You Can’t F*ck Up Your Kids: A Judgment-Free Guide to Stress-Free Parenting

Author, editor, and mother Lindsay Powers has spent a long time trying to help parents go easier on themselves, as it sometimes seems like every kid and baby-related topic is loaded with hard choices and harsh judgment. As the creator of the #NoShameParenting movement, Powers has used her influence to help, and her new book, You Can’t F*ck Up Your Kids is the logical next step in that mission. In it, the author dives into some of the most contentious issues in modern parenting, from breastfeeding to sleep training to discipline, and evaluates some of the latest research to help parents understand that truly, we need to make the decisions that are best for our families and understand that most kids will turn out just fine regardless. While the idea behind the book is sound, and nearly every parent can get behind the idea of not judging or shaming one another for the decisions we make, Powers’s tone comes off a bit abrasive at times, and her own personal views make it pretty clear that she doesn’t think much of “gentle” or “attachment” parenting practices…or the people who follow them. The book also loses some credibility based on some of the sources she cites (specifically former OBGYN Amy Tuteur, who is well-known for openly attacking people she disagrees with over the internet) and how heavily she draws on the work of others (one chapter spent a surprising amount of time rehashing the work of statistician Emily Oster, already detailed in Oster’s own book). The book has good intentions but ultimately fell short of expectations.