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Nov 13, 2007

Jessica rated it:

This is a biased and thoughtless review, based on vague memories of a cranky adolescent's insensitive snap judgment, so you shouldn't pay any attention to it. It's definitely more of a statement about me than it is about the book, which I don't really remember anyway.

I read this in the mid-nineties when it came out, and I remember feeling, as a teenage girl, annoyed and offended. I felt at the time that it was making too much of girls' helplessness and sort of encouraging us to feel More...

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Dec 17, 2009

Laura rated it:

While this book had a whole bunch of interesting anecdotes, there were nothing more than anecdotes. The fact that a bunch of her patients manifested particular characteristics doesn't lead to the ability to generalize about adolescent trends in general, as Pipher does here. To the contrary, it's just as reasonable to believe that her patients, many of which presumably came from referrals from other patients, was a self-selecting group of people, all of whom referred people to Pipher because she More...

0 comments like (6 people liked it)

Dec 17, 2009

Suzanne rated it:

My mom gave me this book when I was like 12 or 13... this was only the beginning of the self help slurry of books, clippings, etc that my mom would throw my way. As an adolescent girl (who this book is geared towards) I hid the book under my bed and read other bull shit things like the other books you will see on my list (read in the early to mid 90s). Thinking I knew what was best for me, as girls do at that age, I continued to resist my mother's consistent pushing me to read this book. She eve More...

0 comments like (9 people liked it)

Oct 10, 2007

Holly rated it:

The most important thing about this book, that I will never forget, is how well it illustrates the shift from a bubbly little girl to a depressed/angry teen and how the world just does everything it can to rob a little girl of her self esteem. That's not a blaming statement, but just an observation, that girls today are taking an emotional beating at almost every turn, and this book is a call to action. I recommend that you follow it up with Ophelia Speaks. If you have a daughter, please read More...

0 comments like (6 people liked it)

Jun 08, 2010

Caris rated it:

When I look at my daughter, I see a beautiful little human who means more to me than anything I could have ever imagined. She smiles at me when she wakes up. She holds my finger as we watch TV. She explains the most elaborate and convoluted things to me in a baby language I can't quite comprehend but certainly get the gist of. I have an intense feeling of responsibility for her well being, which, I assume, will last for the rest of my life.

The thought that she will grow up causes me More...

14 comments like (9 people liked it)

Apr 22, 2008

Carrie rated it:

There were some good things I took away from this book. Oddly enough the most important things I learned is to keep my daughters room filled with journals and writing tools. :) Wow, I wish I would have used (or would use now) writing as a tool to stay mentally healthy. The other is to keep her busy in things that make her strong in, body, mind, and spirit.

Another thing I walked away with is that there are strengths and weaknesses in every form of parenting. It made me want to hug More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Mar 18, 2008

Shelly rated it:

It's been a while since I read this and was reminded about it via a thread on this very website about how women feel about barbie dolls and the like. The author is a psychologist who works with adolescent girls and suggests that there is a window (somewhere between 9 and 13 if I remember correctly) where young girls will either choose academic, athletic, or artistic endeavors--or boys. Girls learn to like boys early on (way before they learn to like girls) and an unfortunate consequence of th More...

2 comments like (2 people liked it)

Oct 23, 2008

Natalie rated it:

I thought this book was really really interesting. It is about the negative effects our culture has on teenage girls (too much emphasis on beauty, too much encouragement to be passive in order to please others, etc.). One of my favorite points she made is that our society spends tons of time and money educating women on self-defense, but wouldn't it make much more sense to educate young men on how to be respectful and non-violent towards women?
I do have some reservations about the book More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Aug 09, 2007

Laura added it

This book is targeted at parents of girls in the 90's. While I think it had many good things to say, it was also very repetitive and could have been edited into a much tighter and more to the point read. Also, a little updating is in order. When Pipher wrote this book, things like "myspace" and "facebook" weren't even in existence. I imagine that many parents in the 00's and beyond would probably appreciate some tools for dealing with these new intrusions into family lif More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 05, 2008

Scott rated it:

When I first read this, I was very convinced of the premise--that girls do great as they move forward in elementary school, but sometime between 4th and 8th grade the harsh reality hits them that they are going to be objectified and relegated to second-class status in this male-oriented world. As a result, you see a drop-off in vivacity, creativity, and individuality. Instead of the former spunk and enthusiasm of girlhood, you see young women who shrink from the public eye, who retreat into depr More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Apr 30, 2008

Kathleen added it

This book deals with the lives of young girls and their struggle with eating disorders. I read this when this was an issue in my own family, and I found it to be a great resource.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 22, 2011

