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Quality Time Anytime
By Penny Warner A Review by Kristan Ginther
With the demands of modern living, it is tougher than ever to find time to spend with your child. Quality Time Anytime 
(Meadowbrook Press) by Penny Warner offers 200 activities that parents and children can enjoy together under the most routine of conditions. By following the book's advice, trips to the grocery store, long car rides or kids' sick days cease to be tedious affairs. More importantly, adults will no longer complain that they don't have enough time to bond with their children.
Warner has written more than 30 books and is a child-development expert. Her Play and Learn series sought to help parents guide their children's development. This book builds on those lessons.
Quality Time Anytime is divided into 13 chapters, covering such basic scenarios as "Bath Time," "Mealtime" and "Waiting Time." Each chapter supplies creative activities that weren't invented to "kill time." Every game is designed to be fun for parent and child and to teach important skills or reinforce good values while letting the parent guide the learning process.
Warner has wisely identified the appropriate age group for each activity, and she further identifies the values and skills that each game cultivates. For example, the game of "Which Way" gives children a chance to give directions to the driver on the way to a familiar location. This hilarious activity will quickly impress the child with the difference between "left" and "right" and the importance of accuracy in communicating directions. Similarly, the game of "Guess the Grocery Bill" has a child in the checkout line try to figure out what the bill will be. Warner says this teaches the value of resourcefulness and the skills of math and memory.