I really love this book. It's full of wonderful words of wisdom. I'm 37 years old and I bought it for myself. I would highly recommend it.

I picked up a copy of The Girls' Book of Wisdom for my eleven-year-old daughter at an author signing recently. I thought it had just the right look and feel: perky cover art with bright, girlish flowers, and a trio of preteens wearing a variety of expressions I'm relearning is the mood palette of adolescence: uncertainty, elation, challenge.

A tidy little size, too, I thought... just right for backpack, desk drawer, bedside table-anywhere she might tuck a treasure, if it made it to treasure status. It had possibilities. Cheery pen and ink drawings, a simple, open page layout that doesn't warn "This stuff is serious business!" And an overriding optimistic and comforting collection of quotes on subjects concerning girls: beauty, acceptance, mood swings, confidence, goals, dreaming...

I was right. My daughter delved right in. She even read aloud several quotes that made her laugh or sigh. Among my favorites, that I read aloud when it was my turn, were quotes of the women of my generation: Gloria Steinem ("Self esteem isn't everything; it's just that there's nothing without it."); Janis Joplin ("Don't compromise yourself. You're all you've got."); Susan Sarandon ("I believe strongly in my own personal magic.")...

We agree on Miss Piggy. She's very together ("Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and it may be necessary from time to time to give a stupid or misinformed beholder a black eye.").

And so The Girls' Book of Wisdom, with its slightly heavy title (But then I never would have bought The Girls' 365 Days of One-Liners-to-Live-By, or some such) has moved from my daughter's desk to bedside table these several weeks. We've each picked it up from time to time and said, "Hey, listen to this one..." Good book; good choice, I've thought, each time that happens. Makes for good conversation.

But it came to earn its name, The Girls' Book of Wisdom, last week. I've been reeling from a powerful personal loss in my adult life, one I would never expect a young adolescent to understand. My daughter has felt my upset and, being of a sympathetic nature, she's wanted to soothe me. Two nights ago in the middle of an explanation of why I should "cheer up," she told me, "Mom, listen, the more lost you are, the more you have to look forward to."

"That's pretty wise," I said.

"It's from the book, Mom."

"Yeah? Who said it," I asked her.

"Calista Flockhart..."

And there you have what makes this a wise book: the keen editorial sensibilities of Catherine Dee, the creator, because it takes a wise collector to sift through the material of the ages and focus it at the hearts of young girls, tying together strands of advice and philosophy-contemporary and timeless-into a resource that communicates right there in their day-to-day language and lives.

Targeted for an audience of young girls from about 9-16, it's a book I highly recommend for ALL ages. We moms of young adolescents are just lucky! We're discovering it first!

As a mother, I am glad that women like Catherine Dee are out there promoting girl power! Just recently, my own pre-teen daughter asked me why all the heroes and good guys were, well-guys. I was hard pressed to think of any female role models that would be meaningful to her. The Girls' Book of Wisdom is full of good ones. I'm enjoying reading this book with my daughter!

This is a book for those interested in the practical philosophy of landscape architecture. It is not only the discussion by the author, but also the author's illustrations which reinforce her extremely valuable insights into form and complexity. I use the book as an exercise for sketching. She is right, sketching is perception. I highly recommend this book

This book is a great visual and morphological resource of elements within the landscape. It is a great tool for both the design student and practitioner. The layout of the book alongside the graphic content gives a great visual reference to the terms discussed in the book. This layout helps the designer to make a connection and create a visual and spatial narrative of the elements that creates the landscape. The book is divided into seven chapters: 1-Landscape Fabric 2-Spaces 3-Paths 4-Edges 5-Foci 6-Thresholds 7-Detail. Each of the chapters starts with a detail definition of the heading and explains all the related terms that are in association with the chapter heading. With the great visual layout and description of the terms this book not only can be used as a source to be used into understanding the different elements within the landscape it also could be used as a source to build the necessary vocabulary for the design student. I recommend this book since it serves as a great visual and spatial source of information for the design student especially students in landscape architecture field. The organization of the chapters is in a way that helps the student build the spatial and visual elements of the landscape and enables them to build and integrate these elements into their work.

This book was a wonderful story of the power of spiritual healing. In this day and age when the first thing the media does is to tell us to take medicines and some doctors treat us as if we were cars in for repair, this book takes a holistic approach of self healing. Catherine gives us explicit steps to the process. This book is very healing just in the reading.

If ever there was a need for guidance, the time is now! The book "Ten Steps To Spiritual Healing" is a book for our times. Not only does it give body healing ,but soul healing guild lines. It is easy to read and follow and holds a wealth of insite. I recommend it to all in need of hope and guildance in these changing times.

It's magical to witness, over the course of a few years, girls blooming into young women. The spell is broken, however, when we also see sexism consume their self-esteem. Where once they were spunky and imaginative, they become self-conscious and afraid how their ideas will be seen by others. Where once they voiced their opinions, we see them swallowing ideas unvoiced--especially in front of boys. And where once they excelled in math or science, we see them play "dumb" or believe they aren't as smart as "the other gender."

