A Better Man

The journey from childhood to manhood is a momentous time in every boy's life, yet never has this transition been more challenging than it is today.In addition to the trials of peer pressure, hormones and popularity, young men must grapple with a culture that places enormous emphasis on physical appeal, material wealth and celebrity status. Television, film and video game heroes have become role models to a generation, and boys are hard-pressed to find reliable answers to the question of what it really means to be a man.Stepping in to help fill the void, A Better Man features interviews and essays from some of the most respected and engaging men in America today. With sincerity, humor and directness, these surrogate fathers and grandfathers share their experience and advice on courage, service, anger, respect, and a host of other topics.

Kelly H. Johnson is an attorney, writer, and the mother/stepmother of five sons and one daughter. She holds a BBA from the University of Notre Dame and a law degree from the College of William and Mary, Marshall-Wythe School of Law. She has written for both local and national parenting magazines, and her work appears in the compilations, The Imperfect MomùCandid Confessions of Mothers Living in the Real World (Doubleday); It's a Girlù Women Writers on Raising Daughters (Seal Press); and Love Wins (SmileyBooks). Kelly lives in Richmond, Virginia with her husband, Fred, and their children, who outnumber them three to one.