The Men They Will Become: The Nature and Nurture of Male Character

Eli Newberger, M.D., one of this country’s most distinguished pediatricians and experts on family development, brings decades of experience and insight to this vitally important subject. The Men They Will Become delves to the deepest roots of male character. A baby boy, says the author, has traits but no character. At each stage, particular characteristics -- attachment, honesty, self-control, sportsmanship, generosity, courage -- are either nurtured or thwarted. Along the way, intrinsic biological drives combine with parenting as well as gender-polarizing forces in the culture to create either the admirable qualities we all admire or those we deplore and fear. Unlike recent writers on this subject, Newberger does not try to make boys more like girls. Instead he shows us how to nurture, encourage and celebrate the best in men. The need for leaders of bold but nonviolent character makes this profoundly insightful book of urgent and timely importance.

Eli H. Newberger, M.D., pediatrician, teaches at Harvard Medical School and founded the Child Protection Team and the Family Development Program at Boston Children’s Hospital. Eli H. Newberger, M.D., pediatrician, teaches at Harvard Medical School and founded the Child Protection Team and the Family Development Program at Boston Children’s Hospital.