Corrie ten Boom and her family helped 800 people fleeing the Nazis by hiding them in their home.

In the midst of the Nazi occupation of Holland, an unassuming woman — the country's first female watchmaker — had a secret: a hidden room where Jewish refugees could stay as they fled the dangerous regime. Corrie ten Boom and her family worked with the Dutch Resistance, and their home became known as "De Schuilplaats" or "The Hiding Place," where hundreds of people found shelter in 1943 and 1944. Today, it's estimated that ten Boom, her family, and other members of the 'BeJe group' saved the lives of 800 Jews and other refugees. Ten Boom's father and sister both died while imprisoned by the Nazis, but despite it all, she never regretted what her family had done: "The measure of a life, after all, is not its duration," she asserted, "but its donation." Continue reading → Continue reading

Beverly Cleary redefined children's literature for a generation of young readers.

For decades, children have delighted in the adventures of Ramona and her sister Beezus, Henry Huggins and his dog Ribsy, and Ralph, the motorcycle riding mouse! Although these books were written long ago, their characters feel like they could still be living in the house next door thanks to the remarkable writing of their author, Beverly Cleary, who died in 2021 at the age of 104. When asked about the multi-generational appeal of her books, Cleary credited the spirit of childhood which she believed is just as timeless as her stories. "I think deep down inside children are all the same," she told NPR in a 2006 interview. "They want two loving parents and they would prefer a house with a neighborhood they can play in. They want teachers that they can like. I don't think children themselves have changed that much." Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's favorite books about Mighty Girls and their sisters and brothers for National Siblings Day!

We celebrate the relationship we have with our mothers and fathers, but we often forget how important siblings can be to our lives as well! In fact, a brother or sister will probably know you better — and longer — than just about anyone else in your life. And while you may not always get along, there’s no denying that the relationship you have with your siblings is a powerful one. Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of books about girls and their love of animals!

For many Mighty Girls, a beloved animal provides a treasured relationship. And whether an animal is large or small, wild or domesticated or maybe even imaginary, sometimes it’s a Mighty Girl who cares for them or even comes to their rescue! If your Mighty Girl is an animal lover, she’ll love these stories about fictional Mighty Girls who take care of the other creatures around them.

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When 80% of 10-year-old girls are afraid of being fat, here are ways parents can help girls develop a positive body image.

"'I’m fat.' Those are just two little words, five letters in total, but coming from your daughter, they’re enough to make your heart totally sink. How could a girl who’s typically so kind and accepting of others be so disparaging of herself?" According to the Girl Scouts, 80% of 10-year-old girls are afraid of being fat because "they’re constantly surrounded by both subtle and direct messages that curvier or heavier girls aren’t as well liked, aren’t as likely to succeed in business, and in general, aren’t going to have as much fun or happiness in their lives." So what can parents do to counteract such widespread cultural messages? In an insightful article, Girl Scout Developmental Psychologist Andrea Bastiani Archibald offers parents several tips on how to respond when your daughter says she's fat and how to build her overall body positivity. Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of unicorn-themed books, toys, and clothing!

For hundreds of years, there has been a mythical creature that has inspired wonder in generations: unicorns! It's hard to pinpoint why the appeal of unicorns has stood the test of time, but even today, there are plenty of unicorn-loving kids (and adults) in the world. And where there are unicorns, there are often Mighty Girls who dare to dream of mystical lands, believe in magic, and strike out in search of the extraordinary in our day-to-day world! Continue reading → Continue reading

Virginia Hall was one of the greatest spies of World War II but her incredible story is largely unknown today.

The Nazis considered Virginia Hall the "most dangerous of all Allied spies," yet the story of the "Limping Lady" is largely unknown today. Hall spent nearly the entire war in France, first as a spy for Britain's newly formed Special Operations Executive (SOE) and later for the U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS) Special Operations Branch. Even her cumbersome wooden prosthetic leg, which she nicknamed Cuthbert, proved no obstacle to Hall's courage and determination to defeat the Nazis. While undercover in France, she proved exceptionally adept at eluding the Gestapo as she organized resistance groups, masterminded jailbreaks for captured agents, mapped drop zones, reported on German troop movements, set up safe houses, and rescued escaped POWs and downed Allied pilots. Even years after the war, however, she rarely talked about her extraordinary career; a reticence she likely developed during her years as a spy since, as she once observed, "Many of my friends were killed for talking too much." Continue reading → Continue reading

The social reformer's 40-year campaign sought to end the abuse of people with mental illness that she found "chained, naked, beaten with rods, and lashed into obedience."

At a time when people with mental illness were often abused and kept in inhumane conditions, Dorothea Dix's 40-year-long crusade for the reform of mental asylums in the US, Canada, and Europe made her renowned worldwide as a beacon of compassion and advocate for the voiceless. To transform the care of the mentally ill, the American social reformer had to first confront the attitude that nothing could be done to help people with mental illness and that such brutal treatment was the only option available. "They say, 'nothing can be done here!'" Dix once declared. "I reply, 'I know no such word in the vocabulary I adopt!'" Continue reading → Continue reading

The top tips from experts on building girls' resilience to take on challenges and overcome setbacks.

Call it what you will — grit, determination, a can-do attitude — but it all comes down to the same thing: being able to keep going in the face of challenge and even failure is a major component of a child's future success. "The ability to persist in the face of difficulty may be as essential to success as talent or intelligence,” says psychologist Lisa Damour, Ph.D., author of Untangled: Guiding Teenage Girls Through the Seven Transitions Into Adulthood. Moreover, with research showing that girls are more likely to feel the need to be perfect and to struggle with confidence when they make even small mistakes, it's particularly important to raise resilient girls. As Rachel Simmons, author of Enough As She Is, explains: "What we want is for girls to have is the capacity to move through a setback without beating themselves up." Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of books starring autistic girls and guides for autistic girls and their parents.

Every April people around the world recognize World Autism Month: a time to learn more about this common neurodivergence, build understanding and acceptable of autistic people, and celebrate how different perspectives can bring much needed variety and innovation to our world! Despite ongoing efforts by both autistic people and their allies, autism remains a subject of significant misunderstanding and prejudice. For girls, the problems caused by lack of awareness are often magnified: they are less frequently diagnosed, often show a different pattern of behaviors than autistic boys, and struggle with the burden of gendered expectations that make it more difficult for them to get the support they need. Continue reading → Continue reading