The Dangerous Book for Boys by Conn Iggulden, Hal Iggulden
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Book Reviews of The Dangerous Book for Boys
Book Review: It's Never Too Late To Have A Happy (And Complete) Childhood
Summary: 5 Stars
I wasn't one of those "outdoorsy" kids growing up. The fact of the matter was I was a bookish loner nerd (not that there's anything WRONG with that!), yet still I yearned for more. Yes, I knew how to make a paper football and play desk football with it, but honestly didn't know how to build a treehouse. Now that I'm growing more "in touch" with my inner child, along comes this book, which is a fine, fun reference for the child, the child-in-all-of-us, or simply the curious.
There's a lot in this book, fortunately divvied up into right-size chunklets, that appeals to the generally curious and latent experimenter. Just when I thought no one cared about how to make simple circuits and electromagnets (I still miss my 1001 electronic experiments kit), here I find instructions on how to make 'em from scratch. I thought building a hairspray-fueled potato cannon was the ultimate neighborhood war project (thankfully not in here - I had to learn it from the lad-mag Maxim), and here I see details on constructing a full-blown catapult! And the articles! Anything you might have wanted to know about the universe, English grammar, paper marbelling, or even girls (this makes a catapult look easy!) are all here for your perusing pleasure.
Hearing about this on NPR was just as much fun as finding a box of green army men. I don't have kids, and I'm 40, and I say this is an important addition to any library. Even girls (and women) will get a charge out of it. I know I shouldn't let "them" into our boy's clubhouse, but really, isn't the whole point of being a "dangerous boy" about sharing "forbidden" (and still quiet useful) knowledge?
Book Review: Dangerously Addictive
Summary: 5 Stars
The name alone was enough to get me to buy it - I may be a girl, but I learned at a very early age that most of the best stuff was labeled "for boys", sad as that may be. (And yes, I think this has more to do with the percentage of girls who'd rather do their nails than play in the mud - let's not get into the whys.)
What surprised me was the sheer number of intellectual exercises in the book. Yes, there's things like skinning rabbits and knot tying that you could find in a Scout book, but there's also stories of daring adventure - Scott of Antarctica and the Wright Brothers - which show men behaving in a heroic and manly fashion. (And yes, there are plenty of women who behave heroically, but I think most boys would rather read about men, just as most girls would rather read about women.)
The section on the golden age of piracy fascinated my son, while I greatly enjoyed the section on Navajo code talkers. The sections on cryptography, grammar, and girls are all equally fascinating in their own ways. I don't know if we'll be building a tree house any time soon, but my son will probably try building pocket flashlights with some of his friends.
Dangerous? Only if you're afraid your kids might go outside and play when it's sunny, experiment with do-it-yourself science when it's not, or, more dangerous still, sit around and read about heroic people, self sacrifice and personal risk.
I only question why no one ever gets to learn any of this stuff in school. (My son does, but then again, we homeschool.) Ah, well -- my nieces and nephews will just have to make do with their own copies.
Book Review: Now a "Daring Book for Girls"?
Summary: 5 Stars
Our society is so sick...sick...sick. There is now a "Daring Book for Girls." Why do we need this? Aren't there enough books for girls? Why can't the girls just buy the boy's book if they want to know about this stuff? Or why couldn't the author just write another book for girls and call it something else?
I think that we were much healthier growing up in the fifties and sixties. It didn't matter as much what toys we played with. At least in my neighborhood, our favorite toys were Stuart Horses, Bonanza Gun sets, "Pretend House" furniture, and Barbies and GI Joes, both played with as "action figures." (Our favorite Barbie outfit was the one with the checkered shirt and blue jeans--and that huge angle fish on a line.) Our favorite show was Combat, and we acted it out all the time (the combat parts--the "ladies" in the actual shows didn't figure in our play, but we did sometimes argue over who got to be Vic Morrow.)
Boys and girls played the same games together. We used old boards and roller skates to make skateboards, which against our mothers' good advice we tried out on the hill. We played softball in the street, rode our bikes like maniacs, and dressed in Levis and scruffy tee-shirts. Before we were ten or eleven, we didn't even think about the "appropriate" roles for boys or girls. We just played the same games together.
Personally, I think that is a better way to grow up, than to be a little girl in ruffled blue jeans and a frilly sweater playing with "pretty pony" toys(but who can't play with trucks because they are for boys) reading a "Daring Book for Girls."
Book Review: Fantastic
Summary: 5 Stars
This is really a superb book for any boy, regardless of age.
In today's society, boys who act like boys are medicated and often have their spirits broken, or at least damaged. 'The Dangerous Book For Boys' is a good partial remedy for that.
It contains all kinds of great activities and knowledge for boys. In the video game/indoors dominated environment of most boys today, this volume stands in stark contrast to the prevailing atmosphere. It has all kinds of fun (and active) things to do such as the following: making and flying paper airplanes, learning several kinds of knots, building a tree house, fishing, skipping stones, dog tricks, coin tricks, and even has a section on insects and spiders. Many of the activities in here were common just a couple of decades ago when I was a kid, but have virtually disappeared today.
It also contains various types of knowledge that is interesting for boys such as major battles, astronomy, stories about great adventurers, Latin phrases, books that every boy should read, and the seven wonders of both the ancient and modern worlds.
My only criticism (and it is very mild) is that even the version sold in the US is rather British in focus. For instance it talks about sports like stickball and rugby. At least cricket is not in this version.
Even with these minor issues, this is a great book for any boy (from eight to eighty as the cover says). I highly recommend this as a gift for males of any age. Not only will they enjoy it, they will likely learn quite a bit from it as well.
Book Review: We built the treehouse - must read!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a wonderful book if for no other reason it brings the family together to talk about the wonderful ideas inside. We did actually build the treehouse. Although we consulted a couple of other sources, we ended up following the plans in the book. I've had lots of kids and even several adults up there at the same time. To quote my neighbor, "I've been on decks that weren't that sturdy." The key is the corner supports. I used 4x4 lumber to create these. The illustration isn't very clear, but you need to create a flat shoulder that the platform sits on in order to give enough support. The only modification I made was to put a doorway along one of the sides and a set of stairs going up (this makes Mom much more comfortable). Also a must is to include a pulley; the kids love playing with it. And be sure to point out the section in the book about building water bombs (the boys enjoy dropping these on each other out of the treehouse). It took us a day to clear the brush around the base of the tree; another day to put up the frame and the supports. Then ½ day for the decking, 1 day to build and attach the walls, about ½ day for the siding, then ½ day for the stairs. I'm still working on the roof but those will be build in 4 sections and raised into place w/ the pulley system. The book estimates the cost at $200; our actual cost was closer to $300, using treated lumber, and using scrap we already had for the siding. This will easily stand for the next 20 years, plus the family time spent together building, painting and finishing this, priceless!