Becoming the Parent You Want to Be: a Sourcebook of Strategies for the First Five Years. Laura Davis & Janis Keyser, $25.95

One of our favourite books on parenting young children! Respectful, informative and inspiring, Becoming the Parent You Want to Be is full of practical insights into children and into our own journey as parents. This is a practical book that covers so much ground you'll want to read it many times over.

Beyond Time-Out: From Chaos to Calm. Beth Grosshans, $16.50

Tame tantrums, calm fears, instill good sleep habits, end food battles, overcome potty problems with this five-step program that helps you be a more effective parent and helps children feel safe, happy and confident.

Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting. Pamela Druckerman, $27.50

When American journalist Pamela Druckerman has a baby in Paris, she doesn't aspire to become a "French parent." Yet as she soon discovers, Motherhood itself is a whole different experience in France. There's no role model, as there is in America, for the harried new mom with no life of her own. French mothers assume that even good parents aren't at the constant service of their children and that there's no need to feel guilty about this. They have an easy, calm authority with their kids that Druckerman can only envy.

With a notebook stashed in her diaper bag, Druckerman, a former reporter for The Wall Street Journal, sets out to learn the secrets to raising a society of good little sleepers, gourmet eaters, and reasonably relaxed parents. She discovers that French parents are extremely strict about some things and strikingly permissive about others.  She realizes that to be a different kind of parent, you don't just need a different parenting philosophy — you need a very different view of what a child actually is.

Canada’s Toddler Care Book: a Complete Guide from 1 to 5 Years Old. Dr. Jeremy Friedman, Hospital for Sick Children, $34.95

The complete guide to health care, developmental milestones, nutrition, Canada’s Toddler Care Book addresses the common concerns that all parents have about ther toddlers and preschoolers.

Child: How Children Think, Learn and Grow in the Early Years. Desmond Morris, $35.99

Anthropologist Desmond Morris explores the world of young children aged from 2 to 5 as they emerge from toddlerhood and start out on the long road to independence. These early years are a time when the capacities for learning and sheer exuberance for life are unparalleled.  

This insightful guide contains a wealth of information about all aspects of development. Age-by-stage profiles describe growth patterns, social and emotional behavior, physical and cognitive skills. Gestures and body language are interpreted to guide the reader to a better understanding of personality and what young children are thinking and feeling. Enchanting photographs capture typical actions and reactions to everyday experiences.

Child Sense. Priscilla Dunstan, $32.00

Child Sense shows parents of young children how to use the five senses to make sleeping, eating, dressing and other everyday activities easier. Uncovering the secrets of your child’s sensory personality helps parents understand the way their child instinctively reacts to experiences, people, food, smells and more. By discovering the effects of sensory overload, parents can better understand their child’s behavior, communication and learning styles.

Dealing with Disappointment: Helping Kids Cope When Things Don't Go Their Way. Elizabeth Crary, $15.95

This practical, easy-to-read guide walks parents through the concept of emotional competency, which begins by teaching children to identify and acknowledge their feelings. It provides exercises and examples that demonstrate how children — even toddlers — can cope with their emotions, using self-calming techniques (exercise or a few minutes with a favorite book, for example) and problem-solving tools. Parents who to often find themselves overwhelmed by frustrated children will appreciate the step-by-step recommendations.

15 Minutes Outside: 365 Ways to Get Out of the House and Connect with Your Kids. Rebecca Cohen, $16.99

What if you got outside every day, and what if you could get your kids to come along? It sounds modest, but the effects, as dynamic outdoor spokesperson Rebecca Cohen herself can testify, are profound. This inspiring collection of activities gives families an idea for every day of the year, requiring little planning, no expertise and relatively little resources (time, cash, or patience!), no matter where they live. Simple and inspiring, this book is bursting with hundreds of easy ways to get your family out into nature a little bit every day.

50 Fantastic Things to Do with Pre-Schoolers. Sally & Phill Featherstone, $27.00

Playtime is fun time — and it offers lots of opportunities for preschoolers to learn. Each activity in this fun book features related facts about your child’s development and suggestions for more delightful ideas that will encourage exploration of their world.

