Dads and Daughters: How to Inspire, Understand, and Support Your Daughter When She's Growing Up So Fast
These two titles strengthen the burgeoning girl-rearing genre. A  psychologist and speaker on gender equity, Deak aims to give  answers to the problems raised in Mary Pipher's classic Reviving  Ophelia. Quite a claim but she does it. To handle struggles with  body image, self-esteem, intellectual growth, peer pressure, and  media messages, Deak offers a strong framework that includes  concepts like Crucible Events (defining life episodes) and the  Strudel Theory (building a life with layers). That latter  concept comes into play with Deak's objection to the theme of  Laura Stepp's recent Our Last Best Shot: that is, if parents  lose touch with their daughter during adolescence, their  relationship is over. Many levels of experience make our  daughters who they are; parents are never done connecting with  their daughters, says Deak. Furthermore, girls need to be  connected to other girls, which can, in turn, conflict with  their need to compete, succeed, and find happiness. Finally,  Deak deals with the newest issues of girls as  manipulators/pleasers. Hers is a thoughtful philosophy based on  years of counseling, research, and experience. Kelly, executive director of the national advocacy group Dads  and Daughters, shares his perspective on raising girls (he is  the father of twins). Although initially he goes a little  overboard with his claims of a father's impact on daughters, he  ultimately delivers an effective message: fathers can take an  active role in raising confident daughters. As Deak also points  out in her book, however, dads may have a harder time with  daughters than mothers have raising sons. The teen years are  especially trying for dads because of sexual issues, and Kelly  expertly shows readers how to deal with them. Rather than stamp  out girls' libidos, he argues, parents must help daughters  recognize them. In an age of boundaries and abuse, he delineates  the differences between nourishing touch and physical abuse.  Live-away dads are not forgotten either. He's also open to  homosexuality and tries to teach daughters new ways of coping  (e.g., allowing his daughters a checking account at age 12).  Michael Gurian's The Wonder of Girls describes more fully the  role of intimacy, biology, and brain chemistry in girls' lives;  Kelly just wants dads to know how very influential they are.  Both Girls and Dads are highly recommended for public  libraries. Linda Beck, Indian Valley P.L., Telford, PACopyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.