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Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture
Cinderella Ate My Daughter Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New GirlieGirl Culture
Author: Peggy Orenstein
The acclaimed author of the groundbreaking bestseller Schoolgirls reveals the dark side of pink and pretty: the rise of the girlie-girl, she warns, is not that innocent. Pink and pretty or predatory and hardened, sexualized girlhood influences our daughters from infancy onward, telling them that how a girl looks matters more than who s...  more »
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ISBN-13: 9780061711527
ISBN-10: 0061711527
Publication Date: 2/1/2011
Pages: 256
Rating:
  • Currently 3.7/5 Stars.
 23

3.7 stars, based on 23 ratings
Publisher: Harper
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Paperback
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

IlliniAlum83 avatar reviewed Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture on + 181 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
A wishy-washy attempt at a serious pseudo-psychology parenting book. The author states her views but is unable to follow-through with many of her beliefs about raising her daughter with limited media and commercial influence. Fortunately, she does include the results of some "real" research so you will at least hear what the experts are discovering. Raises interesting issues about permissive parenting, especially our dependence on "convenience" guiding what we choose to entertain and feed our children. This is a fun read, but far from the true scientific summary I expected.
reviewed Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture on + 289 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Cinderella Ate My Daughter is an extremely digestible book on the rise of "pretty pink princess culture" among little girls. Having a daughter of her own, Daisy, alerted Peggy Orenstein to potentially problematic cultural trends affecting young girls, which she investigates further by visiting various places (American Girl Place, child beauty pagents, toy conventions, etc), interviewing various experts, and reflecting on her parenting experiences. Styled as a conversational exploration, Orenstein suggests that girlie-girl culture is a harmful manifestation of how the pursuit of physical perfection—with its requisite consumption—being recast as the source of female empowerment sets the stage for premature sexualization and limited choices as girls are conditioned to perform rather than feel. Orenstein is a funny writer whose breezy commentary would be appreciated by the intended audience. However, I wish there was more substance to interesting points she brings up about the role of fairy tales, (violent) play, and boy-girl interactions. This book is decidedly about mothers and daughters, with only one mention of her husband's parenting, which is unfortunate. Nonetheless, I enjoyed Orenstein's honesty about her many hopes and aspirations for her daughter and not having all the answers, her nuanced approach, and her astute observations.
Read All 2 Book Reviews of "Cinderella Ate My Daughter Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New GirlieGirl Culture"


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