Growing Up in Child Care: a Case for Quality Early Education.

B. Mardell. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2002. 112 pp. $15.00 (softcover). Ben Mardell's book goes a long way toward debunking the myth of child care as a necessary evil. Through the stories of children who have attended or are attending the Oxford State Day Care Cooperative in Cambridge, Massachusetts, "a private, nonprofit center that serves fifty children from four months to five years of age," we enter the dynamic world of young children. The author draws from over 18 years in early childhood education working primarily as a child care teacher to offer clear insight into quality child care. In addition, his own child was in the class he describes.

Through words and photographs, the author offers two in-depth stories to provide "rich encounters with the minute particulars of the children's daily lives together." Interspersed throughout the stories, Mardell offers clear, insightful interpretations of the meaning and implications of the children's experiences. This book provides rich descriptions of quality care and would be helpful for parents, early childhood teachers, administrators of early childhood programs, students of child development and early childhood education, and persons involved in public policy decisions related to young children and their families. Reviewed by Barbara Kimes Myers, Professor, DePaul University, Chicago