Boys will be boys (Raising Boys - Steve Biddulph)

Name: kca101

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Product:	Raising Boys - Steve Biddulph
Date:	02/10/00 (170 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Easy to read, very good advice

Disadvantages: None

Rarely have I read a book as quickly as this one, but rarely has a book been so easy to access. Steve Biddulph doesn’t mess about with fancy words, he writes in a very conversational way that is easy to read.

As the title suggests, it is a book about raising boys, and Steve goes to great lengths to describe why boys are different to girls - and I must admit to recognising some of my own traits from when I was younger. Taking this as a starting point he then describes the stages that boys go through when they grow up and what they are looking for in parents and peers.

One point that comes through clearly is that many problems relating to boys (violence, sexual deviance, etc) are caused to a great extent by “underfathering”. This means the absence of a positive father figure in the boy’s life. Boys also need rules and need to know that they will be enforced – in fact much of the advice is common sense, but yet it’s not immediately obvious to us!

He is particularly sensitive on the area of smacking children, and the potential problems that can bring.

Whilst the book is aimed much more at fathers, most of it is relevant to mothers too and there is a chapter devoted to the mother/son relationship.

The main text only takes up about two-thirds of the book and it is interspersed with “Tales from the heart” (stories from contributors), practical examples, and plenty of pictures to illustrate certain points. This does help to break up the book and make it easy to read, and it also helps to have different angles on the same subject.

Steve Biddulph has a bit of a reputation as a spokesperson for the new “sensitive and masculine” man after his book “Manhood” and this book reinforces that positive image. Fathers and mothers need to really get involved with their sons, actually understand them, and make a difference in their lives.

P
arenting is incredibly hard and no one is going to bring up a boy perfectly. Reading this book will, however, give you confidence that the problems you are facing are not uncommon and can be solved.

I wholeheartedly recommend this to anyone who has a son or is about to have one. It’s never too early or late to make a difference.

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