Parent Nation

Dr. Dana Suskind is a pediatric surgeon and social scientist, and the author of Thirty Million Words. In Parent Nation, written with science writer Lydia Denworth, she turns again to what neuroscience reveals about early childhood development and asks what it would take for every child to have a real chance at fulfilling their potential.

Her answer is plain and forceful: society needs to back parents far more strongly during the years when a child's brain is developing fastest. Many parents believe they ought to handle the huge job of early care and education alone. Suskind argues that this belief is both unsustainable and damaging, to children, to families and to the wider community.

The book pairs current research on the developing brain with moving, recognizable stories of families from many walks of life. It also draws on history, political science and the everyday experiences of parents across the country to show how the present situation came about and why it has persisted.

Suskind also wants parents to see themselves as a group with a shared identity and considerable power, as stewards of the next generation. Parent Nation lays out a practical blueprint for how society can help families meet their children's developmental needs, and for the more prosperous and equitable future that could follow. The book won a 2023 Nautilus Book Award gold medal.