Arguing: Deal with It Word by Word. Elaine Slavens & Steven Murray, $12.95 (ages 10 and up)

Arguing: Deal with It Word by Word helps adolescents cope with conflicts in everyday life and aims to promote peaceful homes, schools and communities.

Babyproofing Your Marriage: How to Laugh More and Argue Less As Your Family Grows. Stacie Cockrell, Cathy O'Neill & Julia Stone, $18.50

Babyproofing Your Marriage is the warts-and-all truth about how having children can affect your relationship. The authors' evenhanded approach to both sides of the marital equation allows partners to understand each other in a whole new way. With humor, compassion, and practical advice, the Babyproofers will guide first-time parents and veterans alike around the rocky shores of the early parenting years.

Being at Your Best When Your Kids Are at Their Worst: Practical Compassion in Parenting. Kim John Payne, $25.95

When children are at their most difficult and challenging situations arise, how can we react in a way that reflects our family values and expectations? Often, when children “push our buttons,” we find ourselves reacting in ways that are far from our principles, often further inflaming a situation. When our children are at their worst, they need us to be at our best — or as close to it as we can be. Educator and family counselor Kim John Payne, author of Simplicity Parenting, offers techniques that simply and directly shift these damaging patterns in communication and parental behavior. These grounded and practical strategies will help you:

• Slow down the interaction
• Be more in control of your reactions
• Open up a much wider range of helpful responses
• Sense what your child’s deeper needs are even though they are misbehaving
• Respond in a way that gives your child a feeling of being heard and still puts a boundary in place

Payne’s meditative approach can be done anywhere, anytime; it lifts you out of old, unwanted patterns of action-reaction and prepares you so that the voice you speak with is closer to the parent you want to be. His concrete and simple techniques can help you, and your children, be at your best, even in the most challenging of times.

Born for Love: Why Empathy is Essential — and Endangered. Maia Szalavitz & Bruce Perry, $19.99

Born For Love examines how empathy develops — or fails to develop — from birth through adulthood and what we can do to increase this vital capacity to love and care both among our children and in society.

Daddy Doin' Work: Empowering Mothers to Evolve Fatherhood. Doyin Richards, $20.99

Doyin Richards answers questions about fatherhood that many women want to know in his no-nonsense, entertaining style. He urges new mothers to enter the minds of new dads, thereby changing their perception of what should be expected from a modern father. Richards exposes the manipulative secrets of deadbeat dads, offers practical tips to help hardworking dads understand that being a father encompasses more than paying the bills, and provides methods to ensure that amazing dads stay on track, while inspiring more fathers to be just like them. The conversation also asks mothers to take a long look in the mirror to determine if they are part of the solution — or part of the problem — in shaping the behavior of modern fathers.

Dude, That’s Rude! (Get Some Manners). Pamela Espeland & Elizabeth Verdick, $14.99 (ages 8 to 13)

Full-color cartoons and kid-friendly text teach the basics of polite behavior in all kinds of situations — at home, at school, in the bathroom, on the phone, at the mall, and more... It seems like light reading, but it’s serious stuff: Manners are major social skills, and this book gives kids a great start.

Equally Shared Parenting: Rewriting the Rules for a New Generation. Marc & Amy Vachon, $18.50

Equally Shared Parenting arms readers with the tools to create a balanced life that is rarely experienced by the parents of young children — an evolution that goes beyond the involved dad married to the working mom. This is a lifestyle in which couples create their own model as parenting partners, equals and peers. Every couple gets to write the rules that work for them.

Equally Shared Parenting clearly outlines the benefits and challenges of equal parenting, covering everything from child-rearing practices, career, and home, to self, money, and society. It presents both the philosophy behind this lifestyle and the everyday steps needed to achieve and maintain it, regardless of income bracket, lifestyle choices, or profession.

The Family Dinner: Great Ways to Connct with Your Kids One Meal at a Time. Laurie David & Kirstin Uhrenholdt, $38.99

Laurie David wants to help overwhelmed families sit down to dinner, and provides all the reasons, recipes, and fun ways to do so.

Research has proven that everything we worry about as parents — from drugs to alcohol, to obesity, and academic achievement — can all be improved by the simple act of eating and talking together around the table. Laurie has written a practical, inspirational, fun (and, of course, green) guide to the most important hour in any parent’s day. Chock-full chapters include over 75 kid-approved recipes; tips on teaching green values; conversation starters; games to play to help even the shyest family member become engaged; ways to express gratitude; the family dinner after divorce (hint: keep eating together) and much more.

