THE WHAT'S HAPPENING TO MY BODY? BOOK FOR BOYS: A Growing Up Guide for Parents and Sons (3rd edition)
by Lynn Madaras with Area Madaras
Newmarket
ISBN: 1557044430
Age Level: THE WHAT'S HAPPENING TO MY BODY? BOOK FOR BOYS: A Growing Up Guide for Parents and Sons (3rd edition)
288 pages

Want to get the straight story on puberty? You've come to the right place. Author Lynn Madaras knows what she's talking about: she taught sex and health education to boys and girls for more than 20 years in California schools. She has also had lots of personal experience: her daughter Area was just 11 years old and had lots of questions about the changes in her own body when Madaras published her first WHAT'S HAPPENING TO MY BODY? book back in 1983.

This reassuring book provides thorough information on almost anything you would want to know about the way your body and emotions change as you begin puberty. It's very common to feel confused, weird or even scared when these changes occur, and the best way to put your mind at ease is to get the best, most-honest information about puberty you can.

In the nine chapters here, Madaras serves up straight-talk on sexual organs, sexual intercourse and body development. But rather than just listing some scientific-sounding terms, she provides detailed information that addresses such real concerns as body image, how drugs effect your health, erections, penis size, circumcision, how to control body odor, how to shave, and how to handle romantic and sexual feelings you may be having. This latest edition also contains important information (appropriate for this age group) on steroid abuse, weight training, AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases, and birth control.

And perhaps best of all, this book will show you that many people feel the same way you do. Several chapters contain letters from real guys who ask questions or share their personal experiences. A pronunciation guide for important words, and simple black-and-white line drawings will help you get an even clearer understanding of all the subject matter here. A section on Girls and Puberty explains some of the changes girls are going through at this same time, so you can compare, and try to understand why they are feeling and acting the way they are.

An extensive, helpful resources section, which directs you to where you can get more information on some of the topics mentioned in the book, is also included.

   --- Reviewed by Shannon Maughan