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 You
have to say I'm pretty, you're my mother": How to Help Your Daughter Learn to
Love Her Body and Herself,
by Stephanie Pierson & Phyllis Cohen, CSW, Simon & Schuster,
2003.
Stephanie Pierson learned how
to deal successfully with her own daughter's eating disorder,
and Phyllis Cohen has treated adolescents for years. Together
they offer a wealth of good advice to mothers (and fathers) who
are trying to help their daughters achieve a healthy body image.
I hearitly concur with some
of the basic statements in the book, such as this one, from the
introduction (p. 7):
"Once you recover [the mother-daughter bond from infancy],
you will be able to do two vital things: start listening to
your daughter and start learning from her."
There is a great chapter for
dads/husbands as well. Here's advice from p. 126, where you find
a list of "What Not To Say Or Do/A List For Your Husband":
- "Don't criticize your
daughter's diet or her figure; don't comment on her size or her
style."
- "Don't flirt with or
be adorable with her friends. And don't tell stupid jokes or
try to insinuate yourself into their conversation."
- "Don't be so controlling
or overprotective that you make your daughter feel self-conscious
or embarrassed: 'Oh, that sweather is way too tight. Where do
you think you're going dressed like that?'"
You don't have to have a daughter
with an eating disorder to know that pre-teen and teenage girls
have a problem these days in learning to love the bodies they
were given. You definitely do not have to have a daughter with
an eating disorder to benefit from this book--you just have to
have a daughter!
Get it at a 30% discount by
clicking on the bar below.
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 Judith Harlan, illustrated by Debbie
Palen, Girl
Talk, published by Walker & Co. Subtitled, "Staying
strong, feeling good, sticking together," this great little
book is a treasure trove of ideas for how girls can stay true
to themselves in spite of the onslaught of adolescence. Here
are just a few of the gems you'll find in Girl
Talk (p.25):
- "The next time you find yourself tugging at your clothes
to keep them from riding up or falling off, change clothes!"
- "Go to your closet. Pull out your favorite outfit. Next,
pull out your most comfortable outfit. If they are one and the
same, congratulations. If not, why not?"
- "Spend time shaping your LIFE, not your body."
Judith Harlan teachers girls that they can be.... anything
at all that they want to be. AND remain sensitive. She teaches
girls that boys are people and have feelings--just like girls.
She gives a list of things to watch for in the classroom that
will help a girl recognize gender bias--and then offers sound
suggestions for what to do about it.
Sprinkled throughout the little paperback with charming illustrations
by Debbie Palen are insets about famous women, titled, "Could
She Be Your Hero?", encouraging girls to identify with women
who have achieved and gone their own way.
In the 70's we had "Free To Be You and Me," in the
90's we have Girl
Talk.
Ages 9 and above. Click
to buy it at amazon, save $1.79 off list price--and help
this site at the same time.
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 Karen and Jennifer Gravelle, illustrated by Debbie Palen.
Published by Walker & Co. The
Period Book (Everything you didn't want to ask (but need to know).
A great introduction to menstruation and all that comes with
it. Aimed at girls ages 9-12, but would be helpful for any girl
who has started or is about to start her period, at whatever
age. Also helpful to parents, aunts, uncles, even teachers--in
preparation for or when the girls in their lives begin their
periods.
The tone is lighthearted, yet the authors (a mother and her
15-year-old daughter) cover serious topics as well--sex and hygiene
included. Suggestions for how fathers can approach this topic--I
wish we'd had it about a year ago when a father wrote to the
web site asking how to help his 11-year-old who had just begun
her period!
One aspect I loved is that the author stresses that girls
don't have to stop playing because they've "become young
women." Play is an important part of life, and we can play
all of our lives--men do!, the authors stress.
You can get The
Period Book at amazon.com and help this site at the same
time! Just
click here.
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 Ten
Things I Wish I'd Known--Before I Went Out into the Real World, Warner Books, 2000.
A daughter of the Kennedy clan,
award-winning journalist Maria Shriver talks to us about the
things she wishes she'd known before she tackled the world...
Good selection for older teens. Order
it here at 30% discount & benefit this site.
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 Strong, Smart, and
Bold, Empower Girls for Life, by Carla Fine and Jane Fonda,
Harper Resources, 2001.
From Library Journal:
Based on the principles and programs of Girls Inc. (formerly
Girls Clubs), Strong, Smart, & Bold provides relevant
advice to those who are parenting the 36 million girls of school
age in America. Girls Inc. is a national advocacy organization
for girls between the ages of six and 18. The title is the motto
of Girls Inc., and each chapter is based on one of the principles
of the Girls Inc. Bill of Rights: freedom from gender stereotypes
and freedom of expression, and the rights to take risks, appreciate
their bodies, have confidence, and prepare for work. Many practical
exercises are offered to parents and mentors for advancing these
ideas, and examples are used throughout, making the text very
readable. Because of its exclusive focus on school-age girls,
this book fills a niche in the market of parenting books. Appendixes
offer resources, web sites, and references. Actress/producer
Jane Fonda, chair of the Girls Inc. Rights Campaign, offers a
stirring foreword. Recommended. Kay Brodie, Chesapeake Coll.,
Wye Mills, MD
Get
Strong, Smart, and Bold at a discount!
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