A beautiful and poetic book about what being a boy can mean. I had trouble figuring out who was speaking, and only understood from other comments it was probably a dad speaking to his son. This is a book that could be used as a conversation starter to talk about gender stereotypes with kids, as it uses metaphors that might be difficult for young children to grasp.
I love the pastel colours and illustrations, portraying a dad and his son enjoying nature. I also liked the alliterations in the text.

Representation: white dad and brown boy, soft masculinity

I adored this. I thought the art was very calming and attractive and the poetry was beautiful. I think this is a great message to get across to little boys everywhere.

We are told that our ancestors had a way of life where boys and men were strong, were hunters and providers. Boys in many cultures had and still do, rites of passage into manhood. Boys were trained to be brave, fight, and protect their families - and any kindness or compassion was weakness.

But just as "Girls can do anything," boys can be kind, caring and calm in their lives - and do not need to be loud, full of action and rambunctious.

When You're a Boy shows this side of boys that should be just as nourished and cherished by all around them. It's okay for boys to see the wonder of flowers as they grow in abundance, their colour spreading wide.

The colour of birds above is to be followed in awe, and when birds are sleeping, dancing can begin. Adding music to the night just adds even more to a boy's soul.

Boys don't have to risk their lives proving their manhood, when patience is an even stronger power.

Being content in the glory of nature is another wonderful skill boys can embrace and enjoy.

Kindness, Happiness...

"and the brilliance of being."

is all a boy really needs.

A thoughtful read up against the demands of boys. We are all different. Girls aren't all the same and neither are boys. Our differences are what makes us interesting.

Beautiful illustrations of a boy and his father out alone together and experiencing nature, show and share this truth of boys.

During a tumultuous era worldwide, rooted in a lust for power and shows of strength, Nuto provides a heartfelt and tender rejection of toxic masculinity. Instead, he promotes a far more promising description manhood, rooted in love, vulnerability, and depth. While this book is intended as a guide for younger boys, may it also be a refresher for men who have lost their way.

Thank you Net Galley for a copy of When You’re a Boy in exchange for an honest review.

This book holds such an important message for boys. The premise of the book was very attractive to me as a parent of a young boy. I as an adult enjoyed the flow of the words and the comparisons between “hard and soft”. I do think l for my som, age 6, it would hard to fully comprehend what each page means but what I love are books like these that can open up discussion with children.

I love the illustrations, the cover of the book drew me in. I love the soft, sweeping strokes of the art. The gentle colors. It’s beautiful. I also love that nature is brought into the visuals. We all need more nature and it is there is no better example of something that could be so harsh and so soft all in the same.

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).

~

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.

~

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.