DIVORCE POISON: Reviews
Publishers Weekly
In Divorce Poison: Protecting the Parent-Child Bond from a Vindictive Ex, Richard A. Warshak (The Custody Revolution) offers guidance to parents whose exes portray them to their children in a negative light, whether it's mild, off-the-cuff badmouthing or systematic character assassination. Common psychological wisdom, besides recommending that parents avoid fighting fire with fire, suggests doing nothing. But Warshak has witnessed the feelings of powerlessness and the increasing difficulties that come from doing nothing. So he provides "a blueprint for an effective response grounded in a solid understanding of the techniques and dynamics of parents who poison their children's relationships with loved ones."
After describing numerous nuances of inter-parental malignment (brainwashing, false abuse accusations, revisionist history, etc.), Warshak moves on to "Poison Control," both independently and with the help of professional counselors. This book will seem a godsend to the many divorcees who are bashed by their ex-spouses. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc. 
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Booklist
Some level of animosity is typical in divorce, but when parents let those feelings degenerate into bad-mouthing, bashing, or brainwashing, they run the risk of emotionally damaging their children, according to child psychologist Warshak. He looks at the poisonous relationships that develop when parents carry criticism of their ex-spouses too far: parents and children estranged from one another, protracted and bitter custody and visitation battles, and even ruined relationships with the extended families. He uses case studies to illustrate how parents — sometimes unconsciously, sometimes deliberately — force children to choose between them and turn against the other parent. He describes a range of difficulties, from tainted parent-child relationships to an emotional disturbance known as parental alienation syndrome. Warshak offers strategies for parents to examine their motivations when they speak against a former spouse, to curb negative impulses, and to repair damage that may already have been done. Useful resource for families dealing with divorce and child rearing.
— Vanessa Bush Copyright © American Library Association.
American Journal of Family Therapy
Divorce Poison is an appropriate title for this short book dealing not so much with the effects of divorce on children as with the effects of conflicts and animosities of the divorced parents as expressed to children. The author, Richard A. Warshak, Ph.D. is well-qualified to write about such things, having researched and written about divorce issues for many years, and consulted with parents and attorneys struggling with the difficult issues of child custody, visitation, and the effects of parental alienation. In Divorce Poison, Warshak covers a lot of theoretical ground, but he intersperses concrete examples that succinctly clarify and amplify what he is trying to communicate. Read more in PDF
Jackson Public Library
With 60 five star reviews, Divorce Poison: Protecting the Parent-child Bond from a Vindictive Ex by Richard Warshak may be the most popular of the books in this list. Warshak recognizes that conventional counseling would tell people not to respond or do anything in response to criticism, but Warshak says this can cause more difficulties and serious emotional fallout. After describing various types of attack, he suggests ways of responding, both individually and with professional help.
SPARC - Separated Parenting Access & Resource Center "Keeping Families Connected"
Make no mistake about it: Divorce Poison is the only book on the market that gives you practical, useful
techniques that you can use to help combat parental alienation. Dr. Richard Warshak is a clinical, research, and consulting psychologist who is arguably one of the world's leading authorities on parental alienation, its causes, and its effects. Dr. Warshak has produced a truly groundbreaking work in Divorce Poison.
In Divorce Poison, Dr. Warshak covers the subject of parental alienation thoroughly, including detailed discussions of why parents practice alienating behaviors, what form these behaviors take, and what to do in response to alienating behavior.
Divorce Poison is filled with "Take Action" boxes, containing solutions and techniques to combat or neutralize virtually every kind of alienating behavior you may encounter. For example, in the chapter titled "Corruption Of Reality", one of the "Take Action" sections appears as... " Click here to read further in PDF.
Mental Help.net
Every divorce attorney and every therapist dealing with any family or family member who is
dealing with recent divorce issues, should recommend this book Divorce Poison written by Richard A. Warshak, Ph.D. It speaks directly to the issue of parental alienation without getting involved with the mental health wars as to whether or not the eminent Dr. Richard A. Gardner is correct or not correct calling parental alienation a syndrome or some other type of clinicalconfiguration.This book brilliantly brings home the fact that when divorce happens the children get hurt. Click here to read more in PDF or Read online.
Mensight Magazine
A decade after writing the much praised The Custody Revolution, Richard Warshak has returned with a book that, as far as I can see, is virtually perfect. Warshak thoroughly, thoughtfully, and perhaps most remarkably, both passionately and compassionately analyzes the heretofore relatively neglected topic of Parental Alienation Syndrome or PAS. To the author’s credit, he is not attached to the label of PAS and in fact adopts the alternative formulation of “divorce poison” as an easily comprehensible shorthand. More in PDF
PAS News
This book should be mandatory reading for everyone involved in a divorce to highly contested custody disputes. Purchase multiple copies, give it to lawyer, therapist, friends, and evaluators, and file it with your Judge for a real education! OWN IT, READ IT AND REFER TO IT ALWAYS!
This book sells itself. It is certainly powerful groundbreaking work, going above and beyond the call of duty and destined to become classic on parental alienation. Dr. Warshak's clinical acuity, wisdom, erudition and deep undertaking to the strategies, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of such an important issue in today's society, draws attention to the devastating consequences on our children of an ever increasingly recognized
form of child abuse - PA & PAS. More in PDF