From Crib to Kindergarten: the Essential Child Safety Guide. Dorothy Drago, $17.00

From Crib to Kindergarten is an essential guide for parents, grandparents, teachers, caregivers and babysitters. Illustration, checklists and critical information are provided on creating safe environments and dealing with daily activities.

Help! There’s a Toddler in the House. Thomas Reimers, $18.95

Proven strategies to survive and thrive through the mischief, mayhem and meltdowns.

How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk, 30th Anniversary Edition. Adele Faber & Elaine Mazlish, $18.99; Audiobook (CD format) $39.99

Updated with new insights from the next generation, this bestselling book gives you the know-how you need to be more effective with your children — and more supportive of yourself.

The down-to-earth, respectful approach of Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish makes relationships with children of all ages less stressful and more rewarding. Now, in this revised edition, Faber and Mazlish share their latest insights and suggestions based on feedback they've received over the years. Their methods of communication — illustrated with delightful cartoons showing the skills in action—offer innovative ways to solve common problems.

A practical and informative handbook, filled with examples of everyday problem situations and concerns. The Incredible Years provides guidelines to help parents deal with behavioral problems of children aged 3-8 years.

Webster-Stratton's book is frequently used as the basic text in parent education groups.

Is It a Big Problem or a Little Problem? When to Worry, When Not to Worry, and What to Do. Amy Egan, Amy Freedman, Judi Greenberg, & Sharon Anderson, $17.95

As a parent, you know that differences in children’s learning styles and temperaments are a given. However, when problem behaviors become the ‘norm’ for a child, a red flag should go up. If they affect a child’s ability to be happy, relate to others, and go about his daily life, there may be a real problem. Is It a Big Problem or a Little Problem is your road map through these ups and downs of early childhood.

Keeping Your Child in Mind. Claudia Gold, $17.50

Overcoming defiance, tantrums and other everyday behavior problems by seeing the world through your child's eyes.

Keys to Parenting Your Anxious Child, 2nd Edition. Katharina Manassis, $10.99

Still the most-popular, accessible and comprehensive guide to the entire range of childhood anxieties, the specific problem behaviours associated with anxiety, and the appropriate strategies for supporting anxious children.

How do children learn about the world around them? They touch, taste, see, smell and hear it, of course! With over 200 activities, Learning Games will delight children as they expand their learning by engaging all of their senses. The chapters are organized by each of the five senses, with a bonus chapter of multi-sensory activities.

Love Bombing: Reset Your Child’s Emotional Thermostat. Oliver James, $18.50

LOVE BOMBING is a radical new method for resetting the emotional thermostats of troubled children, setting them on a much happier trajectory. It is simple to do, easily explained, and works for both severe and mild problems from aged three to the early teens. 

Each chapter is about LOVE BOMBING a specific difficulty that children often experience, illustrated with cases drawn from real life. Problems described include temper tantrums, refusing to go to school, sleep problems, hyperactivity, clinging, and shyness. LOVE BOMBING offers a simple, inexpensive, and relatively trouble-free way for parents to engage with their children, resolve underlying troubles, and help them to enjoy the best childhood they can. Along the way, the author brings in a range of scientific evidence regarding each issue, its causes and solutions.

When the kids are bored and acting up, wise parents will keep their cool with this clever collection of silly, unexpected and fun games, facts and activities designed to entertain kids aged 2–7. Mama's Little Book of Tricks features more than 100 clever ideas for simple and inexpensive activities that are appropriate for restaurants, the supermarket, the doctor’s office, camping trips and long plane or car rides.

Nature’s Playground: Activities, Crafts and Games to Encourage Children to Get Outdoors. Fiona Danks & Jo Schofeld, $21.95

This wonderful book leads parents, teachers and children through fields, across streams, and over mountains. From making a dam with sticks and stones to cairn lanterns on the beach at night, Nature’s Playground is packed with activities, games, crafts and adventures that will bring children outdoors for year-round fun and bring back memories of one of the chief joys of childhood for adults — exploring the natural world.

The No-Cry Discipline Solution: Gentle Ways to Encourage Good Behavior Without Whining, Tantrums & Tears. Elizabeth Pantley, $20.95

Practical and specific, The No-Cry Discipline Solution shows you how to deal with your child's behavior. Written with warmth and based on one important fact — parents know their children best — Elizabeth Pantley shows you how to deal with childhood's most common behavioral problems.

