Parents will welcome Brazelton's uniquely empathetic, wise, and helpful approach to this inevitable and often trying issue. Toilet training is a job for the child and not the parent, and by trying to force the issue or even encourage too hard, parents can set the stage for trouble. By "listening to the child," parents will know when their child is ready, and by guiding children in a series of gentle small steps, parents can help them make the accomplishment their own. A generation and more of children have been trained "the Brazelton way," and now he and Dr. Sparrow have distilled this advice into one priceless little guide. They first lay out the Touchpoints approach to the issue (a "mistake" can mean the child is making progress on some other front), then discuss the timing of this big achievement, and finally deal with how to respond if problems occur. For parents who want to get past this issue cheerfully, with the least fuss and turmoil, this is the one and only book to get. Beloved pediatrician T. Berry Brazelton offers hope and help for parents whose bathroom has become a battleground. With co-author Dr. Joshua Sparrow, Brazelton outlines a "waiting and watching" approach to toilet training. First, parents learn to recognize "touchpoints" (developmental signs of a child’s readiness to graduate from soggy diapers) including "potty talk and play," awareness of other’s toilet habits, and the ability to imitate behavior and understand directions. Readiness is further defined by the capacity for "object permanence," allowing a child to "say good bye to poop without feeling that apart of her will disappear." Next, parents should focus on a child’s temperament. Parents are encouraged to confront "the ghosts in the nursery", by exploring how memories of their own toilet training create anxiety, pressure or overreaction. Braze! lton and Sparrow use this child-centered model to resolve a broad range of problems including bedwetting, constipation, and preschool pressure. The authors’ clear and reassuring tone could be leavened with a bit more comic relief, but it is hard to imagine a more wise or well-detailed guide to this central milestone of toddlerhood. -- Barbara Mackoff "A lifesaver...This handy guide offers up [Brazelton's] own uniquely wise, sympathetic and helpful approach...Priceless." -- Curled Up with a Good Book January 2004 "Brazelton and Sparrow constantly remind us of the joy and hilarity of parenting." -- Time "Brazelton's calm and positive approach to childrearing has earned him the title of America's most trusted pediatrician." -- MSNBC.com 01/14/04 "Essential addition to a busy parent's library." -- Publishers Weekly "Excellent...Concise, practical, age-by-age, issue-by-issue advice that provides a window into the mind of the child." -- Bookviews.com February 2004 "Gives advice for each stage of the early years, emphasizing that the child's motivation is the key to success." -- Harvard Medical School's Focus 02/06/04 "[Brazelton is] the pre-eminent name in child-rearing in this country." -- Fort Worth Star-Telegram 03/29/04 T. Berry Brazelton, MD was professor emeritus of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and adjunct professor of psychiatry, human behavior, and pediatrics at Brown University. Joshua D. Sparrow, M.D. , child psychiatrist and supervisor of inpatient psychiatry at Children's Hospital Boston, is Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, and Associate Director of Training at the Brazelton Touchpoints Center. He is co-author with Dr. Brazelton of Touchpoints Three to Six and several titles in the Brazelton Way series.