About this item
Let boys cry! This picture book imagines a world in which boys are encouraged to express their full range of emotions.. Its Levis first day at a new school, and hes scared. His father tries to comfort Levi by telling him "Big boys dont cry." Though the father immediately understands his misstep, he cant find the words to comfort his son, and Levi leaves for school, still in need of reassurance. Fortunately, along his walk to school, Levi sees instance after instance of grown men openly expressing their sadness and fear. His learned mantra, "Big boys dont cry," slowly weakens, and by the time hes at school he releases a tear. Once hes there, things arent so bad after all, and on his walk home he sees everyone hes encountered earlier, feeling better now that they expressed their emotions. Upon his arrival home, he finds his father waiting for him on their porch, tears in his eyes. His father is able to admit that he was scared and the two embrace, closer than before. Jonty Howleys gorgeous debut paints the world we wish existed for our boys, and offers a path there! This story is the truest interpretation of the notion that we should "let boys be boys": let them express the full range of their emotions, vulnerable parts and all!