The No-Cry Separation Anxiety Solution. Elizabeth Pantley, $19.95

Gentle ways to make good-bye easy, from six months to six years.

No More Misbehavin’: 38 Difficult Behaviors and How to Stop Them. Michelle Borba, $15.99

Parenting expert Dr. Michele Borba tackles the most common bad behaviors that kids ages 3 to 12 repeat over and over, behaviors that drive parents crazy. In this enormously useful, simple-to-use book she shows how to change these behaviors for good. For each negative behavior, Dr. Borba offers a series of key tips and guidelines and outlines a step-by-step plan for a customized makeover that really works! Using the steps outlined in NO MORE MISBEHAVIN' will give you the help you need to raise kids with strong values and good character.

1-2-3 Magic: Effective Discipline for Children 2-12 Workbook. Thomas Phelan & Tracy Lewis, $17.95

This user-friendly manual includes chapter reviews, case studies, self-evaluation questions and planning exercises to help parents get the most out of the 1-2-3 Magic program.

Parenting From the Inside Out: How a Deeper Self-Understanding Can Help You Raise Children Who Thrive. Daniel Siegel & Mary Hartzell, $16.50

Drawing on research in neurobiology, attachment theory and child development, authors Siegel and Hartzell explore the extent to which our childhood experiences shape the way we parent. They explain how these early relationships affect the development of the brain and offer parents a step-by-step approach to forming a deeper understanding of their own life stories that will help them in raising compassionate and resilient children.

Parenting Preschoolers with a Purpose: Caring for Your Kids & Yourself. Jolene Roehlkepartain, $18.95

Parenting Preschoolers with a Purpose offers refreshing suggestions for parents of 3–5 year olds.

With innovative approaches to 40 common challenges, Roehlkepartain offers a fresh perspective on preschooler-specific difficulties such as bed-wetting, sibling rivalry and lying. Parenting Preschoolers with a Purpose teaches parents how to build a web of support with their family, friends and community to promote the physical, social and emotional well-being of both child and parent. Roehlkepartain discusses 15 common issues that parents face, such as sleep deprivation and boredom, and provides simple, effective solutions to each adult dilemma.

Parenting Through Crisis: Helping Kids in Times of Loss, Grief and Change, Barbara Coloroso, $22.00

When families are facing crisis, parents struggle with how to best nurture and support their children. PARENTING THROUGH CRISIS offers practical guidance through difficult situations and shows caring adults what they can do to help children facing trauma or loss. Barbara Coloroso's deep love and respect for children once again shine in her compassionate look at parenting during times of chaos and uncertainty.

Planning with Kids: a Guide to Organizing the Chaos and Making Time for Family Fun. Nicole Avery, $37.95

Family life can be chaotic. This book will show you how to organize the chaos and have time left over to actually enjoy being a parent.

Positive Discipline for Preschoolers. Jane Nelsen et al, $18.99

Caring for young children is one of the most challenging tasks an adult will ever face. No matter how much you love your child, there will be moments filled with frustration, anger, and even desperation. Over the years, millions of parents just like you have come to trust the Positive Discipline series and its commonsense approach to child-rearing. Now completely updated to report the latest research in child development and learning, POSITIVE DISCIPLINE FOR PRESCHOOLERS will teach you how to raise a child who is responsible, respectful, and resourceful. This revised and updated third edition includes information from the latest research on neurobiology, diet and exercise, gender differences and behavior, the importance of early relationships and parenting, and new approaches to parenting in the age of mass media. In addition, this book offers new information on reducing anxiety and helping children feel safe in troubled times.

Practical Parenting Tips: Over 1,500 of the Best ‘It Worked for Me’ Ideas. Vicki Lansky, $15.95

This collection of down-to-earth ideas for new parents — from experienced parents — offers suggestions for everything from coping with colic to sibling jealousy.  If you’re looking for tips on how get baby to sleep, or travel with toddlers, or please a picky eater, look no further. These tried and true tips have worked for parents just like you.

