What people are saying

There is no shortage of parenting books on the market. But few come from someone who has raised two children all the way to adulthood, spent three decades in public education watching how other people's children turn out, and now works in a space where she thinks big picture about the institutions shaping the rising generation. Part practical guide, part family memoir, Catina Hancock has crafted something that's a pleasure to read, with stories that keep you hungry for what comes next, principles that are easy to bank in your memory, and perspectives that will push you to wrestle through squaring her ideas with your own views. Above all, she conveys something much needed in our world: a reverence for the noble work of raising the next generation of good humans.

As a former Superintendent, I know schools alone cannot prepare children for life. The habits, character, and resilience that help young people thrive are first developed at home.

Good Humans Grown is a thoughtful, practical guide for parents who want to raise capable, compassionate, and responsible adults. Catina Hancock blends the heart of a parent with the wisdom of an educator, offering timeless principles that strengthen families and, ultimately, the communities they serve.

This is more than a parenting book. It is an investment in the next generation.

As a middle school counselor and teacher with more than 30 years of experience working with adolescents and their families, I found this book to be a thoughtful and practical guide to raising confident, capable, and resilient children. I especially appreciated the emphasis on "teaching self-sufficiency from the beginning" and "staying involved without controlling," two principles I believe are essential during the adolescent years. The importance the book placed on building resilience through small challenges early on particularly resonated with me; when children learn to navigate manageable adversity, they develop the confidence and tools they need to face the bigger challenges that come with growing up. This is a valuable book for parents at every stage, and I'm especially grateful to see a book that offers such practical guidance for navigating the adolescent years, a challenging stage for both children and parents.

I first met Catina in 1989; her big smile and strong confidence is what I remember gravitating towards, yet after high school we all lost track of one another as we set out to find ourselves, to become one in society and to navigate that road we call LIFE. I run a restaurant company in three states with over 750 employees, and I am always searching for positive books to read and gain perspective on people. Through the years, I have found that personal stories and "lived experiences" are the examples that I bring back to my company to use for motivation, growth, and teaching tools.

We live in a PEOPLE world. Everything we do has to do with relationships and conversation with another person. Good Humans, Grown might be a parenting book but it also supports developing a person, whether they're seven or twenty-seven and on your payroll. I can't wait to share this book with others that I love and admire.

Catina Hancock has spent her career believing deeply in young people and has put those beliefs into practice as a mother, educator, and leader. Good Humans, Grown is the kind of parenting book I wish more families had: honest, practical, deeply human, and refreshingly focused on the long game. Catina reminds us that our job isn't to make childhood free from struggle, but to raise capable, caring humans who know how to navigate the world, contribute to it, and stay connected to the people they love.

Through vulnerable stories, research, reflection, and practical strategies, she shows how the everyday choices we make, like holding a boundary, letting our kids struggle, showing up, trusting them, and eventually letting go, shape who they become. This is not a book about raising perfect kids. It's a book about raising good humans, and becoming better humans alongside them.

Reading Catina's book felt like sitting across from her, hearing her tell this story in person, because that is exactly how present she is on every page. It takes real strength to be this vulnerable and this honest, and she does it while teaching lessons that matter deeply to every parent. This book made me celebrate the milestones I've hit as a parent and, just as importantly, see where I still have room to grow. I love the structure too: she leads with the principle, walks you through the real situation that shaped it, then backs it all up with some research you can actually put into practice.

This is more than a parenting book. It is a true celebration of Catina’s motherhood, her womanhood, and her gift as an educator. I recommend it wholeheartedly, and I love this book almost as much as I love my friend who wrote it.

Good Humans, Grown is an honest and powerful reminder that our job as parents isn't to create a perfect path for our children, but to help them become strong, capable, resilient humans who are prepared to navigate life on their own. Catina beautifully combines the vulnerability of real motherhood with decades of experience as an educator, offering practical principles that challenge us to think beyond the years we are raising our children and toward the adults we are helping them become. As both a mother and a coach, this deeply resonated with me.

Finally a refreshing take on parenting, told from an honest, vulnerable and highly unique perspective! Much more than just a “how-to” manual, “Good Humans, Grown” employs a retrospective lens, including the perspectives of not just a mother, but a dad’s experience, and the recollections of her adult children to give other parents a very insightful read that includes not only a view into their personal journey, but a real and powerful roadmap of common parenting situations, fears, and hopes that offer a wide array of ideas to help other parents, new and seasoned, thrive in their relationship with their kids.

Catina has been one of the first people I turn to for honest advice about raising my kids, and this book feels like all those honest, thoughtful parenting conversations wrapped into something I can return to again and again. It's full of candid stories, practical wisdom and invitations to reflect on our own experiences. I'll still call Catina for advice, but I'm grateful to have her wisdom on my bookshelf, too.

Catina's book is a breath of fresh air for parents (and grandparents) who want practical and realistic advice about how to create a family environment where kids and their parents can thrive. The stories will make you laugh, cry, and think deeply. It's approachable and pushes you while not being judgmental or overwhelming.