Author: Leonard Sax, M.D. Ph.D.
Genre: Non-fiction (Science/Parenting)
Pages (words): 336 (N/A)
Readability: N/A
Rating (out of 5 stars): ****
Reviewed by: Ben
Description: Leonard Sax describes the major differences between boys and girls both in terms of their psychology as well as their physiology, and explains how those differences can make a huge difference in the way they should be taught, mentored, and parented. Carefully studied with plenty of citations, Sax mixes plain scientific observation with some of his recommendations on how to apply the knowledge in a practical way. To give a simple example, he cites several studies that show that boys' hearing is on average substantially worse than girls'. So, he suggests placing boys near the front of the classroom and talking to them louder. There are a multitude of examples such as this that really give one a clearer idea of how to work with gender differences.
Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book, and felt like it was an important one for me to read as a parent (as well as a future professor). There were lots of insights and aha moments as I read it. The most incredible thing to me was that the Church already does basically everything that he suggests in the book (e.g. encourage families to eat together, give solid boys-only and girls-only mentoring and teaching, etc.). Still, there were lots of things I could personally take from the book that alters the way I approach parenting situations. While I didn't agree with everything in the book, nearly all of it was spot-on and very well researched. I think every parent should read this book. I'm already planning on reading his next one, Boys Adrift.
Disclaimer: The chapter on sex was quite explicit. In my opinion, completely unnecessarily so--there was way too much detail in there for what was needed. Not sure if he was just going for the shock effect or what, but I could have done with that part being toned down several notches. Besides that, it was clean.
