Media Mix: Tweenage Girls

Too old for toys, too young for boys. Tweenage years are a perilous time…for parents. Arm yourselves!

Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls, by Rachel Simmons. Along with the Queen Bees and Wannabes book, this resource will open your eyes about tweenage life for girls today. Simmons has done extensive research into this new “relational aggression” that is rife in today’s middle schools. Aggression with girls is much more subtle and undermining than with boys. Social isolation, all behind smiles and politeness, is maddening and manipulative. And there’s nothing the victim can do about it. Or, is there? Read this book for more information. Also, look into programs in your area geared towards stopping bullying between girls. (Ages 18 and up)

Hound Dog True, by Linda Urban (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt). Urban has created a moving and tender story of how soon-to-be 5th grader Mattie is absorbed into Uncle Potluck’s world as the janitor of her elementary school. By documenting all the rules and reminders of the job, she hopes to become an assistant custodian and work through those difficult social times of recess and lunch hour. Her mother encourages her to navigate the minefields of friendship with an older girl visiting next door. Potluck’s encouragement of Mattie creates a tangible hope that she can make the shift away from her inward life. One of my favorite books in a long while. (9 and up)

Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed Down World, by Lisa Bloom (Vanguard Press). This book is a fantastic reminder to set a good example for our daughters. TV commentator and lawyer Lisa Bloom became disgruntled with society’s intellectual decline and penned this book to wake up American women. Although girls and women are succeeding in the classroom at every level, from elementary school through doctoral programs, they are also likely to be obsessed with celebrity media, body image and reality TV. Fess up - - do you know more about the Kardashians or our three branches of government? Little eyes are watching. http://Think.tv (16 and up)

TweenParenting.com This website is a repository for hundreds of articles on tween life. Topics range from safety, health and family life, to social networking, homework and sports. Simply organized, all articles are rated with stars, which eliminates endless digging. Also stop by the “Links We Like” page, which provides even more sites to explore.

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick (Scholastic). Another amazing story by the gifted writer of The Invention of Hugo Cabret. The story involves two children, age 12. One lives in 1977, the other in 1927. One story is told in words, the other in pictures. Both are led to Manhattan, on a quest to find what they are missing, and the stories collide in a most satisfying way. “Rich, complex, affecting and beautiful.” (Ages 9 and up)

Living in Leawood, Julie Hubble has a tweenage daughter and a teenage son.