Synopsis:In this moving and compelling collection of stories, bestselling author Barbara Holborrow tells of the good, the bad and the inevitable outcomes for so many of the kids she saw in her capacity as a children’s magistrate.

There are stories of the kids who are so broken they can never be mended. There are stories of kids and parents who simply don’t care and won’t change. And there are also stories of the wonderful, inspirational kids and their carers – parents, grandmothers and grandfathers, foster parents and adoptive parents – who are prepared to work hard and do anything within their power to keep their families together, loving and safe, and who instil in children that all-important sense of hope for the future.

Underpinning Barbara’s life’s work is the belief that every single person in a community has responsibility towards every single child. Scattered throughout these stirring stories of hope, loss and apathy from our own backyards are snippets of Barbara’s wisdom on raising kids, looking out for them, and keeping them happy and safe.

Throughout her legal career, Barbara Holborrow specialised in the representation of children. Since her resignation as magistrate from the children’s Bench in 1994, Barbara has become a highly sought-after commentator and writer on all aspects of children’s justice and childrearing, and is in constant demand for her wise, incisive and compassionate views on the issues of children’s rights.
Genre:Parenting/Inspirational
Rating:@@@@
Pages:238
BCID:xxx-3869521
ISBN:1-74051-190-5
Year:2003
Format:Paperback
Comments:This was a well-written and easy to read collection of stories from Ms Holborrow’s experiences on the Bench in the Children’s Court. Some of the stories were very sad to read. Others were inspirational. In all cases, I felt Barbara acted in a fair and compassionate manner. I have always admired Barbara Holborrow and this book has merely cemented that admiration. In a time when so many judges pander to rockspiders and other criminals, it is refreshing to read of one judge who always had the child’s interest at heart.

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Categories: Impressions

Tags: Adoption, australia, australian, Barbara, barbara holborrow, books, Children Youth and Family, children's court, Children's rights, family, Foster care, Home, non-fiction, Parent, true crime