A Mighty Girl's celebrates Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg!

Supreme Court Justice, lawyer, women's rights advocate, and pop culture icon: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in 2020 at the age of 87, meant so much to so many people. Whether you first encountered her name in discussions of women's rights court decisions or on websites proclaiming her Notorious RBG, there's no doubting her influence on today's world. In memory of this influential — and inspirational — lawyer, activist and Supreme Court Justice, we're sharing her powerful story, as well as our favorite books and films about this trailblazer for both children and adults. We've also highlighted a few resources, from t-shirts to music albums, that pay tribute to her inspiring life. Justice Ginsburg may be gone, but her legacy lives on — both in the law and in the minds and hearts of Mighty Girls and women who follow in her footsteps.
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"My daughter's body is actually hers, not mine."

The many gatherings of family and friends during the holiday season give parents a special chance to teach their daughters an empowering lesson: you don't owe anyone your physical affection. "The ritual of demanding affection from children on cue is one of those tiny, everyday little lessons in which we teach children — especially girls — that they are to tailor their emotional responses to please others," observes blogger Kasey Edwards in a Daily Life op-ed. By letting kids decide whether to greet someone with a hug or a kiss, parents can teach the basics of consent and bodily autonomy as early as the toddler years. And, such lessons can have an impact for years to come as Girl Scouts' development psychologist Andrea Bastianai Archibald explains: "The notion of consent may seem very grown-up and like something that doesn’t pertain to children, but the lessons girls learn when they’re young about setting physical boundaries and expecting them to be respected last a lifetime." Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl tribute to Judy Blume in honor of Banned Books Week.

For decades, Mighty Girls have devoured the works of Judy Blume, from Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret to Forever... to Just As Long As We’re Together. Her characters are compelling to readers because they face real issues — issues like puberty, struggles with friends, sexuality, divorce, and bullying. There’s even a book, Everything I Needed To Know About Being A Girl I Learned from Judy Blume, which features a collection of essays by twenty-four notable women authors about the impact Judy Blume’s novels have had on their lives and writing. Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of guides for girls in middle & high school -- and their parents!

Parents of younger Mighty Girls looking for books about school can find recommendations in our first post in the series: Back-to-School Books About Mighty Girls’ Adventures at Elementary School.

Tweens and teens have a lot on their plates: more academic material to learn, increasingly complicated social relationships, busy extracurriculars, and more. On top of that, they have to adjust to their increasing independence and even start thinking about the career direction they'd like to take. Put it all together and it’s no wonder that tweens and teens report being stressed out by school!

Fortunately, there are some great books out there to help tweens, teens, and their parents to work through these stresses and make their middle school, high school, or college experience positive and empowering. In this blog post, we're showcasing our favorite guides for tween and teen Mighty Girls, tackling everything from standing up against bullying to building confidence to learning important skills like perseverance and self-direction. We even include some great resources to help your Mighty Girl learn about a wide variety of fascinating careers — maybe one will be the job of her dreams! And for parents, we include a selection of books to help you understand how your relationship dynamic will likely change as she goes from a girl to a grown woman, as well as what she's going through behind her school and bedroom doors.

These years may be a tumultuous time, but they're also an exciting one! We're hoping that these resources will help you and your girls get the most out of the tween and teen years.
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A Mighty Girl's top picks of new biographies about Mighty Women for adult readers.

Moms can be an incredible source of inspiration, but that doesn’t mean they can’t use a little inspiration themselves! Stories of the incredible women of past and present aren’t just great to share with young readers: they’re also a great gift when you want to honor a special woman in your life. With that in mind, we've gathered a selection of new biographies for adult readers in a blog post which tell the stories of Mighty Women, all perfect for Mother's Day gift giving! Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of new biographies about Mighty Women for adult readers.

On A Mighty Girl, we feature thousands of books for children and teens about smart, confident, and courageous girls and women, but we are also often asked for reading recommendations for adults about inspiring women of the past and present. To that end, in this blog post, we're sharing our favorite biographies for older teen and adult readers about Mighty Women that were recently released in either hardcover or paperback.

The biographies featured showcase a diverse array of women from around the world in fields including science, entertainment, politics, athletics, and more. Some of the featured women are famous figures from the past, while others are women who are active today, boldly continuing to change the world. All of them have a fascinating story to tell and each one shows the power of an individual to make a difference in her unique way!

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Katherine Handcock, A Mighty Girl Senior Research Intern

Campaign Announcement: A Mighty Girl has launched a special Keep Merida Brave campaign page!

A Mighty Girl's petition to Disney on the redesign of the character of Merida from the film Brave as part of her induction into the Disney Princess collection has attracted over 180,000 signers and a huge amount of media attention.

To help keep our supporters abreast of compelling articles and commentary on our campaign to Keep Merida Brave, we've compiled a collection of articles that address the redesign from a variety of perspectives. All of them effectively point out why many people object to the changes and why the appearance of an animated character has meaning far beyond disappointing fans.

Recommended News Coverage

Merida redesigned - What message is the new look Princess Merida from Disney's Brave sending out?, Jenni Murray, BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour Continue reading → Continue reading

By Lili Sandler, A Mighty Girl Research Intern

We are thrilled to announce the launch of our newest section, Costumes for Mighty Girls! A dress-up bin is a fabulous addition to any Mighty Girl’s toy collection, and we’re excited to provide resources for making Halloween or any dress-up occasion one that promotes girl empowerment.

Over the last few decades, commercially-made Halloween costumes have been altered in many ways, but the majority of those alterations have resulted in one-dimensional and even harmful depictions of girls and women. Whether it’s changing an otherwise genderless costume, such as an animal, into an unnecessarily gendered one by adding bows and tutus, or taking a traditional -- and arguably feminist -- costume such as a witch or superhero and sexualizing it, society has further marginalized girls and women by limiting their dress-up options to those that are either “feminine” or “sexy”.

Girls deserve more choice in their dress-up selections beyond this ever-narrowing interpretation of what constitutes a “girl’s costume”. At A Mighty Girl, we know that there are so many more interesting ways girls want to express themselves, and we’re here to help! Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of new biographies about Mighty Women for adult readers.

It's been another incredible year of books celebrating mighty women! From a fascinating biography of the woman leading today's new scientific revolution to gripping accounts of clever spies who outwitted the Nazis to powerful memoirs by women grappling with grief to upbeat autobiographies by beloved popular figures, this year has seen a diverse range of new biographies for adult readers about extraordinary women. And, just as our Mighty Girls love reading books about smart, confident, and courageous girls and women, we know that our adult supporters love their stories too! Continue reading → Continue reading

A Mighty Girl's top picks of new biographies about Mighty Women for adult readers.

Nothing is more exciting than discovering an intriguing new biography or memoir — especially when it tells the story of a mighty woman! From thrilling stories about women war heroes, to engaging biographies about the pioneering suffragists who won women the vote, to searing accounts of overcoming harassment and abuse, these books provide an important perspective that's often missing in mainstream history books. And, just as our Mighty Girls love reading books about smart, confident, and courageous girls and women, we know that our adult supporters love their stories too! Continue reading → Continue reading