International perspectives on early childhood research: a day in the life. Edited by Julia Gillen and Catherine Ann Cameron. Palgrave Macmillan, New York, USA, 2010. pp. 208. Price £50. ISBN 978‐0230232495.

The goal of this book is to highlight a new methodology for gaining international perspectives on early childhood. The authors filmed a ‘day in the life’ of seven 2-year-old girls ‘thriving’ in seven different locations (Canada, Italy, Peru, Thailand, Turkey, UK, and USA). From these observations, five common themes emerged; the development and socialization of musicality, emotional security, eating, notational systems, and humour. These topics form the main content of the book (Chapters 3–7), flanked by introductory and concluding chapters focusing on the methodology used (Chapters 1, 2, and 8). It is striking that ‘day in the life’ observations have not previously been filmed. Earlier works have necessarily relied on written records (Barker & Wright, 1951). However, even modern works have missed the opportunity to faithfully record a ‘day in the life’, for example, filming using time sampling methods taken over a week to represent a typical day (Tudge, 2008). As the authors note, the latter precludes objective review of the data gathered, whereas the former gives a disjointed view of the child's activities. To circumvent these problems, this project dispatched two field researchers to each location; one to film for a minimum of 6 h, and the other to take field notes that could be used to support understanding of the film. Footage and field notes were viewed (first individually) by two distal researchers, who then worked together to create a 30-min compilation video. This footage was later used as an elicitor for discussion with the child's family. As a result, an incredibly rich data set representing a variety of objective and subjective perspectives is secured. To illustrate, in Chapter 3, the authors describe how initial difficulties in interpreting foreign utterances blurred the distinction between speech and musical vocalization. This highlighted the interaction of visual and audio streams in video footage, leading to analysis of all instances of rhythmic activity (vocal and physical) occurring during the day. Although families varied in their explicit recognition of the importance of musicality, rhythmic communication was used reciprocally to strengthen the bond between the child and their caregivers in all the countries observed. The socialization of emotional security is the direct focus of Chapter 4. It appeared that receiving positive physical contact (rocking, soothing, patting) and independently exploring their environment was common to all the children. Although responses to the question ‘What makes a strong child?’ varied cross-culturally, the importance of finding a balance between giving emotional support and fostering self-reliance was highlighted by all parents. Traditionally underplayed in childhood studies (and emphasized in the current volume only following repeated viewing of the ‘days’), the activity of eating showed perhaps the largest geographical differences (Chapter 5). Although some caregivers (Italy, Peru, and UK) instituted clearly delineated mealtimes, in other countries (Canada and Thailand) eating activities were largely child led. Nevertheless, in all instances, children showed a continued determination to incorporate (or substitute) play with eating. Geographical differences were also found in the socialization of notational systems (Chapter 6). For example, although drawing was modelled by a relative expert in some countries (Peru, Thailand, Turkey, and UK), in others children were left to their own devices (Canada and USA). In contrast, reading development was universally supported through joint activity with reading materials. Finally, in Chapter 7, humour is identified as a common feature of many interactions occurring during the ‘days’. The authors highlight the reciprocal use of wordplay, clowning, teasing, and physical play in fostering (and displaying) children's emotional and cognitive engagement with their home environment. Despite some notable exceptions, what emerges from these chapters is that the similarities in the seven girl's experiences were larger than the differences. Indeed, rather than considering the seven countries representative of a culture, the authors insist that we consider these individual examples of children ‘thriving’ in different environments. Thus, although the book offers an international perspective on early childhood, it is cautious in drawing any conclusions concerning enculturation. Similarly, although the issue of resilience is identified as a major theme, the authors acknowledge that the common conception of resilience (as triumph in the face of adversity) is not represented here. Where this volume makes its real contribution is in illustrating how a relatively simple observational methodology can be used to guide and inform our exploration of early childhood. With the exception of emotional security and notational systems, the themes identified in this project (which emerged strongly despite the small and geographically disparate sample) are currently under-researched. As a result of this ambitious attempt to highlight several novel issues, the thematic chapters are often regrettably short. Nevertheless, they make clear that the issues identified, which would remain hidden without this innovative method, are of upmost importance. It is clear then, that the authors have succeeded in their aim to highlight the value of the methodology employed. As the proverb suggests, walking a day in another's shoes is an informative experience.

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