• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: HCI (September 1, 2010)

The debate between helicopter parents versus free-range parents causes confusion for parents who want to find the middle ground while raising independent kids, without being wracked with worry and guilt. Somewhere between Free Range Kids and Perfect Madness is the need for a book that addresses how to parent with common sense in our culture of paranoia. The Paranoid Parent’s Guide is that book.

When surveyed by the author Christie Barnes, 75 percent of parents said they worried about “everything” when it came to their kids. Things like: Is this really the right school?  Will that splinter get infected?  Will they get kidnapped playing in the front yard? Or the mall?  Is my fifth-grader ready for sex-ed at school? Do we need a tutor?  Is my child gifted?  How could we forget the sight words we practiced this summer? Do I need to buy organic everything?

Paranoid Parents founder Christie Barnes knows the truth: Most parents are wasting their time and energy worrying about the wrong things. Based on information gleened from years of research, she will give parents a much-needed reality check, opening their eyes to thereal dangers lurking that are more likely to impact their children—and what they can do about them.

She will help paranoid parents to come clean about their biggest fears, reveal the true dangers their kids face at every stage as opposed to the Myth Makers, and offer realistic ways to safeguard their kids without stealing their childhoods.  By rallying against a culture of fear with the facts, the Paranoid Parents Guide will help moms and dads enjoy parenthood more, and allow their kids develop the healthy straits of resiliency, independence, and good decision making that are essential—yet lacking—in today’s society.  So stop worrying about a shark attack…because your child is more likely to be injured by a shopping cart. Think that ice hockey is more dangerous than cheering? Think again. Stop spending sleepless nights worried about stranger danger and learn why child-proofing your house is actually a very bad idea.

As Barnes will prove, it’s easier to enjoy parenthood when you are prepared; not paranoid.

About Christie Barnes

Christie Barnes was happily married to Peter Barnes, the screenwriter of some of America’s most beloved films, including the Oscar-nominated Enchanted April, and popular TV movies Merlin, Arabian Nights, A Christmas Carol, and Alice In Wonderland. One day he was walking in the park with their one-year-old triplets and four-year-old daughter; the next day tragedy struck and he died of a stroke. Suddenly Christie, who had worked with her husband in film and television as a writer, had to take charge of their large young family, guiding them through all the perceived dangers and real fears in life. From her experience as a mother, and speaking to other (over)worried parents, she opened the Paranoid Parents storefront in Denver in 2004 where she sells parenting products and holds workshops. She has been interviewed by the San Francisco Chronicle and The New York Post.

Christie writes and blogs at ParanoidParentsGuide.com.

Christie Barnes TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Wednesday, September 8th:  Overstuffed

Thursday, September 9th:  The Prissy Mommy Chronicles

Monday, September 13th:  Juggling Life

Wednesday, September 15th:  Suzie QTPie’s Scraps of Life

Thursday, September 17th:  JDaniel4′s Mom

Wednesday, September 22nd:  Book Dads

Monday, September 27th:  Red Headed Book Child

Wednesday, September 29th:  Baby Dickey

Monday, October 4th:  Eternal Lizdom

Wednesday, October 6th:  From Marriage to Motherhood

Rock Your Routine and Be the Happiest Mommy on the Block

Moms will concur—routines and creative ideas help your day and save your sanity. And once you’ve established a routine that works, the inclination is to stick with it until the kids are off to college. But sometimes the rigidity of a ‘tight ship’ doesn’t allow much time for good-old fashioned, spur-of-the-moment fun. Well, hang on to your itinerary because here comes Eat, Nap, Play!

Written by moms for moms, this timely guide centers on back-to-basics philosophies: spend quality time with your kids and spend less money. But this is not a guilt trip—it’s a fun-filled adventure. Jam-packed with clever, cost-effective, low-maintenance, often nostalgic ideas you can easily slip into your existing routine, Eat, Nap, Play shows you how to turn everyday mayhem into precious moments to build memories, foster growth, strengthen bonds, and just have fun.

• Simple trips to the mall or grocery store transform into treasure troves of adventure
• Beat boredom in unique and unexpected ways while in the car or on the go
• Find out how to plan the perfect, age-appropriate parties for less
• Get the most out of the latest technology and discover a ton of useful websites along the way
• Plus, unearth cash-free ways for kids to learn, socialize, and grow into independent and resilient people

About the authors:

A woman of impressive literary and media accomplishments, Robyn Spizman is one of the leading how-to and inspirational voices in the gift-giving world.  As a New York Times bestselling author (August, 2008), she is the founder of www.TheGiftionary.com, a gift guide from a to z featuring a galaxy of gifts.  Robyn has written dozens of books and reports weekly on consumer topics, gifts and giving.  She has shared solid how-to tips for moms and creative gift-giving advice for almost three decades on many of America’s leading talk shows, including repeated appearances on NBC’s Today Show, MSNBC, CNN, Home Matters, The Discovery Channel, CNN Headline News, CNNfn, Talk Back Live, Good Day New York, New York One, CNBC and numerous ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox affiliates across the U.S.

Evelyn Sacks is a born communicator who parlayed an early ability to write and speak clearly into a successful 35-year career.  The ghost writer of four works of nonfiction, she is an accomplished lifestyle and business writer who has worked for leading companies including Kimberly-Clark, Coca-Cola and Pfizer.  Whether she is writing on wellness, assisting a celebrity with an autobiographical memoir or crafting a speech for a Fortune 500 CEO, the goal is clean, convincing communication. She and Robyn Spizman have collaborated on a number of projects and enjoy sharing one another’s gifts and talents.

TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS for Eat, Nap, Play:

Monday, April 5th:  Simply Stacie

Monday, April 12th:  lit*chick

Tuesday, April 13th:  Red Headed Book Child

Thursday, April 15th:  Turning the Clock Back

Monday, April 19th:  Devourer of Books

Tuesday, April 20th:  The Activity Mom

Wednesday, April 21st:  There’s a Book

Thursday, April 22nd:  Heir to Blair

Monday, April 26th:  Southern Institute of Domestic Arts & Crafts

Wednesday, April 28th:  It’s a Crazy, Beautiful Life

Date TBD:  JDaniel4′s Mom

Stop Entitlement Issues in Their Tracks and Take Back Your Parental Power

Who’s In Charge? Parents have become afraid to say ‘no’ to their children’s demanding behavior. In Give Me, Get Me, Buy Me, Donna Corwin helps parents take back power by stopping overindulgence, and getting their child’s demanding behavior in check. She uses psychological methods of mirroring children with positive versus indulgent actions, correct versus incorrect responses and techniques. There is a discussion of the media’s role in our lives and its influence over children’s behavior. This book will show parents how to create positive role models—and set limits on self involved children. How to teach kids about values, money and manners. And most important – that entitlement is not synonymous with having money.

About Donna

Donna Corwin is a national parenting spokesperson for Plus Media’s Satellite Media and Live Television tours. She has appeared on over fifty national news and morning shows, including Fox News, NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, Newswatch, and the Daily Buzz. Corwin has also appeared as a parenting guest expert on numerous television and radio shows, including Oprah Winfrey’s Oxygen Network, The Rolanda Watts Show, The Other Half, Home and Family, and several times as a parenting expert on The Leeza Show, Good Morning Denver, Good Morning Utah, ABC radio and Parents Journal on NPR. Corwin’s articles on parenting have appeared in several national magazines. She has been a lecturer on parenting issues for the Motion Picture Wellness Program and the Educational Records Bureau (ErB) convention. Corwin has written eight parenting books including the bestselling Time-Out for Toddlers, now in its twentieth printing.

Donna Corwin’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Tuesday, March 2nd: This Full House

Thursday, March 4th: Overstuffed

Monday, March 8th: Books on the Brain

Tuesday, March 9th: The Book Faery Reviews

Wednesday, March 10th: Joe Taxpayer

Thursday, March 11th: Not That You Asked

Monday, March 15th: Suburb Sanity

Tuesday, March 16th: Trapped Between a Scream and a Hug

Thursday, March 18th: Just SO

Monday, March 22nd: The Sound You Hear is… Living!

Thursday, March 25th: Enemy of Debt

Monday, March 29th: Fiscal Fizzle

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Crown; 1 edition (September 22, 2009)

The summer before entering sixth grade, Sammy, a bright and charming boy who lived on the coast of Maine, suddenly began to exhibit disturbing behavior. He walked and ate with his eyes shut, refused to bathe, burst into fits of rage, slithered against walls, and used his limbs instead of his hands to touch light switches, doorknobs, and faucets.

Sammy’s mother, Beth, already coping with the overwhelming responsibility of raising three sons alone, watched helplessly as her middle child descended into madness. Sammy was soon diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and later with Tourette syndrome. Unwilling to accept the doctors’ prognoses for lifelong mental illness and repeated hospitalizations, Beth fought to uncover what was causing this decline. Racing against time as Sammy slipped further from reality, Beth’s quest took her to the center of the medical community’s raging debate about whether mental illness can be caused by infection. With the battle lines firmly drawn, Beth searched until she found two cutting-edge doctors who answered that question with a definitive yes. Together, they cured Sammy. Five years later, he remains symptom free.

Driven by her desire to help others, Beth Maloney has infused every page of this triumphant journey with heart and passion. An important story, Saving Sammy is part manifesto, part medical mystery, but is at its heart the empowering and inspiring story of a mother’s determination to save her son, take on the medical establishment–and win.

Beth Maloney

About Beth

Beth Maloney is a successful Maine attorney. In addition to representing writers and producers, her practice has focused on representing the best interests of children as their Court appointed Guardian ad Litem, primarily in cases of neglect and abuse. Before moving to Maine, the author was an executive and attorney in the entertainment business in Los Angeles, where it was her good fortune to work with a number of creative and athletic stars. Her experience includes serving as Vice-President of Legal Affairs for Orion Pictures Corporation, producing motion pictures, and handling matters in private practice for celebrity entertainers and athletes including Johnny Carson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Shaquille O’Neal. SAVING SAMMY is Ms. Maloney’s first book.

Visit the Saving Sammy website HERE.

Click HERE to view the video from the author’s recent appearance on the Today Show.

Beth Maloney’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:

Thursday, November 5th: Bloggin’ ’bout Books

Monday, November 9th: One Person’s Journey Through a World of Books

Tuesday, November 10th: not that you asked

Wednesday, November 11th: Overstuffed

Thursday, November 12th: It’s All a Matter of Perspective: Mine

Tuesday, November 17th: Park City Girl

Wednesday, November 18th: Redlady’s Reading Room

Monday, November 23rd: Book Chatter

Tuesday, November 24th: A Nut in a Nutshell

Monday, December 7th: Rundpinne