HUNT, GATHER, PARENT

Children of all ages are experiencing anxiety and depression and even worse at unprecedented levels. Harvard researchers have found that one in three teenagers today suffers from a clinically diagnosable anxiety disorder.

Inspired by Dr. Doucleff's viral articles and radio stories on parenting and soon to become its own NPR multiplatform series led by Doucleff with dedicated radio stories, blogs, social accounts, and podcast, Hunt, Gather, Parent is in part a practical book that will help our children become happier, more confident, more useful, and more able to handle their anger and frustration. Readers will learn how to get children to do chores without asking, to discipline without yelling or time-outs, and to teach children empathy, patience, and collaboration. But it's much more than that. It's also a fascinating narrative that will change not only the way we talk about raising children, but our entire worldview.

Dr. Doucleff has spent months imbedded with indigenous peoples around the world, including the Maya (Americas), Hazda (Africa), and Inuit (Arctic), often with her three-year-old daughter Rosy in tow, and what she has learned is astounding. The strategies in Hunt, Gather, Parent have already had an effect on how I interact with my two- and four-year-old girls at home, with profound results. Our typical Western approach to parenting is one of the parent leading the child by the hand; Doucleff encourages us to envision the child leading the parent, as in indigenous philosophies. The shift may seem simple, but it is fundamental and groundbreaking.

For the first time ever, Hunt, Gather, Parent imparts these lessons in a clear, actionable way that is easily implemented into our tense and fast-moving times. It will also dig into psychology, anthropology, and history to explain why Western customs and practices are often so wrong, while revealing another, more effective way. This is a big-idea, conversation-changing book that has the potential to do on the parenting shelf what the Paleo movement did for diet and health.

Dr. Doucleff is a Cal Berkeley-trained scientist with a PhD and two MAs who once edited Cell, one of the most prestigious science journals in the world; an award-winning radio correspondent; and NPRs most widely read health and science journalist. She had the two "most loved" radio stories across the board on NPR last year (one of them was on the subject of this book), and her viral series on how the Maya raise helpful kids and how the Inuit raise less angry kids won awards and have been read millions and millions of times and sparked an international discussion. Her fans and supporters range from major hosts like Rachel Martin and Ailsa Chang to New York Times bestselling authors like Dr. Dan Siegel to celebrities like Chelsea Clinton.

To top it off: NPR is creating a multiplatform series called Hunt, Gather, Parent, led by Dr. Doucleff. The series -- which will launch in 2020 -- will showcase parenting advice, and tools and anecdotes from indigenous cultures around the world. It will include biweekly radio stories on Morning Edition and All Things Considered, weekly blog posts at NPR.org, a Twitter account, and a podcast, all dedicated to building a global community about indigenous parenting. The structure is designed after Shankar Vedantam's Hidden Brain series. NPR has granted Doucleff a one-year leave to write this book, starting in summer 2019, where her only responsibilities will be writing the book and helping prepare for the launch of the accompanying series.