Even more Good Touch, Bad Touch.

I read three more sexual abuse prevention books this week. The Trouble with Secrets by Karen Johnsen simply describes situations where it is okay or not okay to keep secrets. The purpose of this book makes sense to me. I can see how teaching sexual abuse prevention may leave children feeling unsure about which secrets are okay to keep and which aren't. However, I want a book that more explicity addresses the problem. All in all, this book was okay. I didn't love it, but I would feel perfectly comfortable reading it to my child.

Something happened and I'm Scared to Tell by Patricia Kehoe is designed to be read to a child when you suspect child abuse. Thus, the entire book is geared toward getting the child to tell what happened. Because of this, I can't recommend it as a general sexual abuse prevention book but I do think it would help a child feel comfortable sharing a secret.

Your Body Belongs to You by Cornelia Spelman is very similar to It's My Body except that it more explicity talks about private parts, and the only situations where it is okay for someone to touch them. Because of that, I like it better than It's My Body and have already read it several times to my 20 month old. She likes it a lot and will request it over and over again.

In conclusion, I am planning to purchase Your Body Belongs to You and A Very Touching Book for our personal library.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

I read this book several weeks ago but have been waiting to post because I couldn't figure out why I didn't like it. And the truth is, I still am not sure. The advice he gives is okay, I guess. But the whole book seems a little trite. I feel bad even saying that because I know that Pausch really is dying, and doing the best he can to cope with a horrible situation but the light hearted approach of the book left me craving more.