UNDERESTIMATED

An activist offers a view of modern life through one of the most dismissed of all social groups: teenage girls.

Despite a variety of stereotypes about teenage girls, they are “a wildly underestimated force for good in the world,” writes Goodan, mentorship director of DemocraShe and founder of the Activist Cartel. Informed by a decade and a half of experience working with young women of different races, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic backgrounds, Goodan probes key issues, both internal and external, that girls struggle with on their journey to adulthood. The stormy adolescent feelings that can make girls appear emotionally “lawless” top the list. They cause well-meaning adults to take an “advise and fix” approach to girls’ problems, but the author proposes a far more effective idea: create a validating, nonjudgmental space in which girls can express their emotions. The need to speak honestly about themselves and their lives can also present problems to young women. In Goodan’s experience, teens such as 16-year-old Lori believe that “adults…cover the truth because they think [girls] can’t handle it.” What truth actually does offer is permission to successfully express selfhood. The pressure to be beautiful according to Eurocentric, heteronormative standards is also a source of profound female angst, causing girls to constantly question their value and social worth and fall victim to dangerous disorders such as anorexia and bulimia. When older women model attitudes of self-acceptance, however, girls like 15-year-old Rosy are able to articulate important truths: “[B]eauty is…transparency within yourself, not hiding, being real.” What makes this book stand out is the way Goodan allows girls to share their truths openly and without judgment. In this way, the author empowers young women by showing readers what they have to teach adults about the power of (inter)personal authenticity.

A heartfelt and humane sociological report.