HOME SCHOOL BOOK REVIEW
Book: Pitchin’ A Fit!: Overcoming Angry and Stressed-Out Parenting
Authors: Israel and Brook Wayne
Publisher: New Leaf Press, 2016
ISBN-13: 978-0892217397
ISBN-10: 0892217391
Related website: http://www.newleafpress.net (publisher)
Language level: 1
(1=nothing objectionable; 2=common euphemisms and/or childish slang terms; 3=some cursing and/or profanity; 4=a lot of cursing and/or profanity; 5=obscenity and/or vulgarity)
Recommended reading level: For adults
Rating: ***** 5 stars (EXCELLENT)
Reviewed by Wayne S. Walker
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Wayne, Israel and Brook. Pitchin’ A Fit!: Overcoming Angry and Stressed-Out Parenting (published in 2016 by New Leaf Press, a division of the New Leaf Publishing Group Inc., P. O. Box 726, Green Forest, AR 72638). “So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath, for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God” (James 1:19-20). As parents, we don’t want our children to grow up and be characterized as always angry, so we must learn to control our own anger while raising them. Authors Israel and Brook Wayne are homeschool graduates who are now homeschooling their nine children. When I first met Israel some years ago, he was still a single young man. Where has the time gone? Israel and Brook share a desire to point parents to rear their children with a Biblical worldview and without the kind of anger that can destroy families.
The only real criticism that I saw was from a reviewer who wrote that “much of the material seemed to make sense and was quite thoughtful on the topic but….” If, as is admitted, it does such a good job of looking at anger from many different angles and explaining how it can be destructive to children, what’s the problem? “A book requires a different kind of authority than is provided here, which relies on their recommendations to feel right/true to the reader;… not a single theological, exegetical, psychological, or sociological source regarding anger was ever cited or referenced.” This reviewer is obviously influenced by our modern culture’s reliance on credentialed, professional experts before accepting anything as true. If you feel that you need heavily footnoted research to prove everything, then read some dry, dusty scientific studies. But if you’re looking for some practical wisdom based on personal experience about how to deal with anger in parenting, then you will be happy and impressed with this book.
“If you consistently, as a lifestyle, respond in anger to your children, the fruit you can expect will be anger, bitterness, and resentment from your child” (p. 34). Israel and Brook don’t pretend to have all the answers to every question or claim to have the perfect solution to every problem. And one may not necessarily agree with every one of their explanations or comments. However, they do an exceptionally fine work in reminding us about the dangers of uncontrolled anger, and then providing Biblical advice which gives hope and freedom from the tyranny of stressed-out, angry parenting and should work for almost any family. “However, unlike God, we do not possess infinite wisdom, infinite love, and infinite holiness. So anger in our lives must be handled with extreme caution” (p. 39). If you are looking to get at the root cause of anger, especially in parenting, you will benefit from this book.
