Abstract

What do Pablo Picasso, Prince and Martin Luther King Jr have in common? All have been described as having been highly sensitive boys and all grew up to be outstanding, sensitive men.

Too often, adults think of sensitive boys as shy, anxious and inhibited. They are measured against society's ideas about 'manliness' -- that all boys are sociable, resilient and have endless supplies of energy. This highly readable guide is for any adult wanting to know how to understand and celebrate sensitive boys. It describes how thinking about boys in such old-fashioned ways can cause great harm, and make a difficult childhood all the more painful. The book highlights the real strengths shared by many sensitive boys - of being compassionate, highly creative, thoughtful, fiercely intelligent and witty. It also flips common negative clichés about sensitive boys being shy, anxious and prone to bullying to ask instead: what we can do to create a supportive environment in which they will flourish?

Full of simple yet sage advice, this book will help you to encourage boys to embrace their individuality, find their own place in the world, and to be the best they can be.

Informative, helpful, and motivating. It stresses that some things need to be celebrated instead of fixed, and I am in complete support of that. Check it out!
Jennifer Castro, mother of a sensitive boy (NetGalley)

Betsy de Thierry is a mum of four brilliant boys, a practising psychotherapist, a qualified primary school teacher, and founder of two organisations that offer therapy and therapeutic education in many cities in the UK.

My hope is that a copy of this book will be everywhere where boys and those raising them can be found, and that it becomes THE gift to a family every time a boy is born.
Jane Evans, speaker, trainer and author specialising in the support of children's mental health