If you have a young son, read this

COVERGERL · December 1st, 2006, 11:58 AM

http://men.msn.com/articlees.aspx?cp-documentid=760910

Sorry, long article but I read this article a couple of months ago in Esquire magazine and it just speaks so well to the problems in our society with young men. Especially, since our sons are getting locked up and dropping out of school at epidemic proportions! I think we ALL need to read this:

Quote:
The Problem with Boys

...Is actually a problem with men. We've ignored all the evidence of male achievement and ambition deficits and stood aside as our sons have notched a growing record of failure and disengagement. It's time we did something about it. A call to action.
By Tom Chiarella

I HAVE TWO SONS. One is sixteen, the other thirteen. Like any boys, they are a little too muscular in their expectations from life. In a single evening, they can be sullen, sweet, hurtful, gentle, distant, funny, and full of grit. Tonight I dropped the younger one at soccer practice dressed all in yellow. Yellow sweatshirt, yellow jersey, yellow shorts, yellow kneesocks. "I just wish I had yellow shoes," he told me when he got out. "That would be the topper."

Both spend hours watching reruns of Jackass. One likes shooting baskets; the other likes watching anime. One goes to summer camp; the other doesn't. Lately, they both have begun to talk about bands that I have never heard of. They murmur to each other so that I am just out of earshot. They want their laundry done for them. They never clear their dishes or make their beds. They love their grandparents, but they never send them thank-you notes. They both still expect me to kiss them goodnight. They are boys.

They know I am writing this article. I've been wanting to write it for years. Here's what I tell them: I am worried about boys.

.......continues

I think his point about literature for boys is so on point. I know from experience that shopping for books for young boys is truly hard, with the exception of the fantasy genre there are hardly any good books out there for boys/young men.