Look at these fucking review from Goddamn Ed. Cons.!!!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/159448 ... e&n=283155From a Mother of a child who was in a program & an Ed Consultant, April 10, 2006
Reviewer: Dore Frances "defrances" (Bend, Oregon) - See all my reviews
This book was a long read for me personally. It was brutal.
In my opinion, unless you are the parent of a teen who needs intervention and yuo have tried all local resources with no results, unless you have had to sit down with yourself and make that gut-wrenching decision that leaves you feeling like the bottom of the world has just dropped away, unless you have personally visited programs and schools and cried each visit because you see someone there just like your child, unless you spoke to the staff and students, and spent time doing complete background research yourself, unless you have placed your child in the hands of others and had to trust that you were leaving your child in the very best place for them at that time, unless you went through the process with your child as an involved parent and looked at your own faults, unless you celebrated with your child all their accomplishments and heard them say "Thank you for saving my life", even 5 years after they graduated, unless you spend time in this industry in one way or another, unless the very best for the child is always your first concern and priority, you really cannot, in my opinion, make an honest opinion or evaluation about this book.
In my ten years of experience as an educational consultant and child right's advocate, and twenty years as a mother, most programs and schools, adolescent escort services, therapists, and educational consultants are ethical and treat children with dignity. As in any business, and as it is in life, people are human, and will make choices and mistakes that are not always in the best interest of those they serve. That is sad, unfortunate and a fact of human behavior and life.
In the news we only hear about the boot camps that are committing horrendous mistreatment of adolescents and teens. We very rarely hear about the success stories. Any person or program that attempts to steal a soul and harm a child needs to be out of business today.
No matter how "bad" a child may behave or what choices they make to get themselves into trouble, it is never necessary to subject them to brutality of any kind or steal their worth as a human being. This book seems to bring up some very old information and not enough new information.
Again, unless you step into the shoes yourself, anyone can write anything at anytime and make it appear the way in which they feel will "sell" more books to already fragile family's in need of help.
I did not see any "realistic" alternatives to helping these families with their children. Is that the next book?
