Dated, homophobic and filled with gender stereotypes.
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I was initially shocked at the levels of homophobia and gender stereotyping inherent in this book, but ended up laughing out loud at some very judgemental and moralistic passages on sex and relationships. I showed passages of this book to friends, who were also astounded that such a volume should be required reading for counselling students on courses in 2008, which is where I came across it.
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Interesting but dated!
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This was a textbook for the counselling course I just completed, so compulsory reading. Not the kind of book you'd pick up for a light read, but it *is* one I wish I'd read while my kids were still babies. Rayner takes the reader through all aspects of human development from birth to death. There were parts of this book which were fascinating, particularly the sections on early psychology and what can go wrong with the development and growth of self during the baby stages. I also read about behaviours I'd seen in my own (and everyone else's children!) and never really understood before. Where Rayner falls short (the book was written in the 60's) is in his assumptions about gender roles. I and many of my colleagues, found him very sexist and limited in his views on such things as working women, single parent families, and marriage. My views are still relatively consevative, so if yours are radical, this book could get you very angry! This is a good basic textbook, and would even make a good read for an interested parent, but be prepared for dated views alongside generally agreed truths about how we as people grow and mature.
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