Book excerpt: First published in 1992, this volume, a completely new work and companion to the best seller The ABC of Child Abuse Work, keeps alive the theme of the child’s perspective. This new book examines four faces of abuse in detail: physical abuse, children caught up in marital violence and the much neglected subject of neglect, so often ignored in many texts. Because of the high anxiety that surrounds sexual abuse, particular attention has been paid to this subject with a step-by-step interdisciplinary approach for working with the sex offender, the non-offending parent and the sexually abused child. There is also a section devoted to understanding and working with female sex offenders. The painful stresses experienced by the worker are not forgotten and emphasis is put upon the specific skills required in child protection work. There is a lively chapter on face-to-face work with abused children the complexities of child protection conferences are helpfully analysed with particular reference to the attendance of parents and children. The black perspective is given prominence with contributions from Emmanuel Okine and David Divine. A chapter by Caroline Ball describes the contents and implications of the 1989 Children Act. Issues relating to racism, sexism, classism, ageism and disabilityism are honestly tackled. The ABC of Child Protection aims to continue the development of a better service for abused children and their families. It serves as a guide to students on qualifying courses and for experienced professionals who wish to extend their practice in this area.