A sweet book with an important message. However, this is formatted as a picture book for Preschool-early grade school. And most of those children don't think abstractly very well. What kind of boy are they supposed to be? The traditional boy things in this book are much more clear than the softer ones he learned to be.

I prefer something more explicit, like Big Boys Cry or something by Todd Parr.

I did like the illustrations - unique.

Thank you for the ARC.

I love this book. I thought the premise of it being a conversation between a parent and their son was brilliant because it modeled a possible conversation or things that could be said by caregivers to the children they're caring for. I thought that the gentle colors and the nature theme was also soothing and made the conversation more cozy. As for the actual content of the conversation, I appreciated that it was like a societal norms/typical gender roles statement juxtaposed with a more mindful, wholesome masculinity statement. It was easy to read, and it appeared developmentally appropriate for children. The only suggestion that I would have would be to change the font to be sans serif rather than serif. Though I prefer serif myself and loved that touch, sans serif is more low-vision/disability friendly. which would give more access for the audience. I'd love to get this book for my niece!

The text was sometimes very difficult to read (blue font color on dark background).

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A short picture book with a cute, simple-ish but calming artstyle and tender messages. All start with “when you’re a boy, [this is what society expects]” and end with “but I’ve learned [something better]”.

Definitely recommend to kids, but every age could learn something from it.

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Thank you to Jolly Fish Press for an e-ARC.

-13.03.25

Paired with absolutely stunning and heart warming illustrations, When You’re a Boy shares the absolutely vital message that there are so many important ways to be a man. Being a boy or a man is a complex experience that can prove to mean so many different things to so many different people. This book touches on the softer side of manhood that so many turn their cheek to. Embracing both femininity and masculinity and acknowledging that so many character traits are really not gendered, is such an important lesson to learn! The main character in this story shares the values of lightness, kindness, patience, and apology. All of these skills are juxtaposed with those typically associated as being manly traits displayed through metaphor and simile. I can’t share enough how moving this book was for me, or how quickly I will be buying it for my Public Library and bringing it out at storytimes! This read is a must have for homes hoping to foster acceptance, self love, and open mindedness. Especially in the times of division and forced identity labeling that we are living in now, titles like this are everything for starting our kids out loving and bright.

I absolutely loved the message of this book. The words and descriptive use of words was well thought out. I think the only thing that brought me out of the book was going from full spread whole page pictures to thw page that had a huge white space. I can see this book being purchase and read by many moms.

"When you're a boy, you are told how to be ..."
"But I have learned..."

This book, per publisher information, is geared towards 4 - 8-year-olds. It challenges the societal expectations of what boys should be taught and lets them know that it's okay for boys to have "softer" feelings, and that they should not feel compelled to be "tough".

I applaud the intended message; however, I am concerned the complex wording of the examples puts this out of the understanding of children in the stated target group. It might be more appropriate for older boys/men.

My thanks to Jolly Fish Press for allowing me to access a DRC of the book via NetGalley. Publication is November 18, 2025. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own and are freely given.

3.5/5⭐️

I really enjoy the message that is being portrayed in this book. It is so important for boys to know that they don’t need to be this tough outer shell of a person that society sometimes expects boys to be; A person that isn’t allowed to have emotions or feelings, or admit fault. The author’s message is SUCH an important message.

I also want to point out that the illustrator did a fantastic job. The illustrations draw you into the pages with every small detail.

Unfortunately, my concern is that the author’s message to boys will be lost amongst the large words used in the text. To adults, the message is apparent and still stands strong; but to a 4-8 year old (which this book is written for), the words used are very complicated (ie. ‘contentment’, ‘swift-sweeping’). There are also similes and alliterations used in the book that children will really struggle to grasp (ie. ‘like the cruel-clawing wilds’, ‘the falsehood of fighting’, ‘the strong shield of slowly’, and ‘the sharp sword of sorry’).

I received this book as a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

At first glance it is a beautifully illustrated book which focuses on other aspects of boyhood than “wildness” illustrated by different aspects of nature.

The premise is good, but for ages 4-8 I would think there is too little text on each page. At least the books I read for my 4.5-year old usually have a bit more and single sentence across 2 pages. On the other hand, some of the vocabulary was on the more advanced side for his age group.

Unfortunately the biggest detractor of the book is the main sentence “When you’re a boy you’re told how to be like….”. It feels like a bad translation, as if it should either be “you’re taught how to be like…” or “you’re told to be like…” (no how).

I also wish that there was more relationship between the first example and the following. I am not sure that saying that boys are told to be like the “white-roaring ocean” but he has discovered “the fierceness of flowers, the glory of colour, the beauty of dreaming”.
The imagery is beautiful, but I when reading the blurb I was hoping for some connected examples. My son, did not fully understand what ‘fierceness of flowers’ might be.
It seems like a beautiful poem which had been translated a bit strangely at times and has been illustrated to be more approachable for children.
I asked my son if it was a good book he said ‘it’s a really good book’ and asked me to read more books. BUT he did not ask me to immediately read this one again.

All in all, I had high hopes for this book, but it came in short and I don’t see us reading it again.

