Babies and young children in America's child welfare system have a high prevalence of physical, cognitive, and social-emotional delays, and often don't have access to the services and supports that could make all the difference. This book shows early childhood practitioners how to navigate the child welfare system and collaborate with a wide range of other professionals to meet young children's needs. The first part of the book summarizes research on the importance of early relationships, early literacy, effective health care, and early intervention services. It includes a review of the newest law passed by Congress concerning children in the welfare system, the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008. The second half of the book is devoted to real-life case examples that illustrate strong collaborations among the child welfare, legal, health care, early intervention, and early childhood education systems. These step- by-step stories will enable readers to apply the book's lessons, especially its major lesson on the importance of collaboration between those working inside and outside of government and the court system. Dicker is a member of the faculty of the Department of Pediatrics, The Children's Hospital at Montefiore, Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)