With children being raised in orphanages and institutions around the world, many people believe that these circumstances cannot produce a child who is emotionally stable and developmentally balanced. However, a pediatrician named Emmi Pikler studied children raised outside of the family unit and came up with a method that creates comforting, supportive environments for children who for one reason or another must be raised away from their relatives. In this book, a series of guidelines and methods influenced by Pikler are presented to help those running children’s homes and institutions to provide adequate, effective care for children from infancy on up. Using plenty of data and real-world examples, the authors make their case clear in the hopes that every child in the world can be raised with love and support no matter what their circumstances are.

Full of photos, testimonials, and plenty of citations, the authors have this book as proof of their dedication to the mission of raising children with love and affection. Beginning with the history of Pikler and the various accomplishments of the worldwide Pikler Institute, readers can get a feel for what the methodology that inspires this book is. The second part is a Bill of Rights of sorts called the Declaration of Rights of Young Children Living in Children’s Homes. Each chapter in this useful and informative section identifies one of these rights and how caregivers can provide them for their children. The final section is a collection of studies and first-hand accounts of those who use Pikler-style caregiving to take care of children in countries like Ecuador, Nepal, and Uganda. While the book may seem to be limited to those working as caregivers at first glance, there is a wealth of great information even for parents fortunate enough to raise their own children.

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