Filled with moving memories and advice this book will get everyone away from electronic screens and make a lasting impact on family life.

Family Whispering: the Baby Whisperer's Commonsense Strategies for Communicating and Connecting with the People You Love and Making Your Whole Family Stronger. Melinda Blau & Tracy Hogg, $27.99

Before her untimely death in 2004, Tracy — aka the Baby Whisperer — and her long-time collaborator, journalist Melinda Blau, conceived a fourth book that would apply the commonsense principles of baby whispering to the “whole family.” This ground-breaking book explains why “family” is defined by much more than the relationship between parent and child. By widening the lens to focus on the family as an entity, Blau uses the Baby Whisperer philosophy to illuminate how the multiple bonds and interactions that unfold within a household of adults and children coalesce to form a larger family dynamic. By taking this wider perspective, she enables readers to see everyday challenges — such as sibling rivalry, communication, and time management — with fresh eyes. 

Informed both by research and stories of real families, this new book is filled with the handy tips and memorable acronyms that Baby Whisperer fans have come to expect. The advice is simple, practical, and often counterintuitive. The hopeful message is that with insight, awareness, and “family-think,” we can actually design our families to be happier and more productive, improving the daily lives of parents and kids — and, thereby, benefiting society as a whole in the process.

52 Questions for Families: Learn More about Your Family — One Question At a Time. Travis Hellstrom, $7.50

Talking with your family is essential to creating lasting bonds and great memories, and it has never been easier than with 52 Questions for Families, which includes a year’s worth of fun, thought-provoking conversation starters to help you learn more about your loved ones. Whether you want to get to know your children better, find out what the past was like from Grandma, or just want to spend a family night in, 52 Questions for Families can ask all of the questions for you.

Getting to 50/50: How Working Couples Can Have It All by Sharing It All. Sharon Meers & Joanna Strober, $27.95

After interviewing hundreds of parents and employers, surveying more than a thousand working mothers, and combing through the latest government and social science research, the authors have discovered that kids, husbands, and wives all reap huge benefits when couples commit to share equally as breadwinners and caregivers. The starting point? An attitude shift that puts you on the road to 50/50.

Here are real-world solutions for parents who want to get ahead in their careers and still get to their children’s soccer games; strategies for working mothers facing gender bias in the workplace; advice to fathers new to the home front; and tips for finding 50/50 solutions to deal with issues of money, time, and much more.

How Do I Stand In Your Shoes? A Story & Worksheets about Empathy. Susan DeBell, $21.95 (ages 7-10)

Miranda Peabody had no patience for the other students in class and just didn’t understand why they couldn’t be as smart and talented as she was. Her teacher, Mrs. Klemp, suggested that she try to understand other people by “standing in their shoes.” After much searching, she learns the true meaning of “standing in someone else’s shoes” and having empathy for others. This full-color, illustrated storybook for grades PK-4 includes discussion questions as well as activities to enhance learning about empathy.

How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk, 30th Anniversary Edition. Adele Faber & Elaine Mazlish, $21.00; 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.

The Joy of Parenting: an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Guide to Effective Parenting in the Early Years. Lisa Coyne & Amy Murrell, $29.95

Parents are supposed to be at their best when their children are at their worst. The only problem is that parents are susceptible to knee-jerk reactions, anger, and fears that make perfect parenting nearly impossible. But it is possible to keep your long-term parenting goals in mind, give yourself credit for what you're doing right, and most importantly, enjoy the rewards and joy of raising a child.

The Joy of Parenting is a compassionate guide for parents who sometimes feel overwhelmed-that is, all parents. The acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) skills in this book will help you develop the flexibility and mindfulness to help your child make critical transitions and gracefully move past the bumps along the way.

Kids, Parents and Power Struggles: Winning for a Lifetime. Mary Sheedy Kurcinka, $19.99

In Kids, Parents, and Power Struggles, Mary Sheedy Kurcinka offers unique approaches to solving the daily, and often draining, power struggles between you and your child. Kurcinka views these conflicts as rich opportunities to teach your child essential life skills, like how to deal with strong emotions and problem solve. With her successful strategies, you'll be able to identify the trigger situations that set off these struggles and get to the root of the emotions and needs of you and your child.

