'Once upon a time parents celebrated the arrival of puberty with pride, and in many cultures family and community joined together to celebrate this passage from childhood to adulthood and independence. It is sad that today we live in times when this transition is viewed with anxiety and fear. Of course, as ever before, the ex-child comes to this point in his/her life with a mixture of excitement and ambivalent anticipation, but now their parents often experience a sense of isolation and dread, not knowing how to ensure that the next ten to twelve years run smoothly for their child and for themselves. Judith Trowell has had a rich professional life working in a variety of settings and contexts with adolescents and their parents. In this book, she describes and discusses in a lucid and sensitive manner the physical and emotional changes that younger adolescents, aged between 10 and 14 years, go through and how these affect and are influenced by their parents.'- Dr A.H. Brafman, from the Series Editor's Foreword
