“The ultimate handbook to help boys navigate puberty and develop a healthy body image. Packed full of practical and evidence-based advice on diet, fitness, and mental health, it addresses boys’ body image concerns head-on.
A must read. Being You will help boys appreciate they have more to offer the world than how they look.”

“An excellent resource for adolescents and their family on an important but often overlooked issue – male body image. The book provides evidence-informed breakdown of what body image is, the contributing factors to positive vs negative body image during adolescence, and how to improve body image. It balances informative aspects with practical tips and activities to try at home.

Descriptions are written in an easy-to-follow and concise manner, engaging the reader and facilitating understanding. Timely inclusion of quotes from experts and from adolescents themselves flesh out the key concepts described in the book. With body image issues placed nicely within the context of typical development, it is well suited as a resource for all adolescent boys and not just those who harbor extreme levels of body image concerns.”

“How we feel and think about our bodies impacts our mental and physical health in very important ways. Unfortunately, many of us struggle to appreciate our bodies. In ,”Being You: The Body Image Book for Boys”; Charlotte Markey, Dan Hart, and Douglas Zacher provide fun, interactive, and research-based tools to help boys learn to love and take care of their developing bodies.”

“With suicide rates surging for preteen and teenage boys – yet another painful sign of their feeling trapped by impossible pressures - and the top 15 causes of premature mortality predominantly male, how they relate to their bodies plainly matters. In their colorful, evidence-based, and wonderfully accessible book, the authors bring wisdom, compassion, and even humor to a subject that has been shrouded in myth for generations. For parents, educators and coaches who understand that integrity begins with how well a child cares for himself, an attitude learned – or not - early in life, I heartily recommend this book.”

“Parents who have been asking for ways to support their sons’ body image have a new resource to share with their adolescents. Being You meets boys where they are and offers research, personal stories, and practical guidance for navigating the confusing messages young men receive from the culture. This book also serves as a much-needed conversation-starter for families about what it means to take care of your authentic self, inside and out.”

“Dr. Markey has done it again! Being You: The Body Image Book for Boys is an excellent companion book to her body image book for girls. The chapters cover critical body image issues that boys would want to know: puberty, how they can take care of their bodies, and eating. The coverage of related mental health issues like bullying and self-compassion makes for a well-rounded volume of how boys can learn to be their best selves. Body image and eating issues are increasing for boys, and need more attention from researchers, parents, and media. A book like this is necessary to help guide boys through body image issues in a way that is fun, engaging, and specific to boys’ needs and concerns. It’s beautifully illustrated and highly readable, and features real life stories from boys and expert advice. Give the boys in your life a gift they deserve—buy this book!”

“Teen boys face immense body image pressures from social media and peers now more than ever, but these important issues are rarely acknowledged or discussed. Being You: The Body Image Book for Boys is an invaluable resource designed for boys to promote a positive body image based on the latest scientific evidence, expert advice, and real-life stories.”

“This is a terrific book. Being You frankly and kindly guides adolescent boys to develop a positive body image in terms of what they can’t change, what they can indeed learn to do, and the wisdom and self-compassion to learn the difference. With a skillful blend of definitions and explanations, plus advice from experts and a diverse set of adolescent boys and young men, the authors deftly transform scientific research findings into practical advice that respects the desires, needs, stressors, and appearance concerns of adolescent boys. Parents, grandparents, pediatricians, teachers, clergy, and others would also do well to read this book – if only to study the sensible chapters on puberty and nutrition and to be prepared to challenge the many sociocultural messages that make it all too easy for boys to use the petri dish of toxic masculinity to cultivate a negative body image and other unhealthy habits.”

“The Body Image Book for Boys contains every single piece of information that doctors and experts want teenage boys to know- but rarely get the chance to tell them…
Delivered with a thoughtful, empathetic, and intelligent tone, and filled with detailed, evidence-based content, this book is ideal for boys who are hungry for knowledge about what is happening in their bodies, and how best to look after their physical and mental health.

The authors communicate complex issues and information in interesting and detailed ways. They dispel the myths, and share the stories of numerous adolescent boys with a range of different attitudes toward, or experiences of, their bodies. This book covers such a wide range of topics - the physical, the emotional, and everything in between. Strongly recommend.”

“While reading Being You: The Body Image Book for Boys, I kept thinking, “finally!” Finally, we publicly recognize that boys are just as privy to societal standards for unrealistic, perfect bodies and the pressure to still try to conform. Finally, we give boys the tools to recognize these problems and find solutions for themselves and peers. This book is jam-packed with the basics boys need to know about their physical and mental health as well as the red flag behaviors and conditions to watch out for. The writing style translates research and terminology into understandable concepts, along with quotes from professionals and stories from older adolescents. As I read, I reflected on the patients I’ve seen in my Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine training who would have greatly benefited from this book and am excited for the boys I get to recommend it to very soon.”

“What a great resource for boys! As a society, we don’t spend enough time talking to boys about positive body image and healthy development. This book provides boys and their families with powerful, evidence-based information and advice about how to take care of themselves and their bodies physically and psychologically during the teen years. It is engaging and fun and provides stories from real boys and young men as well as advice from experts. I wholeheartedly recommend it!”

“Being You dispels the myth of body image only being a concern for girls and provides an excellent, insightful analysis of the nature of body image concerns among boys, as well as what causes these concerns. It also discusses when body image concerns are likely to cause significant problems for boys and what can be done to address these concerns.
Dr Markey and her colleagues have provided a well-informed, engaging and thoughtful analysis of the above issues. The book adopts a positive approach to body, exploring how boys can engage in healthy physical activity and eating so that they experience physical and mental health.

I love the engaging layout of the book – from boy’s stories to expert advice, to useful tips to address concerns that are unique to boys. The book is clearly well researched by the authors, who are experts in the field, but is also written in an accessible way for boys, their parents, teachers and others who work with boys. A wonderful book that will be a central resource to all who are interested in ensuring that boys grow up to be healthy and well-adjusted men.”