Best Summer Reading Books for Parents, From a Seattle Child Psychologist

There is more parenting information available today than ever before. The challenge isn't a lack of good resources, it's sorting through the sheer volume of voices, opinions, and approaches to find reliable information. 

As a child psychologist, I spend a lot of my time educating families about time-tested strategies that are grounded in research. This summer, I put together a reading list that makes it easier: books written by researchers and clinicians who have devoted their careers studying these specific challenges, with strategies that hold up well beyond a passing trend.

Sibling Conflict

Raising Loving Siblings: How to Stop the Fighting and Help Your Kids Connect, Jonathan Caspi, PhD, MSW (2025).

Summer brings more family togetherness, which also means more sibling conflict. Jonathan Caspi is a world leader in researching sibling dynamics, and he integrates the science with practical applications to home life. Dr. Caspi reframes sibling conflict as a family issue, not just a kid problem, showing how changes in parent behavior can improve the relationship. He explains common traps such as taking sides, subtle favoritism, and imbalances in allocating attention to one child’s activities over another. Another strength of this book is that it offers guidance about when to let siblings resolve conflicts on their own and when to step in. 

Bedtime Problems

It's Never Too Late to Sleep Train: The Low-Stress Way to High-Quality Sleep for Babies, Kids, and Parents, Craig Canapari, MD (2019). 

I love this book. Written by a pediatrician, the content reflects science-backed strategies that can be applied to a range of ages. Dr. Canapari covers what you need to know about sleep in your infant, toddler, and preschooler. In addition to foundational knowledge about how many hours of sleep your child needs, this is also a trouble shooting guide. If you have an elementary school child who is still reliant on your presence to fall asleep, then you will find solutions in this book. Dr. Canapari does a great job offering a menu of strategies that are supportive of both parents and kids. He shows how bedtime problems can be solved without tears.  

Mealtime Battles/Picky Eating

Helping Your Child When Mealtimes Are Hard: Loving Support for Anxious Eating, Weight and Nutrition Worries, and Everything in Between, Katja Rowell, MD (2023).

This book is an incredible resource for any parent who is concerned about their child’s eating. The concepts are applicable to children of all ages. Dr. Rowell, a responsive feeding specialist, offers powerful strategies to restore parent-child connection during meals. Drawing on research and years of clinical experience, she challenges common myths about picky eating. For example, Dr. Rowell highlights how even subtle pressure to eat can backfire, and offers parents a reassuring path forward that honors the importance of love and connection during meals. 

Behavior Management

The Kazdin Method for Parenting the Defiant Child, Alan E. Kazdin, PhD (2009). 

There are a lot of great parenting books that offer evidence-based strategies for behavior management. If I had to pick one, it’s Kazdin’s book. Dr. Kazdin, of Yale University, directed the Yale Parenting Center for years. He has conducted extensive research on behavior change in children as well as treatment for aggression, tantrums, and defiance. Dr. Kazdin cautions against the use of punishment, and instead highlights the importance of skill-building for children. The book outlines practical strategies for increasing cooperation and prosocial behavior in kids, while teaching parents how to increase their awareness of common parenting traps. 

Anxiety

Breaking Free of Child Anxiety and OCD: A Scientifically Proven Program for Parents, Eli R. Lebowitz, PhD (2021). 

This book is a fantastic contribution for guiding parents on how to support their anxious child. The concepts are based on treatment for anxiety research. What’s great about this book is its focus on changes that parents can make on their own that will help their child cope better with anxiety. The book covers common pitfalls when parenting anxious kids, and the critical role that family accommodation inadvertently plays in maintaining a young person’s anxiety. Dr. Lebowitz covers how parents can reduce harmful over-accommodation while still communicating love and support to their child. 

Inflexibility

Unstuck and On Target! An Executive Function Curriculum to Improve Flexibility, Planning, and Organization (2018). Elementary School Aged Children

Unstuck and On Target! An Executive Function Curriculum to Support Flexibility, Planning, and Organization (2024) - Ages 11-15

These resources are great for parents of children with neurodiverse profiles, including autism and ADHD. Inflexibility and emotion dysregulation are some of the most common challenges that families bring to us. Although written for educators, the Unstuck and On Target! program can be used by any caregiver. The program specifically targets flexible thinking better than any other program I have encountered. It also teaches children how to compromise, cope when things don’t go their way, and plan ahead. The books are packed with helpful visuals and activities that help make the content easier to receive for kids. 

Personalized Parenting Support at Child and Teen Solutions

These books offer practical, evidence-based strategies that many families may find sufficient on their own. But every child is different, and sometimes a challenge calls for more individualized support than a book alone can provide. If that is where you find yourself - and you live in Washington State - we can help. Child and Teen Solutions specializes in therapy for parents of young children as well as teens and tweens. We also offer direct services for children and teens and evaluations. Please visit our Contact Page to learn more about how we can support your family. 

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