Tough Guys and Drama Queens: How Not To Get Blindsided by Your Child's Teen Years by Mark Gregston

Published in 2012 by Thomas Nelson

Mark Gregston brings his expertise and experience gained from working with troubled teens for nearly 40 years to a book full of practical advice about how parents can prepare themselves and their teens for the dreaded teen years.

Gregston discusses parenting techniques that don't work (basically, don't be a helicopter parent and don't let your kids fend for themselves too early) and emphasizes the most important thing that keeps teens and their parents connected is a strong relationship. The relationship is key, especially in a larger culture that may not share your values.

Keeping that relationship strong requires lots of quality time and requires parents to not create a stifling environment that makes teens feel like a prisoner in their homes (We all know they are not prisoners, but the book's title does make a point about drama queens).  Gregston includes lists of rules he recommends, lots of examples of when to be firm and when to back off and what to do when your teen makes a mistake.

This book is highly readable and provides a lot practical advice, even if I didn't agree with it 100%.

I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars.

This book can be found on Amazon.com here: Tough Guys and Drama Queens.

Reviewed on January 18, 2013.

I received this book for free as part of Thomas Nelson's Booksneeze program in exchange for an honest review.