Reading Journal: Six Ways to Keep the "Good" in Your Boy by Dannah Gresh

Book Description:

When bestselling author Dannah Gresh was body-slammed by her 12-year-old son, she was hit with reality: raising a boy is a whole new ballgame!  

A boy's relationship with his mom during the formative age between 8 and 12 is vital to his future well-being. So how can moms teach sons to be honest, confident, and respectful when the world and situations encourage them to make bad decisions and grow up too fast?  

Dannah's practical experience and research, along with advice from her husband, Bob Gresh, provide a mom with six proactive ways to help her son:  

• honor his body in a healthy way  

• get outside to play  

• unplugged live out his faith

This accessible resource will empower moms with information and hope to raise sons of integrity and faith. Includes an insightful Connection IQ Inventory test, activity ideas, and Scriptures to pray over sons.
 

My thoughts:
Several years ago I read and reviewed Six Ways to Keep the "Little" in Your Girl: Guiding Your Daughter from Her Tweens to Her Teens by Dannah Gresh (review) and when I saw she had written Six Ways to Keep the "Good" in Your Boy: Guiding Your Son from His Tweens to His Teens (also co-authored with her husband, Bob Gresh) I knew I had to read it.

Six Ways to Keep the "Good" in Your Boy: Guiding Your Son from His Tweens to His Teens focuses on the importance of boys learning to grow up and to be "good" (useful or beneficial). Now I have to admit the use of the word good made me cringe, because in all honesty I want my sons to be more than good. One reason the authors used this word was to counteract the "bad" boy mentality which is so prevalent in our world today. Another reason is because God is good and cited Romans 12:21:

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. NIV
 

The book is divided into two sections--the first dealing with becoming a connecting mom and the second dealing the the six ways to keep the "good" in your boy. In the first part deals with biological facts and fundamental truths to help you understand how to connect with your son. This part deals with such topics as a mom's greatest fears, being a connecting mom, why connecting matters, how connecting forms values, and the biggie--the male brain on testosterone.

In the second part the "six" ways are discussed and cover such topics as the importance of playing outside, reading books, the importance of a mother backing off and letting dad be involved in his life, celebrating his entrance into manhood, unplugging him for our plugged in world, and teaching him to be a gentleman. All of these chapters also have special thoughts delivered by the author's husband and also sections written especially for the single mom by a single mom.

This book is stuffed full of pertinent information, encouragement, and suggestions all stuffed into 200 pages. If you have boy on the verge of "tweenhood"  or in "teenhood" this book belongs on your shelf and needs to be read by both mom and dad (and yes, I've given it to my non-reader husband and commanded him to read it!). Highly recommended!!