Book recommendation: The Dangerous Book for Boys
April and I recently stumbled across this book by listening to seperate NPR stories. Since we were headed for a short camping trip, I decided to pick it up (at April's suggestion) before we went to provide a little fireside reading.
It was a good choice.
The Dangerous Book for Boys by Conn Iggulden and Hal Iggulden is excellent. It is bound like an old book - no glossy, arty cover; it is that coated fabric binding that is deliberately reminiscent of the classic lit and science books you stumbled across in the school library. It is filled with all kinds of projects and pieces of history that every boy and girl should know about.
On page one, it lists eleven useful things that boys and girls should never be without, such as a swiss army knife and a compass. Although there are no big surprises in this list, it reminds you of the metal band-aid box stuffed full of useful things that you never left home without. For me it was a golden summer between third and fourth grade, where I was old enough to roam the neighborhood by myself. This book takes me back to that period of time, and reminds me to make sure that our kids get the same opportunity. The book includes instructions on things like making cloth fireproof, skipping stones, and advice about girls (which, as I recall, was beginning to be important around that summer).
It also has chapters on the important battles of history, latin phrases that every boy should know, and the golden age of Piracy (and we're not talking filesharing here). I particularly enjoyed the summary of the seven wonders of the ancient world - how many of us these days know all seven? I knew two. I've decided that over the course of Jonah's life, I want to use this book as one of the guides to things we should try together, or in some cases, that he should do on his own if he is inclined. I figure that if I start checking things off in this book, and then teaching him to write about his experiences as he goes, that he will have a great written record for himself later in life. I wish I had that; I have found that my memory of those times is really thin, and I definitely wish I could remember the feeling of an endless summer.
The Dangerous Book for Boys is highly, highly recommended. From a Portland perspective, there are tons of things in this book that can be done here that is not true elsewhere - mostly because there are still neighborhoods where children have not been legislated out of their opportunity to be kids. Another favorite book of ours is Last Child in the Woods, which has a lot to say about the ultimately unhealthy sterilization of our environment; Kids should be able to build forts and go-karts, for example, but in many places there are actually ordinances against it. A lot of overly zealous parenting and people more concerned with property value than letting kids be kids.
And I am sure there must be a sequel in the works, because as the writers point out, when you start thinking about these things there are a million new ideas that spring out of your mind from when you were a child. Which ultimately is the idea - this book is about ideas that you come up with without the assistance of video games and IPods. And although I love video games and my IPod, I am also glad to know the brief history of artillery (page 209).
Suggestion: The Dangerous Book for Girls?
