merchimerch: (Default)
merchimerch ([personal profile] merchimerch) wrote2006-07-18 08:00 am

good book!

I am reading an amazing book - Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls, by Mary Pipher. [livejournal.com profile] iyindo you should really take a look at it, it reminds me a lot of Smart Girls, Gifted Women, and I think it might provide some insight when dealing with your students. I had that same "wow this totally applies to what I was going through, I wish my parents had read this book" type of epiphany that I had when reading Smart Girls Gifted Women, except this book applies to a much broader group of young women. It is so poignant and really well written - it is so rare for me to find non fiction that is as much of a page-turner as the sci-fi I read. It also seems to be packing a remarkable amount of scholarly rigor for a mass-market book - despite this, it is a smooth read and not dry at all. [livejournal.com profile] siodchan, you might really like it as well, though I think you "get" your teenage girls a lot better than many parents. Seriously, I think educators, parents, and pretty much anyone who ever comes in contact with teenage girls should read this book. It's just so flipping compelling. And the best part is that I picked it up at a Friends of the Library book sale for $.50.

[identity profile] iyindo.livejournal.com 2006-07-18 04:52 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks for the tip!

[identity profile] mehitabelmmoss.livejournal.com 2006-07-18 09:32 pm (UTC)(link)
I agree about it being a good book. It needs to be followed with practical solutions. The suggestions in the book can help but the peer/self esteem trap is SO strong it is swimming upstream. I have seen caring parents very aware and still were not able to make life better.