This book will change the way people think about teenagers. No longer society’s scourge, the teenager emerges from David Bainbridge’s fascinating study as an awe-inspiring phenomenon that should evoke reverence and wonder. Taking a “zoological” approach, Bainbridge—a veterinarian and anatomist—suggests that the second decade is the most important in the human life cycle. In lively prose, he explains the science behind the changes that occur in the teenage body and deep within the teenage brain—from stinky feet, lanky limbs, and unpredictable skin to falling in love and irritating grumpiness to the irresistible allure of sex, drugs, and rock’n’roll.

Observed through a scientific lens, these biological transformations and behavioral anomalies snap into focus as a sequence of interwoven steps along the path to adulthood. Bainbridge explains how, in evolutionary terms, this dynamic period is the key factor in the success of our species and how the teenage years are the most dramatic, intense, and exciting of our lives. He provides a lively counter to the stereotype of hooded layabouts and translates scientific facts and observations into a compelling story for the non-scientist.

If you live with a teenager or ever were one, you will want to read Teenagers. You’ll come away convinced that the teenager is the most amazing—and most necessary—creature on the planet.