Boy Scouts

Jay Mechling, the author of On My Honor: Boy Scouts and the Making of American Youth (369.430973M465o), draws on more than twenty years of research to uncover and describe "the key rituals and play events through which the Boy Scouts shapes boys into men." With a great deal of respect, he demonstrates how the organization strives to mentor young men, despite a bureaucracy that is unyielding in its stance against "the three G's" - God, gays, and girls. Mechling's close connection to the Boy Scouts is evident in his author photo:



The structure of the book is appealing - each chapter covers a day at the camp where Boy Scout Troop 49 has convened each July for the past thirty years. Through each day's events, Melching interweaves rich ethnographic detail - camp songs, organizational minutiae, behind-the-scenes staff activities, camper meltdowns, memorable meals, and the many ceremonial moments that constitute the experience.