Parentology

December 2, 2013
The science is buried in the midst of anecdotes, and the advice leans toward the “do what I did, because I’m smart” school in what, despite NYU professor Conley’s (You May Ask Yourself: An Introduction to Thinking Like a Sociologist) credentials as chair of the Children and Youth Section of the American Sociological Association, is more a privileged New York City parenting memoir than a guide to evidence-based childrearing. Experiences like having his young children featured on Anderson Cooper to discuss their unusual names (E and Yo Xing Heyno Augustus Eisner Alexander Weiser Knuckles), which he claims will raise their non-cognitive IQs, or prepping them for a visit with the former Prime Minister of New Zealand, fall into a dead spot between being relatable to most parents and being delightful enough to serve as celebrity storytelling. Conley’s science is frequently post hoc (he’d rather have his kids in the special ed classes because the student-teacher ratio is better) and often ignored. In the end, the book’s focus is the author himself and why he’s a pretty successful parent, possibly due to all of his research and enthusiasm for giving his kids every possible advantage, and possibly just due to giving them a lot of love. Agent: Sydelle Kramer, Susan Rabiner Literary Agency.