The Preschooler Problem Solver: Tackling Tough and Tricky Transitions with Your Two to Five Year Old. Carol Baicker-McKee, $19.95

Learn to make the most of these magical years by helping your child successfully negotiate new situations and to manage their expectations — and yours!

Red Flags or Red Herrings? Predicting Who Your Child Will Become. Susan Engel, $27.99

Susan Engel draws on her years of experience as a developmental psychologist, educator, and mother to help parents stop worrying about their young children's future and stop trying to control their formative years. Offering an intriguing way of thinking about child development, she uses both personal and professional research to identify problematic behaviors that require intervention and gives reassurance about those that don't. Unlike many parenting experts, Engel encourages perspective and acceptance: rambunctious children will calm down as they find activities to absorb their intellectual energy; similarly, as shy kids grow, they will learn how to reach out to others on a one-to-one level.

Engel provides straightforward guidance about issues of major concern for parents — happiness, intelligence, love, and morality — while blending stories about real children with relevant and up-to-the-minute social and clinical research.

Roots of Empathy: Changing the World Child by Child. Mary Gordon, $19.95

Mary Gordon, an educator who has worked for more than two decades with children from all kinds of backgrounds, believes that the solution to bullying and other anti-social behaviour lies within each child's innate sense of caring and compassion. She believes that infusing children with empathy constitutes nothing less than a new paradigm in our approach to child-raising.

Through Roots of Empathy, her highly successful organization, Mary Gordon creates a rich, rewarding classroom experience that fosters empathy within children. The program brings babies and students together in a symbiotic loving environment that has been proven to reduce aggression and increase tolerance and emotional understanding in children. Roots of Empathy has reached over 500,000 children worldwide. Founder Mary Gordon’s contribution has been recognized with the Order of Canada, the David E. Mitchell Award of Distinction, and has given her the opportunity to dialogue with His Holiness the Dalai Lama on three separate occasions.

In ROOTS OF EMPATHY: CHANGING THE WORLD CHILD BY CHILD the innovative and inspired book based on her groundbreaking research and successful classroom program, Mary Gordon shares her vision of a nation of compassionate and caring children who will pass on their legacy of empathy to their own children.

From pre-trip planning to dealing with challenges along the way, The Rough Guide to Travel with Babies and Young Children is the ultimate comprehensive guide to hassle-free family travel … The guide comes complete with listings of resources, websites and further reading, plus handy checklists, first-hand stories and advice from travel industry experts and parents who've been there and done it.

Sidestepping the Power Struggle: a Manual for Effective Parenting. Alison Miller & Allison Rees, $35.00

Sidestepping the Power Struggle is a comprehensive, detailed and extremely readable guide to parenting. While it is fun and easy to read, it brings a large measure of hope to those many parents who sometimes are at their wits’ end. Sidestepping the Power Struggle helps parents to understand their child’s inborn temperament. Understanding a child’s true nature makes deciding how to deal with the everyday problems and the major problem much less stressful. For parents who want to make a difference, this book is a well-balanced blend of theory, practical ideas and appropriate anecdotes.

Teach Your Tot to Sign: the Parents’ Guide to American Sign Language. Stacy Thompson, $14.50

Research has shown that very young children can learn sign language before they learn to speak. Teach Your Tot to Sign: the Parents’ Guide to American Sign Language provides parents and teachers the opportunity to teach more than 500 basic American Sign Language (ASL) signs to their infants, toddlers, and young children. Hearing children, deaf children, and children with special needs can benefit from learning the elementary signs chosen for this handy pocket-size book. The book features fundamental signs of great appeal to young children and concise instructions on how to sign; including the critical importance of facial expression. This lively assortment of signs will help every child convey … their thoughts, feelings, and desires to their parents and teachers.

Time-In Parenting. Otto Weininger, $16.95

Time-In Parenting explores the ways in which parents can share their own emotional control in order to teach children self-control, life and problem solving skills. These ‘time in’ sessions help children learn that their parents are not afraid of their emotions and know how to handle them, giving children a feeling of self-confidence and security.

