." [Buy from amazon.ca]

Back to the Family – Proven Advice on Building a Stronger, Healthier, Happier Family by Dr. Ray Guarendy with David Eich, Fireside, 1991. ISBN: 0671745999
Dr. Guarendi focuses on the day-to-day practices and attitudes that make successful families work. It presents the voices of real people and offers solutions that really work.