“But I’ve learned the sweetness of dancing, the softness of music, and the power of healing.”
I’m not a boy, but I do have brothers. My dear younger brothers are kind and have big hearts, but I realize this is unusual for lots of boys and men because they are taught from birth that they must be tough and show no emotion. Having any soft traits make you weak. But I wish more boys and men could learn the power of being soft and vulnerable.
‘When You’re a Boy’ dives into the programming that young boys face all their life. On how they are told what they should be vs what they are. What they are taught and how it conflicts with just being themselves, human. This book tells young and men the freedom that comes with just being and living without the need to restrict themselves to a rigid norm. And how there is power in being open to all your emotions and learning that maybe it isn’t so bad to be yourself and be happy.
The illustrations are beautiful. There is so much life and emotion in many of them that it feels like it would just jump off the page! Same with the text. It text moves with the images as much as the book moves me! Just plain wonderful. This is something that all boys, young and old, could learn from.

Thank you NetGallery and Jolly Fish Press for giving me a chance to review this book. All my opinions are my own and I have thoroughly enjoyed this book!

A beautiful picture book full of soft, gentle illustrations that allows and encourages young boys to be sensitive and vulnerable. It's a very quick read, but that doesn't detract from its impact; every boy should have access to a book like this one.

The illustrations support the reflective text, where being a boy is shown as multi-faceted, and that kindness takes as much strength as toughness, maybe more. This picture book would make a lovely addition to any families home library and will fit nicely in our library.

An emotional story about what boys are taught to be and what they are capable of becoming, this story will resonate with children and parents alike.

This book celebrates nurturing the tender side of boys and the strength found in embracing all of our traits.

I read this with my 5 year old. It was a great discussion on how it’s okay to be tough and strong but it’s also okay to have kindness and patience and thoughtfulness.

I also had to explain what a lot of words meant because a lot of the words were not on my son’s radar of understanding.

Thank you North Star Editions, Net Galley and Blake Nuto for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Simple, yet effective. Reading this book as a mother with small boys, I understood the significance of the contrasts being made. I'm not sure a young boy would completely understand the metaphors used, but I feel the pictures and the verse communicate the message well enough. I can see this being a book that is read repeatedly as a boy grows and matures, and getting something different out of it each time it is read.

I requested the book because the cover really appealed to me. In terms of content, the book is calm and focuses beautifully on a harmonious interplay between text and image. I think it's nice when pictures in read-aloud books don't reflect the words that are added to the text 1:1. I still think it worked out well here.

What I found a little confusing was imagining how the pages would look if they were perceived as a double page, because I wasn't able to do that with the TH Reader. I'm not sure and suspect the white pages with the text centred and an illustration opposite are intended as such or will there be picture content inserted later?

In terms of content, I found the statements of ‘and the power of healing’ and ‘the courage of patience’ quite detached. Rhythmically they fall out of the previous scheme in my opinion. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but the pacing and rhythm took me out of it a bit. Especially because the opposite side of ‘the courage of patience’ is the one where they both walk over the tree trunk? That didn't fit for me in terms of whats written and showed in the art.

I really liked the pages with the birds of prey! A bit darker and great textures! However, once again I didn't find the story of the pictures to be entirely plausible in relation to what the text says. As an adult, I can already see why fighting is not desirable. The words tell the story of ‘falshoof of fighting’ ‘strong shield of slowly’ and ‘sharp sword of sorry’, but why do the two of them experience this mix of feelings? Have they lost their way? Was the child afraid? Did the adult catch the child in this emotion or did the adult apologise that they were both lost? Why did the moment of sorry occur? I would like to see more clarity in the story told in the pictures here.

The ending rounds off the story nicely and is similar to the beginning, creating a really nice framework for the whole book. Overall, I really like the pictures and the message, I would just like to see a bit more clarity in the story told in the pictures.

I found this book to be delightful. It allows boys to realize sensitivity is more than acceptable. It was inspirational and beautifully written.

The cover I like pretty much. One don't really can see that it is a book for children but it fits to that genre as well. I like the colours of the cover, everything looks in harmony and fits. Also I like mountains which is why I feel addressed.

The illustrations in the cover are great as well. I like the painting style. I only miss coloured paintings in the ebook because they would look much nicer than in black and white and in the ebook I think it doesn't cost more to show it coloured.

The format of the ebook it not really fitting that is why the illustrations or the texts are cut or shown in a strange way. That is why I cannot really say anything about the getup in the real (printed) book.

The text is nice to read and fitting. I liked it.

All in all I cannot recommend the ebook-format but I would say that you can try the printed one, or they are going to work on the ebook-getup and it will look better soon :-)

An important topic

"When You're a Boy" talks about an important topic and I like the thought behind it. The illustrations are beautiful. I enjoyed the text, however I feel like there's no explanation, which is necessary for ages 4-6. Parents, expect a lot of questions when reading.

A beautiful message with a modest yet thoughtful execution.
This book challenges the outdated idea that boys should only “be boys” in the traditional sense. Instead, it gently reminds us that boys can be gentle, tender, observant, calm, and appreciate beauty in the world around them—not just strong and wild as society often expects.
A quiet but powerful read that encourages emotional depth and self-acceptance.