The what's happening to my body? book for boys : the new growing-up guide for parents and sons /

Gr. 4-8. In these new editions of her classic guides, Madaras has made significant changes to reflect the younger age at which children are now reaching puberty. She has cut out the chapters about sex, birth control, pregnancy, and STDs, although she includes a rich appendix of resources on these topics. Mostly, the books concentrate on the physical changes that occur during puberty, with new chapters designed to serve as "owners manuals": in Boys, there's new information about shaving and answers to questions about penis size; in Girls, there's an expanded "all about having periods" section. As in the previous editions, the tone is matter-of-fact and comforting, and Madaras has further simplified the sentence structure and word choices, in some cases perhaps too much; the section on sexual harassment, for example, is somewhat vague and slightly unfocused. Overall, however, these are excellent new editions that make fine resources even more accessible to a young audience. Sure to encourage dialogue between kids and parents. --Gillian Engberg

For preteen and young teen boys: a clear, easygoing explanation of the changes accompanying sexual development. As she did in her like-titled work for girls, Madaras treats the mechanics as just a small aspect of sexuality; in a separate section, she briefly discusses the specific concerns of this age. Madaras covers physical matters in detail, step-by-step through the changes of puberty; she includes a chapter on girls-and-puberty that will help readers understand what is going on with the other sex. This is all done in Madaras' forthright style: her young male co-author, and her own experience teaching classes in sex education, have kept her on-target in speaking to readers' worries and wonderings. In an introduction to parents, Madaras suggests that the book be read separately and together, and offers sage advice on broaching difficult subjects (""What do you say? 'Hi, son, been masturbating lately?'""). Older boys will do better with Jay Gale's A Young Man's Guide to Sex (p. 477) for a fuller discussion of other than physical matters; for the younger crowd, and for starters, this is fine. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.