How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen

The message is great but the narration and writing style cringey

I love the message of this book and the way it is telling you to communicate etc, that is spot on and helpful

However the way this book is written is so cringey.
Constantly hearing “and the group replied back “
“And then the group”
“Insert a bunch of replies that sound so made up and straight out of a 80s sitcom over and over”


It just makes it SO hard to listen too. I hate it, I’ve stopped listening about 3 hours in.

The narrator voice also compounds this problem, I’m sorry to say.


Coming from listening to Laura Markhams audiobook really highlighted how hard this is to listen to or read.

Interesting, practical, useful.

Thank you for writing this! I recommend to any parent. Was extremely helpful. Already seen improvements and got me thinking about it scientifically again instead if just flabbergasted parent.

Changed my life

This book completely changed my perspective about how I should talk to my children. It radically changed what I say to my children. I have both the print and audio editions and really enjoyed listening to it so the parental voices became someone else's besides my own.

I want to be just like the authors

These authors emphasize the importance of remembering what it's like to be a kid. Big takeaways for me were to acknowledge feelings, describe what I see, be playful, give choices, and describe their wish fantasies. I've used these tools--now my daughter is hopping into her pajamas and likes to be carried to bed upside down. Really resonated with me and made me re-think how I talk to my daughter. Thanks!

Did not like the narrator!

I own a paper copy of this book so I was excited to see that the narrated version was on Audible. However, the narrator of this book is terrible! She uses a very condescending and pretentious tone that negates the original authors purpose and meaning. I couldn’t even make it through the first chapter listening to her voice.

A cloying, long-winded, pointless cash grab

The original "How to Talk" is a seminal classic. This book offers virtually nothing new, just a lot of blathering chatter to fill pages, delivered with a grating, nasal voice.

It feels like they're just milking the brand. Please, do yourself a favor and read the original - it's nothing short of life changing - and avoid this garbage.

It works

Just by starting to acknowledge feelings there is a noticeable progress. I am happy the authors noticed the previous book was neglecting children in the age range.

Loved the book! Not so much some narration parts.

Any additional comments?

The person who narrates "Sarah" uses mutliple upward inflections in the wrong places and emphasizes parts of speech that shouldn't need it. It becomes so annoying that I began skipping her stories altogether. This is still a great listen/read and I would still recommend it to any parents with a toddler.

Wish every parent in the world could read this

I think a solution to world peace is if every parent could read and try to follow this book. Seriously. The skills taught in this book could be applied for a life time. Sometimes I feel like the book were a perfect parent speaking to me pointing out ways I could improve on my own life, learning with my toddler.

I've read the famous How to Talk book by her mother, but this is still an excellent read specifically targeted towards younger children's challenges.

What I love most is how practical it is, even acknowledging that kids do turn parents crazy sometimes and how to deal with those tough times!

Must read for parents of small kids!

Would you consider the audio edition of How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen to be better than the print version?

I loved this book. My only regret is that I didn't read it earlier. My daughter is 5 and I learned a lot still.