This Is So Awkward

Modern Puberty Explained

By: Cara Natterson MD, Vanessa Kroll Bennett

Narrated by: Cara Natterson MD, Vanessa Kroll Bennett

Length: 13 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • The ultimate guide for adults helping tweens and teens navigate the rollercoaster of puberty.

“An accessible, enjoyable, and detailed road map for addressing even the most delicate topics with confidence and compassion.”—Lisa Damour, PhD, author of Untangled, Under Pressure, and The Emotional Lives of Teenagers

Almost everything about puberty has changed since today’s adults went through it. It starts, on average, two years earlier and stretches through high school . . . and for some, beyond. Gens Z and Alpha are also contending with a whole host of thorny issues that parents didn’t experience in their own youth but nonetheless need to understand: everything from social media and easy-access pornography to gender identities and new or newly-potent drugs. Talking about any of this is like puberty itself: Awkward! But it’s also critical for the health, happiness, and safety of today’s kids.

Bewildered adults have begged for reliable and relatable information about the modern adolescent experience. This Is So Awkward answers their call. Written by a pediatrician and a puberty educator—together the hosts of a lively and popular podcast on puberty, and moms to six teens between them—this is the handbook everyone has been searching for, and includes:

• Pointed advice about how to talk to kids about almost anything: acne, body odor, growth spurts, eating disorders, mood swings, sexuality, and more.

• Science-based explanations for all of puberty’s physical, emotional, and social changes, including the many ways hormones affect kids both above and below the neck.

• What adults needs to know about today’s teen culture: their mental health drivers, the un-gendering of body image issues, the ways they think about sexual orientation, and more.

• Invaluable commentary straight from young adults just out the other side of adolescence that highlights what they wish the adults in their lives had known or done differently.

Eye-opening and reassuring, This Is So Awkward will help adults understand the turbulent pubescent decade and become confident guides for today’s kids.

©2023 Cara Natterson and Vanessa Kroll Bennett (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Think back to your own experience of puberty, and then multiply the confusion and awkwardness by ten—being an emerging adult today is hard! And yet this is also true: these tumultuous years offer so much opportunity for connection, empowerment, and knowledge-building. This is So Awkward will equip you with expert wisdom, deep compassion, and lots of laughs, and will enable you to show up as that parent—the one kids can turn to.” —Dr. Becky Kennedy, New York Times bestselling author of Good Inside

“How are loving adults supposed to guide tweens and teens when everything—even puberty—has changed so much since their own adolescence? Cara Natterson and Vanessa Bennett have the answer! This Is So Awkward is an accessible, enjoyable, and detailed road map for addressing even the most delicate topics with confidence and compassion.” —Lisa Damour, PhD, author of Untangled, Under Pressure, and The Emotional Lives of Teenagers

“What’s more awkward than kids going through puberty? Parents trying to navigate it all! Fortunately, Cara Natterson and Vanessa Kroll Bennett have written This is So Awkward. Always authentic, informative, and practical, they use science and humor to walk us through which conversations to have and how and when to have them. This is the must-read guide you’ve been waiting for.” —Tina Payne Bryson, LCSW, Ph.D., New York Times bestselling co-author of The Whole-Brain Child and No Drama Discipline

Very informative!

This book was incredibly helpful for me as a parent and informing future discussions with my teens. A must read!!!

Wonderful - So much great information!

This book should be in the "reference" section. You will need and want to refer back to it time and time again!
Perfect for all parents especially those with children aged 7(ish) to late teens. Wonderful conversation starters. Each topic covers the Science behind it.
Super helpful when navigated puberty, adolescence and teens in general.
Two thumbs up!

Quality Unbiased Info

I greatly benefited from the detailed information provided. I loved how they provided different examples of what to say and what not to say for a variety of different situations and personality types.

MUST READ for parents, healthcare providers, teachers

THANK YOU!!! As a mom and a pediatric nurse practitioner, I learned SO much from this book! I will be recommending this resource to anyone that cares for children/adolescents. Truly amazing!!!!

Super helpful resource!

Super helpful resource! Exactly as it’s titled: modern puberty explained. Easy enough to digest or even share with kids!