I will confess that I’ve never read a gender-specific parenting book. My older two are girls and my husband and I are dreading the pre-teen (now!) and teenage years. The warnings abound of what is to come from parents of older girls and this might drive me to pick up a book on parenting pre-teen or teenager girls.
My little boy, on the other hand, is at the stage where he loves his mommy the most and is as sweet as can be. I wish this phase could last forever. Parenting a boy compared to girls seems relatively straightforward — a straight line of screen time limits and outdoor play versus the wiggly line for girls of pissy attitudes and struggles over what to wear. Or could this just be that my son is still little?!
So, this list caught my eye. I better get cracking. Who knows what I am not doing right?! Let me know if anyone comes across with a list of parenting books for girls. This is giving me a bigger headache at the moment!
Best Parenting Books for Raising Boys
1. Raising Real Men: Surviving, Teaching and Appreciating Boys by Hal and Melanie Young
2. Boy-sterous Living: Celebrating Your Loud and Rowdy Life with Sons by Jean Blackmer
3. Raising a Modern Day Knight: A Father’s Role is Guiding His Son to Authentic Manhood by Robert Lewis
4. That’s My Son: How Moms Can Influence Boys to Become Men of Character by Rick Johnson
5. Created for Work: Practical Insights for Young Men by Bob Schultz
6. King Me: What Every Son Wants and Needs from His Father by Steve Farrar
7. Boyhood and Beyond: Practical Steps to Becoming a Man by Bob Schultz
8. Mothers and Sons: Raising Boys to Be Men by Jean Lush, Pam Vredevelt
9. A Young Man After God’s Own Heart: Turn Your Life into an Extreme Adventure by Jim George
10. How Do You Tuck In a Superhero? And Other Delightful Mysteries of Raising Boys by Rachel Balducci
Thank you to a reader for her suggestion:
It’s a Boy!: Your Son’s Development From Birth to Age 18 by Michael Thompson and Theresa Barker
p.s. Related posts:
10 Picture Books about Sensory Differences
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BEST #OWNVOICES CHILDREN’S BOOKS: My Favorite Diversity Books for Kids Ages 1-12 is a book that I created to highlight books written by authors who share the same marginalized identity as the characters in their books.
Oh this is a rich topic. My guess is that all these books are aiming to address what sometimes seems to be a slight cultural preference for girls, or in reality the more stereotypically docile behavior attributed to girls (rightly or wrongly). See “The End of Men” by Hanna Rosin – article in the Atlantic and soon to be a book.
People worry that if boys are not as good at school (gross generalization) then how will they find a place in the world? etc., etc.
You should also include “Its a Boy!” by Michael Thompson.
I think you are right! Thanks for the addition. I’ll add to the list!
Thanks for the great list for boys… as the mother of a teenage girl may I suggest you read “Get Out of My Life, but First Could You Drive Me & Cheryl to the Mall: A Parent’s Guide to the New Teenager” by Anthony E Wolf, PhD
It helped me immensely once my method of wing it and rely on instinct started to fail me. IT has some suggestions and gave me some peace of mind.
Thank you Annette for your great parenting book recommendation! I’m not familiar with it but as a mom of a new teen (just 13 in December), I find myself befuddled by parenting a teen girl! Such new and challenging territory!!! And my oldest is supposed to be my easy child!