Posts Tagged: growing up

Chapter book / pre-teen — 5 Comments
27
Nov 09

REVIEW: Are you there God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume

are-you-there-god-its-me-margaret-judy-blume “Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret” was in the reading list of the young girl from the international school I was coaching for English.

To prepare for our book discussions, I looked for the book in the library and totally enjoyed it :-)

Margaret Simon is a 12 year old girl (sixth grade) whose parents move out of New York into New Jersey for a better life, in which case here refers to getting Margaret away from her Jewish grandmother…

Margaret’s mother is a Christian and you’ll find out how poorly and un-Christian her family is later in the story!

Anyway, Margaret’s parents want her to grow up and discover for herself which religion (if any) she would go for once she’s really sure. Because of this, Margaret is estranged from her beloved grandmother who loves her very much. Hmm…

Although the book starts out with a RELIGION tag, you’ll find that “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” is a beautiful, coming-of-age story that is a perfect read for pre-teens out there.

You’ll read about Margaret:

  • adjusting to a new neighbourhood and a new school;
  • making new friends – she finds herself in a clique of one of the “coolest” girls in school but finds out surprising facts about her later on…
  • growing up and dealing with puberty i.e. periods, breasts, BOYS
  • finally realizing that it’s OK to know what you like / dislike and stick with your decision even if it feels like it’s the wrong thing to do.

Our world today is sooooo crazy with peer pressure pushing our kids into trying out cigarettes, alcohol, drugs and violence, it’s increasingly difficult to be a parent or a teacher steering our young people towards the right direction.

It’s even more difficult to be a teenager, I think!

Looking for a Christmas present? Buy “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” or a collection of her books “Best of Blume: Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret/Blubber/Iggie’s House/Starring Sally J. Freedman As Herself.”

I know I’m checking out Judy Blume’s other books because this lady can write :-)

Rating: ★★★★★

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Paperback: 160 pages
Publisher: Yearling (June 1, 1986)
ISBN-10: 0440404193
ISBN-13: 978-0440404194

Chapter book / pre-teen — No Comments
5
Sep 09

REVIEW: What Would Joey Do by Jack Gantos

what-would-joey-do-jack-gantosJoey Pigza is a “wired” young boy who suffers from attention-deficit-hyperactive-disorder (ADHD) but what’s interesting is that he’s actually the most normal person in his CRAZY family!

First, his parents are divorced but his erratic, reckless motorbike-riding father doesn’t seem to want to move on because he stalks his ex-wife and her new boyfriend frequently.

His mother is another crazy case – she’s so caught up with making it work out with her new boyfriend (another weirdo who is super calm and cool and snaps photographs of EVERYTHING), she doesn’t realize that Joey needs her attention.

Joey’s paternal grandmother is the best! She suffers from a chronic lung condition and is just about the nastiest, meanest, most foul-mouthed old lady you’d ever meet. And she smokes a pack of cigarettes a day and never fails to buy the lottery.

Ironically, this mean old lady is the one who loves Joey the most – she took care of him since he was a baby and ultimately knows him inside out. She also realizes that both of Joey’s parents are too caught up in their own selfish needs to be able to give him the attention, care and encouragement a special boy like him needs.

And she also knows that what Joey needs most is a friend and she tells Joey that she’ll only roll over and die when he finds one.

If you’ve ever been around children with ADHD, you’ll know that they NEVER sit still! Yup, they are so “wired” that they literally bounce off the walls. Joey’s ADHD is kept under control with medicinal patches and he’s even learned to snap on an extra one on days he’s especially S-T-R-E-S-S-E-D.

What’s sweet about Joey is that he grew up thinking he’s A PROBLEM that he goes around being Mr. Helpful – he goes to the supermarket to pick up and re-stack the fallen cans on every shelf for FREE! I thought the supermarket manager could have rewarded him with something in appreciation…

He also tries to be the best little boy for his mother who is always moaning and whining about her failed marriage and how she wants to make her new relationship work. The poor fella – imagine a child being an adult to an adult who acts like a child?

Finally, his mother takes him out of regular school (which he loves) and forces him into a homeschooling environment organized by an infinitely religious Christian neighbour with a blind daughter.

