Description Prologue: All the Power to the Children Week 1 Day 1, The First Day Feels Strange - "Can't the servants come right this instant!" Day 2, Asserting Smartly - Lara storms out of the bakery, Johnny refuses to shower Day 3, No More Questions - Johnny saves a perch's life, Lara bans cutlets Day 4, Signs of Rebellion - Lara skips school, Helga can't buy jam Day 5, Spending Wisely - Buy lobster for the whole neighborhood with just 5 euros? Day 6, The First Clash - A fight finally breaks out among the powerful Day 7, Playing Secretary - Johnny forgets to collect the money, Lara throws a party Week 2 Day 8, King of a Small World - There's no TV off button in a child's paradise Day 9, Solving Mealtime - An empty fridge thanks to a heartless CEO, starving to death Day 10, The Value of Coffee Money - Coworkers buy the coffee, what is this humiliation? Day 11, A Clear Violation - What exactly does "following the rules" mean? Day 12, No Giving Up Yet - The story of secretly breaking the TV without the kids knowing Day 13, A Huge Shopping Plan - The kids want to buy a game console, how do we stop them? Day 14, A World Without TV - A new enemy appears in place of TV: movies Week 3 Day 15, Roles Reversed - Parents acting as chauffeurs for their kids Day 16, A Wife's Absence - How will Lara fill her mother's empty role? Day 17, The New Lady of the House - Isn't there a contest for best stay-at-home parent? Day 18, Elegant Conversations Are Fun - Lara speaks her mind, Johnny shows politeness Day 19, Coordinating Opinions - Lazy parents make happy children Day 20, Shallow Tricks - Can parents and children really be friends? Day 21, The Experiment Pauses Briefly - The fact that children are children, and adults are adults Week 4 Day 22, Growing Tired of It - Lara becomes bored with the role swap Day 23, Paradise's Cough Syrup - Johnny skips school and gets lost in games all day Day 24, Becoming a Thief - The family faces a crisis over a 10-euro hospital bill Day 25, Math Is Truly Tiresome - Johnny skips school again, Lara makes peace with math Day 26, Restrictions and Limits - Banned from watching TV, Mom, Lara reflects on anger Day 27, Not Enough Money for a Gift - Torn between credit cards and the cost of living Day 28, A Bleak Future - We have only 6 euros left for living expenses Week 5 Day 29, Breaking the Rules - Maybe school isn't so important after all Day 30, The Goal in Sight - Exhausted Lara leaves the house in complete disarray Day 31, The Final Day - Children are children again, adults are adults again! Epilogue: Did We Change After the Project Ended? Inside the Book The adventure we suddenly found ourselves embarking on began with one small incident - the kind of small episode that could happen in any ordinary family's daily life. That episode took place in our basement. In our basement, the previous owner of the house had laid beautiful tile flooring and finished all four walls with expensive fir wood, creating a rather nice, spacious area. That's where our ping-pong table sits. I joined a table tennis club and have been playing for several years. I'm not very good, but I always play with enthusiasm. Recently, though, my son Johnny started showing interest in table tennis. When he saw me doing a slightly odd stroke, he insisted on trying it himself. ...(omitted)... One day I asked Johnny, "How about you be the coach today?" Johnny nodded happily and began training me, feeding me balls. Johnny turned out to be a strict coach - he rarely praised me and made me move around a lot. Maybe my son Johnny caught me off guard. But as a coach, Johnny showed me exactly what a proper coach should be like. ...(omitted)... Without even thinking, words like "thank you" and "could you help me?" came naturally out of my mouth. Johnny truly played the role of a real coach. After about 30 minutes had passed, Johnny said something. He set down his paddle and came over to me. Then he hugged me tightly and said, "Dad, when you spoke to me so politely just now, just like an adult would..."