Underestimated the wisdom and power of teenage girls by Chelsey Goodan

This is a powerful book! My inner teenager wanted to say, ‘Yes!!!’ (And the exclamation marks are a given for a teenage girl.) Written by an experienced counsellor, mentor and tutor who has worked with teenage girls as they struggled to find their voice and navigate life, it is an inspiring and powerful reminder of the best way to support and encourage young women. This book speaks to fellow counsellors, teachers and parents of teens (and parents who are yet to nurture daughters to the teenage years and wish to be well-prepared) and gives wise advice to recognise and listen to these young women who are navigating a complex world. The advice is practical and filled with insight learned from her own experience and even her mistakes. The essence of this book is that teenage girls should not be underestimated as they usually have unrecognised power and a voice that has yet to be listened to, and often instinctively know how to address their own concerns. Their emotions may confront others, but seeing their interests and feelings and listening to them will often enable them to rise above expectations. 

With insights on the following topics - feelings, expectations, sexuality, beauty, friends, the media and identity and shame (plus many others), this is a potent insight into counseling strategies and contains practical parenting advice. There is an emotional wheel in the appendix to assist in giving vocabulary to emotions and also examples of wise questions to enable teens to voice their views and clarify their struggles. Always the idea is to affirm a teen’s identity and autonomy, to listen to and affirm and not take on the role of problem solver. This book is easy to read and with many examples of real USA teens speaking their truths (with the use of pseudonyms) to give evidence of their wisdom even in the face of big issues, it has a real-life rather than an academic perspective. Anyone with a teen girl in their lives would benefit from reading this book (and there is wisdom that may help male teens too, even though it does not specifically deal with their unique way of dealing with life.) Secondary teachers, parents and counsellors will particularly appreciate this book of wisdom. I am not a counsellor, but I have raised teen daughters to adulthood and also taught and encouraged school teens and would have valued a book like this.

Themes: Girls, Teenagers, Counselling, Listening, Empowerment, Empathy, Identity.

Carolyn Hull