** 2nd book of 2021: Free Play **
- friluftsliv * is the nordic concept of getting outdoors as a means to cure all maladies. With the craze started by books like ‘Bringing up Bebe’ this book talks about how Swedes approach parenting, mainly by going outdoors and playing with little supervision.
As somebody who grew up in a junk yard, modern ‘junk parks’ seem a both an amusing concept and an essential part of childhood. Like the author, I grew up in a rural environment and wonder what the effects of growing up in a deeply urban city will have on the next generation. Unfortunately most of the book is spent in circular reasoning author’s preferred parenting style and environments are beneficial. I don’t disagree with most of the points, but after the first few chapters, I also didn’t gain much either.
- 5-7 year olds who played in forests had better balance and coordination. -Some Norwegian study
- Che chance of child abductions is 1 in 1.4 million annually. or 0.000074% - lower than even I thought.
- Risky play encourages resilience. -Peter Gray, with no evidence that I can discern
So this book serves as a reminder to ensure little Theo joins boy scouts, goes camping, and way before his mother wants him to, goes out to explore the neighborhood.