Parenting coaches, ergonomic strollers, music classes,
sleep consultants, luxury diaper creams, a never-ending
rotation of DVDs that will make a baby smarter, socially
adept, and bilingual before age three. Time-strapped,
anxious parents hoping to provide the best for their baby
are the perfect mark for the “parenting” industry.
In Parenting, Inc., Pamela Paul investigates the whirligig
of marketing hype, peer pressure, and easy consumerism that
spins parents into purchasing overpriced products and
raising overprotected, overstimulated, and over-provided-
for children. Paul shows how the parenting industry has
persuaded parents that they cannot trust their children’s
health, happiness, and success to themselves. She offers a
behind-the-scenes look at the baby business so that any
parent can decode the claims—and discover shockingly
unuseful products and surprisingly effective services. And
she interviews educators, psychologists, and parents to
reveal why the best thing for a baby is to break the cycle
of self-recrimination and indulgence that feeds into
overspending.
Paul’s book leads the way for every parent who wants to
escape the spiral of fear, guilt, competition, and
consumption that characterizes modern American parenthood.
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