BoyMom is a frank and engaging look at raising kids (especially boys) in an age of impossible, quite often toxic, polarized masculinity written by Ruth Whippman. Released 4th June 2024 by Penguin Random House on their Rodale Harmony imprint, it's 320 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links.
The author writes well and accessibly about gender politics, masculinity (what it -is-, what it -means-, what the systems are which hold it in place, and what (if anything) we should -do- about it), raising boys, and she actually gives reasoned and practical planning and coping techniques for raising responsible humans for the next generations of humanity.
One thing is unquestionably certain, it's not easy to live in a society which is seismically split along gender lines with utterly toxic damaging behavior all around. She writes through the lens of her own experiences, raising three sons in Republican era USA, post-Weinstein, #metoo, and a p*ssy grabbing president. It's easy to get bogged down, indeed nearly impossible not to get bogged down and overwhelmed.
She is very good at splitting the issues into understandable chunks: fundamental gender inequality, education, sexual assault, toxic masculinity/influencers, INCELs, structural legal responsibility and fairness (at educational/work institutions, especially where there's alcohol or unclear consent).
The author manages to be sympathetic and very upfront about her own biases, and tries (and mostly succeeds) in being fair and balanced.
It's a thorny problem, and one that doesn't have a "magic wand" solution. Despite the title, this is an important book for everyone.
Five stars. Thought provoking and sobering.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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