Raising Older Kids? These 7 Books Are Must-Reads

When you say the words “advice,” “parenting,” and “books” all in one sentence, you probably get an eye-roll feeling. After all, so many parenting advice books feel too clinical or too theoretical in order to truly be helpful.

But there are some gems out there, designed specifically toward guiding parents through the challenges of school-age and teen years. Based upon our wise readers’ recommendations, here are seven parenting books for older kids that are worth reading:

1. Protecting the Gift: Keeping Children and Teenagers Safe (and Parents Sane) – Gavin de Becker

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2. The Five Love Languages of Children – Gary D. Chapman and Ross Campbell

3. Yes, Your Teen is Crazy!: Loving Your Kid Without Losing Your Mind – Michael J. Bradley

4. Parenting Teens with Love and Logic – Foster Cline and Jim Fay

5. Montessori: A Modern Approach – Paula Polk Lillard

6. The Wonder of Boys: What Parents, Mentors and Educators Can Do to Shape Boys into Exceptional Men – Michael Gurian

7. Calvin and Hobbes

What parenting books did we forget to include? Tell us in the comments below!

Joanna C. Valente

Joanna Valente is the former Staff Writer at Kveller. Joanna is the author of Sirs & Madams, The Gods Are Dead, Xenos, and Marys of the Sea, and received an MFA at Sarah Lawrence College. You can follow @joannasaid on Twitter and @joannacvalente on Instagram.