The Girls' Guide to Life reclaims the strength and self-assurance for young women. With a fun, appealing style, The Guide addresses gender issues by providing exercises and activities so girls learn who they are and what their strengths are.... If you have a daughter, or care about a girl you know, share The Girls' Guide to Life with them. You may learn a lot you never knew. You also may be reminded of things you learned the hard way and never thought to share with her. Encourage sons to read it, too, so they'll learn it's all right for women to be strong, to be leaders.

Catherine Dee's The Girls' Guide to Life: How to Take Charge of the Issues That Affect You tackles the many challenges that face young women and girls today. Let's face it, low self-esteem, lack of political representation and gender inequity in the classroom are a drag. The Girls' Guide is a positive and necessary blueprint for battling the gender bias blues. Young women and girls lend their own voices and experiences of enlightenment and encouragement on topics ranging from math clubs to rock climbing to political activism. The Girls' Guide is an excellent combination of true stories, self-help and resources that will spark any young woman or girl to "take charge of the issues that affect" her. But don't just take my word for it. I gave the book to my eleven year-old niece. "I love it!" she said, "It's fun to read and has lots of ideas for me and my friends to do to help make us active and strong, and love ourselves."

I loved the book! It covers a wide range of topics of interest to girls and the adults who care about them. I'm a middle school counselor and feel this book addresses many of the issues facing the young women of today (sexual harassment, dating, gender equity). I especially appreciated its positive tone and practical ideas for action. It'd be a great classroom resource for research topics (women in sport, history, and politics for starters). The book itself is informative, and the website listings are a wonderful springboard for further exploration and discussion. If you're a librarian, get it for your collection; if you're a parent, get it for your girl and help ensure she grows into the healthy woman she's meant to be.

Cathering Dee has a whole series of girl-friendly books out, including The Girls' Book of Wisdom and The Girls' Book to Life. One of her latest installments is The Girls' Book of Love.

Like the other books, it is a fresh and lively look at the topic at hand with a mix of poetry, plain talk and anecdotes. This particular book also includes quotes from some famous actresses like Sarah Jessica Parker and Jennifer Love Hewitt.

This isn't the kind of book you sit down and read from cover to cover. Just pick it up periodically and read a few pages to give an extra kick to your day. If your love life is in the dumps, this book will cheer you up with advice on how to keep it together or, for the worse case, how to break it off easy.

The quotes are my favorite part. They are from both famous and infamous women and can definitely lighten your spirit or, at least, provide a little laughter. After all, what's funnier than love?

Give this book to someone you love, whether young or old. While it is targeted towards teenagers, it is good for all ages.
(Review from YA Books Central [...])

This book would make a great gift. I loved reading it myself, but it's also an excellent gift for the young women on my Christmas list. It's fun to read -- organized in an easy and fun-to-read format. I especially loved the parts where men commented on love. It's important for girls to know how men feel too. Multi-dimensional look at love from a girls' perspective. A great complement to the Girls' Book of Wisdom and the Girls' Book of Friendship written by the same author.

The Girls' Book of Love balances the cultural hype about love with reality, presenting quotes, facts, and opinions that will help girls who (like most adults) are trying to figure out how to stay true to themselves while loving someone else. A truly fun, informative, and enlightening read for preteens and young women.

Inspired by women from all walks of life, this book should be required reading for preteen and teen girls as well as their families. With stories and quotes to share and compare, Dee has gathered words of wisdom perfect for empowering today's young girls.

Girls will thumb through page after page, searching for the perfect sentiment. This collection of would make a nice boost for a friend who's moving away or staying behind, a new friend, an old friend, even a graduation present. For whatever occasion, The Girl's Book of Friendship: Cool Quotes, True Stories, Secrets, and More fits into the must-read category for the teen-age girl.

We loved The Girls' Book of Friendship so much that it's our book feature for August and September. Catherine Dee has put together advice from women and girls to help you understand and cherish the most important people in your life -- your friends. Famous women, including Oprah Winfrey, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and many more offer their opinion and feelings. This fun book is a great present to your best friend!
--Julie Shannan, program coordinator [...]

An award-winning author and expert on the issues concerning young women and girls, Catherine Dee has again delved into the inner spirits and expansive outer lives of her subject, this time getting to the heart of what makes a young woman's life so enriching: her friendships. The Girls' Book of Friendship is a collection of personal essays, inspirational quotes and heartfelt poetry that shine a light on the bonds that give breath to our being. Not limited to same-age, same-gender peer friendships, The Girls' Book celebrates the sibling, parent and other relative as friend, as well as the often overlooked value in the comradeship found in members of the opposite sex. With celebrity quotes from pop icons including Oprah Winfrey, Madonna, and Sarah Michelle Gellar, The Girls' Book also invokes the likes of Jane Austen, Helen Keller and Alice Walker. Quotes given by a wide range of women -- from a present-day environmental scientist to poets of antiquity -- highlight how the importance of friendship is perhaps one of the few universal truths that breaks all boundaries of time, place, culture, age, religion and race. With Pal Projects like starting a mother-daughter reading group to Friendly Facts and Quick Lists that offer tips on being a good listener and help on evaluating whether or not someone would make a good friend, this 200-page compact pocketbook proves that good things come in small packages. Dee has once again tapped into the playfulness and appreciation of a woman's world while underscoring a common sense of empowerment.