The homeschooling situation is the WORST of Joey’s problems because the blind girl is the total opposite of Joey – she’s extremely spoilt by her mother who feels guilty over her child’s blindness AND she is frustrated by her mother’s overprotectiveness and religiousness.

Because of this, she is DELIGHTED to prey on her ideal victim – the earnest and honest Joey :-) It’s amazing the types of trouble she could get him into!

The book title actually comes from the girl’s mother’s rug at the door entrance = “WHAT WOULD JESUS DO?”. Every morning when Joey arrives at her doorstep for ’school’, she would ask: “What would Joey do?” You’ll laugh when you read his responses to her strange question.

However, Joey soon learns that he can use this to his own advantage…

What happens to Joey? Can he stay sane and save himself from his CRAZY family? You’ll have to read “What Would Joey Do?” yourself to find out. I guarantee you this book will keep you peeled to its pages right from the start!

Rating: ★★★★★

# Publisher: HarperCollins
# ISBN-10: 0060544031
# ISBN-13: 978-0060544034

Adult / Guidebook / pre-teen / teens — No Comments
19
Jul 09

REVIEW: Bobbi Brown Teenage Beauty

Bobbi Brown Teenage BeautyIf you’re shopping for a nice, thoughtful present for a pre-teen or teenage girl, check out “Bobbi Brown Teenage Beauty” because it’s a *great* book for teenage girls.

“Bobbi Brown Teenage Beauty: Everything You Need to Look Pretty, Natural, Sexy and Awesome” is a handy reference of about 200 pages with:

  • glossy pictures of teenage girls of all face shapes, hair colours, shapes and sizes,
  • a foreword by Brooke Shields (Calvin Klein supermodel) on being a teenager – she wasn’t as popular in high school as she was on the big screen,

    A great quote: “I wish I spent more time just being me. Now I get it: It’s okay to try to fit in as long as you don’t compromise who you are.”

    (It’s famously known that Brooke Shields doesn’t allow any make-up artist to trim down her trademark thick eyebrows)

  • 10 Basic Rules of Teen Beauty – great tips on basic skincare and make-up,
  • the perfect make-up kit,
  • individual sections on zits (pimples), eyes, blusher, lips, body types, prom beauty, braces, hair, preteen beauty and lots, lots more!

I was an “early teenager”, which means I got my period (and everything else) at 11 years old.

I didn’t have an acne problem but I did have a shiny T-zone (combination skin…) and the awful once-a-month giant pimple that pops up in the middle of my nose or forehead, which made me look and feel like a witch.

I had thick, wavy hair while almost everyone around me had thin, straight hair.

I was also short and plump.

In other words, life as a pre-teen and a teenager was a mix of good and bad…

Luckily, my Mum, who is a beautician, started me off on basic skincare and was also incredibly patient when I went on crazy crash diets and exercise regimes.

I also had many beauty books and piles and piles of Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Women’s Weekly, Harper’s Bazaar, Female, Her World magazines to flip through…

But I would have found “Bobbi Brown Teenage Beauty” really useful because she talks about:

  • not feeling “pretty” and wanting to look like the supermodels in fashion magazines (e.g. wanting to have straight hair when you have wavy hair!),
  • glamming up for prom night…err, I think I overdid my eye make-up (experimented with the smudged look) and also went overboard a bit with the black theme all the guys called me ‘The Black Widow’,
  • African, Latin, Asian beauty and global (mixed-parentage) beauty – At around 20 or so, I realized that I had more of a ‘Latin’ look instead of an ‘Asian’ look. From then on, I focused on beauty, skincare and haircare products that’s best for me. Of course, I started getting “you’re kind of pretty, you know” comments then :-)
  • ‘So…You Want to be a Model’ – real world tips and advice from an ultra-experienced make-up artist (All teenage girls want to be taken seriously and will appreciate useful information),
  • runway secrets – the coolest tricks of the trade on how Bobbi Brown transforms models who have hangovers, late nights, bad hair days into the gorgeous girls on fashion shows.

The best part of the book is that Bobbi Brown brings out the best in you (boosting a girl’s confidence) instead of trying to make you look like someone else.

When you look at the ‘before’ and ‘after’ photos, you’ll see that she highlights each girl’s best feature and leave them looking naturally beautiful.

Even if the book was meant for teenagers, I think ANY girl or woman would benefit from reading this book. I’m definitely looking out for it…

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