When MaryAnne Howland''s son was turning thirteen she organised a "Black Mitzvah" rite of passage celebration for him. Max is one of the one in three children in America being raised without a father in the home. Among African-Americans, that number is reported to be as high as 72%. To help fill the father-shaped hole in Max''s life as he changed from boyhood to manhood, MaryAnne invited four men from different corners of her life - an engineer, a philanthropist, a publisher and a financial planner - to become Max''s mentors.Max has faced many challenges. As a boy without a consistent father figure in his life, as an African-American male in a time when race relations in America continue to be fraught and, also, because Max was born premature and, as a result, has Cerebral Palsy, he has had to be a true warrior. On the brink of manhood, his mother wanted to give him the benefit of men who could answer some of the questions she felt that she, as a woman, might not be able to answer. Through his adolescence, Max''s mentors have shared valuable insights with him about what it means to be a good man in the face of life''s challenges. These lessons, recounted in this book, will serve as a powerful guide for anyone wishing to support boys as they approach manhood.