Unconditional Parenting: Moving from Rewards and Punishments to Love and Reason. Alfie Kohn, $17.00; DVD $28.95

Unconditional Parenting addresses the ways parents think about, feel about, and act with their children. It invites them to question their most basic assumptions about raising kids while offering a wealth of practical strategies for shifting from a "doing to" to "working with" style of parenting — including how to replace praise with the unconditional support that children need to grow into healthy, caring, responsible people. This is an eye-opening, paradigm-shattering book that will reconnect readers to their own best instincts and inspire them to become better parents.

• Unconditional Parenting is going to make you think — hard — about the type of relationship you want to have with your child, about your parenting priorities, and about how to avoid many of the mistakes of our predecessors. It's what we've come to expect from Alfie Kohn, and this is unquestionably one of his most persuasive, important works. For your sake and your child's…read it!"

- Ross W. Greene, The Explosive Child

• This book underscores an important parenting principle: Discipline is more about having the right relationship with your child than having the right techniques."

- William Sears, The Baby Book and The Discipline Book

• I found myself wanting to underline every other sentence of Unconditional Parenting, which is different from — and a refreshing challenge to — most other books about raising children. It's entertaining enough so that you can read it quickly, but it's so packed with thought-provoking ideas that you'll want to take your time."

- Barbara Coloroso, Kids Are Worth It!

Unplugged Play: No Batteries – No Plugs – Pure Fun. Bobbi Conner, $21.50

710 games and activities for ages 12 months to 10 years that stretch the imagination, spark creativity, build strong bodies and forge deep friendships.

What to Expect the Second Year: From 12 to 24 Months. Heidi Murkoff, with Sharon Mazel, $18.95

From the first birthday to the second, this book guides you in everything you need to know about caring for, nurturing, understanding and keeping up with your toddler:

• Feeding picky eaters
• Solving sleep issues
• Early language
• Tempering tantrums
• Cultivating curiosity and play
• Keeping your toddler safe and healthy
• Understanding toddler behavior and development

When You’re About to Go Off the Deep End, Don’t Take Your Kids With You. Kelly Nault, $19.99

A step-by-step guide to permanently eliminate chaos and frustration in your home and unleash the “ultimate mom” within you.

Why Do Kids Do That? A Practical Guide to Positive Parenting. Richard Woolfson, $23.95 Packed with practical strategies for dealing with common childhood problems, this easy-to-use illustrated guide helps parents to understand children's behavior from ages two to eight.

The Wiggle & Giggle Busy Book: 365 Fun, Physical Activities for Toddlers & Preschoolers. Trish Kuffner, $11.95

The Preschooler’s Busy Book: 365 Creative Learning Games and Activities to Keep Your 3 to 6 Year Old Busy. Trish Kuffner, $11.95

These Busy Books by Trish Kuffner are packed with creative, fun, simple activities to keep toddlers and preschoolers busy. Terrific alternatives to watching TV or playing video games, the books show parents and care providers how to encourage physical, emotional and cognitive growth and stimulate a child’s natural curiosity.

You Are Your Child’s First Teacher: Encouraging Your Child's Natural Development from Birth to Age Six, 3rd Edition. Rahima Baldwin Dancy, $20.99

Some of the most important learning years happen before your child reaches school. From language and cognitive development, to appropriate toys and nourishing your child’s creativity, this classic book speaks for a rational approach to child-rearing — one that helps children to be children.

YOU Raising Your Child: the Owner’s Manual from First Breath to First Grade. Michael Roizen & Mehmet Oz, $28.99

There’s little doubt that parenting can be one of the most rewarding and satisfying experiences you’ll ever have. But it can be plenty tough, too: Around the clock, you’re working to keep your little one healthy, teach her the difference between right and wrong, and make sure none of her little fingers find their way to the electrical outlets, the dog’s nose, or grandpop’s cup of coffee. Drs. Mehmet Oz and Michael Roizen, the New York Times #1 bestselling authors of the YOU health series, help you navigate the often tricky journey of parenting with the ultimate guide to raising a happy, healthy child.

Your Child's Dog: How to Help Your Kids Care for Their Pets. Andrea McHugh, $16.95

This straightforward guide features step-by-step advice on teaching a child to care for and train a dog. Using examples and step-by-step photographs, Your Child's Dog explains how to respond to a dog's needs while at the same time raising a well-socialized and well-behaved companion pet.