|
Praise for From
Boys to Men!
From Boys to Men
is a crucial read for parents, teachers, grandparents, and everyone
who makes policies about young men. Bret Stephenson, a noted authority
in adolescent male development, begins his exciting book by explaining
how our cultural erasure of an organized and ritualized male adolescence
has done great harm to our children. Then he re-invents rites of
passage and the rituals of male adolescence to fit our contemporary
age. Stephenson is masterful in his presentation of how to help
boys "slay the dragon" and thus find a contributive, healthy
and successful manhood. I highly recommend this book!"
--Michael Gurian, Author of A FINE YOUNG MAN,
THE WONDER OF BOYS and THE WONDER OF GIRLS
"[From Boys to
Men] builds a much needed bridge between contemporary knowledge
and the wisdom of indigenous elders. By utilizing tools that are
familiar to the western experience and infusing them with ancestral
spiritual wisdom you are inviting people to traverse the distance
from the limitations of the known to the vast resources of the unknown."
--Malidoma Somé, Author OF WATER AND
THE SPIRIT-Ritual, Magic, and Initiation in the Life of an
African Shaman; RITUAL: Power, Healing, and Community, and THE HEALING
WISDOM OF AFRICA: Finding Life Purpose Through Nature, Ritual, and
Community
"Bret Stephenson takes
a hard look at how we are raising boys and explores
how ancient wisdom and traditional practices can be used to help
adolescent
males become healthy young men and active members of the community."
Aaron Kipnis--Author of Angry Young Men;
Knights Without Armor; Gender War-Gender Peace
“A brilliant and practical
resource and guide for stewarding adolescent boys into responsible
leadership
and manhood…a must for parents, teachers, leaders, and managers.”
--Angeles Arrien, Cultural Anthropologist,
Author of THE FOUR-FOLD WAY and SIGNS OF LIFE
"Society
needs to know these ideas and practices."
Ralph Metzner--Author of Maps
of Consciousness, The Well of Remembrance, The Unfolding Self...
"This book fills an
important psychological and mythological need of our time. Parents,
Counselors and Educators could all profit by its commonsense and
timeless wisdom. Stephenson takes the reader through this zone with
expertise, compassion and some darned good storytelling!"
--Stephen Larsen, Ph.D. and Robin Larsen Ph.D
(Stephen Larsen is Professor Emeritus of Psychology (SUNY) and the
author of THE SHAMAN'S DOORWAY and THE MYTHIC IMAGINATION, and with
Robin, A FIRE IN THE MIND: THE LIFE OF JOSEPH CAMPBELL-THE AUTHORIZED
BIOGRAPHY, and THE FASHIONING OF ANGELS, PARTNERSHIP AS SPIRITUAL
PRACTICE. The Larsens co-direct the Center for Symbolic Studies,
a 501 (c) (3) that works with Youth at Risk, as well as many educational
programs for young artists, dancers and athletes.
(For full quote and
book Preface, click here)
The issue of our neglected,
abused, and misunderstood teenager is a major social issue as critical
as any today and grievously ignored. Bret Stephenson makes a valuable
contribution toward addressing this neglect. He offers a splendid
and practical therapeutic approach societies have used for ages.
An integral part of a young man's growth, rites of passage wisely
targeted a developmental period which new research shows is as critical
to ongoing development of intelligence as early infancy and childhood.
From Boys to Men
takes this ancient wisdom and updates it as fitting to our times
and temperament. If the vast sums currently spent on trying to keep
teenagers in a failed and punishing school system were spent on
projects such as this, a major step toward social health would unfold.
Stephenson deserves all the support we can give him. Buy his book,
put it to use and spread the word.
--Joseph Chilton Pearce, author of Magical
Child, The Biology of Transcendence, and From Magical Child to Magical
Teen: A Guide to Adolescent Development
Stephenson, a counselor
for at-risk teens, offers a thought-provoking look at the demise
of adolescent initiation rites into manhood, the longevity of adolescence
among contemporary American teens, and a lack of "appropriate
risks" available to boys. He makes a compelling argument to
retrieve ancient and time-tested rites of passage (like Vision Quests)
in the service of Joseph Campbell's three basic transition steps
into adulthood: a boy's separation from a community, initiation
through ritual, and a subsequent return into the embrace of that
same community—but as a man. For a rite to be "truly transformative,"
writes Stephenson, "the risk or challenge in an initiation
must be experienced as powerful enough to create an ego death, to
"kill" the boy so the man can be born," and often
includes the "goal of getting exhausted and experiencing altered
consciousness" and even a literal wounding of the body. Stephenson
is aware that he presents what may seem a bitter pill to swallow,
but he offers practical models, methods, and activities for changing
problematic behavior that draw on a wide range of transition rites
that he has recreated for the modern teenage boy. A broad audience
will find this a fascinating and hopeful glimpse into the contemporary
struggles of American boyhood. (Dec.)
--Religion Bookline (Publisher's Weekly Oct.
25, 2006)
“Why does America
insist on pumping billions of dollars into models for helping young
men make the transition to adulthood? Stephenson says we have ignored
the lessons of our many ancestors, who devised a strategy for that
rite of passage and stuck with it. The author pieces together a
wealth of information on ancient ritual and how corporate America
has led the charge to abandon those rituals”
--YOUTH TODAY: The Newspaper on Youth Work (Oct. 2004)
|
