I love Michael Thompson and Dan Kindlon’s books and have found the interviews on the various podcasts I have listened to over the years very insightful. Their expert and collective wisdom about boys has come from working with them in schools and as a therapists in private practice.
They are passionate about boys, their uniqueness and educating parents, caregivers and educators how best to equip boys so that they can bring them up to be happy, emotionally healthy good men. When I first started reading about boys 6 years ago with the birth of my first son, I asked around for recommendations. Without fail, those moms of boys who had read up a little (or a lot) all recommended the bestselling “Raising Cain”. In it they reveal how boys are hurting, sad, afraid, angry and uncommunicative as a result of being held to impossibly high standards of manhood and set about trying to answer the question, “What do boys need that they are not getting?” Their focus in this book is that emotional literacy, awareness and empathy are the most valuable gifts we can offer our sons and that by giving them the vital connections and support they need to navigate the social and emotional pressures of youth, the can thrive instead of struggle.
I came across this blogpost in the blogosphere and thought it was a lovely summary of some of his key points. Happy reading.
Bringing Up Boys ... Raising Good Men 