Reclaiming Our Daughters (previously published as My Girl) offers a fresh and long-needed perspective on pre-teen and teen girls, one that finally brings a message of hope and optimism about girls today.
Part memoir, part sociological examination, Karen Stabiner observes her daughter, Sarah, as she navigates her critical pre-teen years, a time when girls become adolescents and are rumored to become increasingly difficult and alienated. However, unlike most writing on the subject, Stabiner presents a well-rounded account of parenting a coming-of-age girl. She writes eloquently about societal pressures on girls and of her determination to be her daughter's advocate. This mother-daughter relationship is generally warm and close, though when it's difficult, as it inevitably is at times, Stabiner writes honestly about the challenges. In doing so, she unravels the bad-girl stereotypes we've all believed in for too long.
"Girls turn into monsters as soon as they reach puberty-or so many mothers have warned Stabiner (All Girls). But in this charming memoir, the author argues that such doomsday predictions are not necessarily true. The mother of a relatively well-adjusted pre-teen, Stabiner describes her relationship with 11-year-old Sarah to show that mothers and daughters can live together peacefully. Rather than offering specific parenting advice, Stabiner chronicles her personal experience as a mother, touching on such universal themes as self-esteem, middle-school cliques and dealing with the turbulent emotions of adolescence....her success story is an inspiring and refreshing rebuttal to the "embattled teen caricature." -- Publishers Weekly
Author | Karen Stabiner |
---|---|
ISBN | 1580052134 |
Publication Date | Mar 14, 2007 |
Publisher | Seal Press |
Language | English |
Category | Parent / Child Relationships, Physical / Emotional Development |
Parenting Books Age | Pre-Teen, Teen |