Liking the Child You Love: Build a Better Relationship with Your Kids, Even When They’re Driving You Crazy. Jeffrey Bernstein, $20.99

Many parents don’t realize how their own thoughts, rather than their children’s behavior, can cause emotional upheaval, often leading to poor communication, favoritism, lowered expectations, and overly harsh punishments. In Liking the Child You Love, Bernstein shows how to tame these toxic thought patterns. From avoiding the ‘Always or Never Trap’ to overcoming ‘Emotional Overheating’, the book features proven strategies for improving kids’ behavior and creating a closer relationship — just by changing one’s own mind.

A good mother is a gift to society; she passes her love and special brand of emotional intelligence to no less than three generations. This book is a modern primer that will wrap the reader in warmth and reassurance, allow her to laugh at herself and inspire and guide her to make the most of her magical and meaningful experience of mothering.

My Manners Matter: a First Look at Being Polite. Pat Thomas, $9.50 (ages 3 to 6)

Boys and girls learn that good manners are a simple way of showing kindness and respect to people they know — and to people they don’t know. They are shown that being polite makes working and playing together more enjoyable for everyone. (Ages 4-7)

Partnership Parenting: How Men and Women Parent Differently — Why It Helps Your Kids and Can Strengthen Your Marriage. Kyle Pruett & Marsha Kline Pruett, $20.00

Partnership Parenting offers couples distinctly balanced ways to deal with everyday situations, from bedtime and feeding to discipline and schooling.  With wisdom and humour, the authors help you and your partner take advantage of your individual strengths to stay connected, improve your relationship and confidently raise children together.

Pride & Joy: a Guide to Understanding Your Child’s Emotions and Solving Family Problems. Kenneth Barish, $19.95

PRIDE AND JOY is a different kind of parenting book. Both informative and highly practical, it is a balanced answer to the extreme methods that too often dominate parenting debates.

Child psychologist Kenneth Barish demonstrates how a deeper appreciation of our children's emotions offers parents a new understanding of their children's development and better solutions to the problems in their lives.  He shows how we can repair family relationships that have been damaged by frequent anger and resentment and how we can preserve our children's idealism and their concern for others - how we can raise children who feel good about themselves and also care about the needs and feelings of others. Barish also offers advice on how to solve common problems of daily family life, such as:

• establishing rules and limits
• doing homework
• going to sleep
• winning and losing at games
• our children's reluctance to talk to us
• tantrums
• lack of motivation
• television and video games
• and other issues that too often erode the joyfulness of our children and our pleasure in being parents.

Healthy parenting leads to healthy children. While it may seem obvious, it’s a goal that’s often difficult for parents to achieve, especially those who were raised in families where criticism and anger shaped their upbringing. And even those parents who come from healthy family environments struggle to make the right decisions when caught in a parenting ‘moment.’ Filled with practical solutions to everyday dilemmas, as well as offering a map for the larger parenting picture, Raise Your Kids without Raising Your Voice gives all parents the techniques they need to maintain a peaceful, happy and healthy home.

Reclaiming Conversation: the Power of Talk in a Digital Age. Sherry Turkle, $23.00

Renowned media scholar Sherry Turkle investigates how a flight from conversation undermines our relationships, creativity, and productivity — and why reclaiming face-to-face conversation can help us regain lost ground. Based on five years of research and interviews in homes, schools, and the workplace, Turkle argues that we have come to a better understanding of where our technology can and cannot take us and that the time is right to reclaim conversation. The most human — and humanizing — thing that we do. The virtues of person-to-person conversation are timeless, and our most basic technology, talk, responds to our modern challenges. We have everything we need to start, we have each other. 

To be respected, girls need to know how they want to be treated, treat themselves that way, and let others know (respectfully, of course) to do the same. This smart, savvy book helps teen girls get respect and hold on to it no matter what. It covers topics they deal with daily, like body image, family, friends, the media, school, relationships, and rumors. It confronts tough issues like sexual harassment, date rape, sex, drugs, and alcohol. And it debunks the myths and stereotypes that hold girls back. Sidebars, scenarios, quotes from teens, tips, definitions, activities, and writing exercises get girls' attention and keep them involved. The understanding, supportive "big sister" style inspires trust. Girls learn that respect is connected to everything, every girl deserves respect, and that respect is always within reach because it starts on the inside.

7 Things Your Teenager Won’t Tell You and How to Talk About Them Anyway. Jennifer Marshall Lippincott & Robin Deutsch, $23.00

Every teenager keeps secrets, and if you’re like most parents, you worry about what your kids don’t tell you–especially when they prefer text messages and social networking sites to face-to-face conversation. Now this popular guide has been revised and updated to address the challenges parents face with a wired and Web-savvy generation.

