Raising a happy, well-adjusted child is probably the biggest challenge any of us will face, so it is understandable that parents worry endlessly about this aspect of their child's development. In this practical, reassuring book, clinical psychologist and parenting expert Linda Blair helps parents understand what their child is experiencing physically and emotionally at various stages of development and how they can use this knowledge to develop their child's strengths, communicate with them more effectively and tackle common problems. In THE HAPPY CHILD, Blair divides early childhood into three key stages of development - infancy, preschool and starting school - and shows parents how they can help their child adjust and thrive during these stages. This is a book that provides parenting guidelines, as well as encouraging parents to trust their own instincts. Above all it does not underestimate the challenges parents face.

The foreword is being written by Ellen Winner, professor of child psychology at Boston College, specialising in gifted children and author of GIFTED CHILDREN (Basic Books).