OT - Books for Boys

[PollyannaMom]

DS7 was upset this evening over a cartoon in which the girls really showed up the boys. The point (to adults) was about including everyone, but to a 7-year-old boy, it felt like just one more entry in a long list of "girls are better" messages. (He brought up a couple of others.)

What should I be reading to him to build his self esteem as a boy? (without, of course, putting girls down either.)

 

[Diamondintheruff]

Perhaps you want to focus on books where the boys and girls learn to get along with each other, instead of raising the status of one gender over the other.

I liked the magic treehouse books where Jack and Annie are siblings and have to work together. Or the secrets of Droon where the boys have a neighbor who is a girl who works with her.

 

[ENSOCK]

The magic treehouse books are really good.

 

[fan_of_small_world]

series my DS has loved:

Time Warp Trio

Encyclopedia Brown
Hardy Boys
Captain Underpants
Freddie Fernortner
American Chillers
Michigan Chillers
biographies - DS loved reading about Walt Disney, Albert Einstein, John Glenn

I'm taking a course in children's lit, and I'd also suggest these series:

Jake Drake
Horrible Harry
Henry and Mudge

 

[Camping Griswalds]

My son got a book for Christmas that he couldn't put down. It's called the "Dangerous Book for Boys" 2 brothers got together to write it. They think boys are just being smothered in todays society. It has a lot of history stuff, then magic tricks and and things like how to make a snare, tie knots. My son loved it and could not put it down. It's a little old for your son, but if you read it together, it might bring on some cool discussions about how great boys are!!

Both of my boys read the "Jack and Annie" books!

 

[roxydotty]

The Dangerous Book for Boys. My 7 year old and 12 year old enjoy it. It shows boys how to build things (bow and arrow, treehouse, etc) talks about fishing, bugs, first aid, maps, astronomy. My 7 year old likes the Magic Tree House Series also. Or find out what interests your son has and look for books about that subject.

 

[mrs.beast]

a great set of boy books are the series of My Father's Dragon.

 

[MSSANDRA]

The box car children book are really good too.

 

[meandtheguys2]

My Side of the Mountain. It is about a boy that survives the wilderness on his own.

We started making fun of all of the "guys are stupid" commercials, etc. And pointing out that if they were talking that way about women/girls the commercial/show would receive a great deal of criticism. And discussing the ethics of making any gender, race or religion seem ignorant in and of itself.

 

[fan_of_small_world]

Just came across a great website by Jon Sciescka (author of Time Warp Trio books) encouraging boys to read - it addresses both very young boys all the way through adults...

www.guysread.com

 

[DawnM]

My boys love the Magic Treehouse series about a boy and girl and their adventures together.

They are currently reading the same Author's (Mary Pope Osborne) version of The Odyssey. It is 6 books in children's language of the actual Odyssey. My boys are enthralled!

Dawn

 

[DawnM]

Actually, that could be the difference right there....books vs. cartoons. I hate almost all cartoons and can't believe the garbage out there passing as children's shows.

Dawn

DS7 was upset this evening over a cartoon in which the girls really showed up the boys. The point (to adults) was about including everyone, but to a 7-year-old boy, it felt like just one more entry in a long list of "girls are better" messages. (He brought up a couple of others.)

What should I be reading to him to build his self esteem as a boy? (without, of course, putting girls down either.)