Jenifer Lippincott and Robin Deutsch offer a deceptively simple plan for talking to your kids that’s based on a simple set of rules: Teens need to stay safe, show respect, and keep in touch–online, and in real life. This update traverses new adolescent territory, both charted and uncharted, to bring parents up-to-speed on what to expect and how to deal.

Side by Side: the Revolutionary Mother-Daughter Program for Conflict-Free Communication. Charles Sophy, $18.50

Learn how to navigate and resolve even the most volatile conflicts and take your relationship to a whole new level. Side by Side offers a means to developing a strong and rewarding connection with your daughter for years to come.

Sometimes People Fight — Even When They Love Each Other. Dagmar Geisler, $22.99 (ages 3-6)

Everyone has been in an argument. Sometimes we disagree when watching sports, like football or baseball. Sometimes we fight about where to go or what to do. Sometimes arguments are simply the result of misunderstandings or differing opinions. If they’re not immediately resolved, though, disagreements can cause tension that builds up over time and can affect the people around us. In Sometimes People Fight — Even When They Love Each Other, a child takes the reader through their parents’ recent disagreements, demonstrating how they start, how they affect him, and how they can be resolved through discussion, compromise, and forgiveness.

Sorry! Trudy Ludwig, illustrated by Maurie Manning, $17.99 (ages 4-8)

Jack's friend Sam seems to know how to get away with just about anything. But does an apology count if you don’t really mean it?

Stressed Out! For Parents: How to Be Calm, Confident & Focused. Ben Bernstein & Michelle Packard, $24.95

Parenting is one of the most stressful fulltime jobs around. School, lessons, sports, homework, hormones, dinner, dishes. Parents want to know how to be calm and enjoy these wonder years. Dr. Ben Bernstein, celebrated performance coach for CEOs, professional athletes, and musicians, takes on parents this time around in his book Stressed Out! For Parents. Focusing on his nine steps to optimize performance during stressful situations, Dr. B. teaches parents in clear, entertaining, and thoughtful writing how to be calm, confident, and focused in all that they do. So, say good-bye to anxiety and optimize your parenting performance today.

Talk About Anything with Your Kids: an Easy Guide to Great Conversations. Catherine Wakelin, $22.95

Great conversations don’t always happen easily — especially with kids. Many parents find that as their children grow, those chatty preschoolers become mono-syllabic teenagers.

Talk About Anything with Your Kids shows parents how to have open and satisfying conversations with kids from six to 14, with the emphasis on learning to truly listen to what our kids have to say. The book shows you how to develop effective and rewarding communication in your family effectively.  

Tender Topics: Picture Books about Childhood Challenges. Dorothy Stoltz, Elaine Czarnecki, Buff Kahn & the American Library Association, $21.95

A reading specialist, an outreach librarian, and a children’s librarian combine their considerable expertise in this essential guide for parents that brings reading, early literacy, child development issues, and picture books together. Advising parents who are wondering how to talk to their young child about difficult topics such as death, loneliness, or fear, this authoritative collection of appropriate picture books makes broaching the subject easier. Arranged by topic, this annotated listing includes more than 300 high-quality, carefully selected picture books that are ideal for opening discussion about tender topics and establishing bonds between generations that can help parents and children better weather the challenges families face every day.

Words Are Not for Hurting. Elizabeth Verdick, $17.95 (ages 4 to 7)

One of a series of books to help young children learn to manage their feelings, and include include helpful hints for parents and caregivers. Other titles in the series include:

• Feet Are Not for Kicking. Elizabeth Verdick, Boardbook $12.99
• Hands Are Not for Hitting. Martine Agassi, $17.95; Boardbook $12.99
• Teeth Are Not for Biting. Elizabeth Verdick, Boardbook $12.99
• Voices Are Not for Yelling. Elizabeth Verdick, $17.95; Boardbook $12.99

Yes I Can — Family Talk. Gary Yorke, $24.95 (ages 6 to adult, 2-8 players)

Everyone enjoys connecting with other people. However, many of us have difficulty initiating and sustaining conversations. Sometimes we don’t know what to talk about, or aren’t sure what to say about a topic we’re discussing. Yes I Can — Family Talk is a fun way to have a conversation and to get to know the other participants. It is suitable for families, classrooms, counselors, and therapists. The cards can be used as a competitive game where each player attempts to accumulate the most chips, or noncompetitively and participants respond to the cards without earning chips.