Jaclyn rated it:

This book has opened my eyes to the complications of adolesence that my daughter is just on the cusp of. Although the book is 10 years old, and I am significantly younger than the author, I found the topics to be very relevant even today. I personally relate better to the author, who was a child in the 50's, and feel that the problems girls were beginning to face in the 90's are worse than I faced in the 80's and are still very much a probem today, probably more so. Reading about all of the chal More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 10, 2009

Olivia added it

Olivia Burr
Reviving Ophelia
Mary Pipher, Ph.D

Genre: non-fiction
Info: -Reviving Ophelia is about the struggles that young girls face growing up in modern times.
-The author addresses issues caused by families, abuse, peers, and depression.
-She analyzes her therepy sessions with a variety of girls from ages 11-19.
-Compares different generations to discover what is causing more young girls to turn to therepy.
Theme: growing up
Recomendation: More...

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Jun 29, 2011

Matt rated it:

My interest in this one is kind of hard to pin down: in part, like everyone else I'm curious and concerned about what young women go through-- this is probably just curiosity, mixed with a recognition that I'd like to understand my students a little better. But at the same time, I think that "teen girl" as a category is kind of a political football, a screen through which people wage these kind of political turf battles-- in other words, disparage the culture for its effects on teen gi More...

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Jun 13, 2011

Sarah rated it:

I read this book because my therapist friend recommended it as a way to better understand teen girls. Although that wasn't too long ago for me, this book helped me understand my adolescent experience better and helped me understand the experiences of other teen girls.

This book was published in 1994 and has been reprinted, but not updated. Our world has changed significantly since 1994, but I feel that most of what Pipher has to say is still relevant. I especially enjoyed reading t More...

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Apr 01, 2011

emi rated it:

I know I'm jumping the gun a bit here, my girls are only 3 but I've heard references to Reviving Ophelia for years and I'm glad I got it out of the way ahead of time. I don't like reading self-help genre, or listening to pop psychology language; and this was actually palatable, despite its having been written almost 20 years ago! I feel I learned lots about the direct effects different styles of parenting can have on teenage girls: "At one end (of the affection spectrum) are parents who More...

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Jan 07, 2011

Katelynn rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Jan 09, 2010

Kara rated it:

Once again it may be a genre issue. This is non fiction and I am a total fiction junky. However, that being said...The premise of each chapter is incredibly worthwhile especially if you have girls. Pipher makes some observations that make sense and are sad but true. The problem it seemed to me was that the solution to almost every issue was to have the girl journal it. Then Pipher would go on with accounts of what she has seen in therapy with clients or interviews. Some were very interesting More...

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Jun 17, 2009

Sarah rated it:

Have you read Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls? The parts that I find most interesting are, of course, the actual stories of Pipher's patients...of course by the end of the book I'd cried at least 4 times.

At one point I looked up and thought, "I want to do this, I want to be a psychologist and help teenage girls." But then I re-thought, "More school?" and realized that if I do go back for a masters and eventually a Ph.D it'll definitely More...

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May 01, 2009

Jayme rated it:

I first encountered this book in the early-90s. I literally sat on the floor of my local Border's and read the entire thing cover-to-cover. The stories the author shares of girls' lives are incredibly riveting. It's a very good read. She mixes analysis with relevant anecdotes, which keeps the pace going.

The book discusses the turbulence lives of adolescent girls and offers strategies for parents and caregivers to ease the transition to adulthood. The book is a bit dated - the author More...

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Feb 23, 2011

Myria rated it:

The author has good intentions and I agree with her on some things but…. This was horrible. I don’t even know where to begin! I really don’t. I understand parents wanting to protect their kids from these kinds of things but I hope any parent does not live by this book. Please do more research. A LOT!

I don’t know if it was just me but the way Mary worded some things, it came off to me as she blamed men for this problem. Whatever!!!!!! This just reminds me of a joke that Katt Willia More...

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Dec 05, 2009

Marcia rated it:

I could identify with this book from a few different perspectives. As an adolescent in high school in the 1970's some of the expectations for girls were the same as those experienced by the author in the 1950's and 1960's, but the role of the teen girl was already changing. As the mother of a teen in the 2000's, the stories about Pipher's clients already seemed dated. As a clinical counselor, I admired Pipher's non-medical, empowering, family systems approach. She also utilizes narrative and ski More...

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Dec 15, 2008

Julie rated it:

Read this while I was in college because it interested me (it wasn't assigned). Pipher provides answers to the mysterious (ridiculous) behavior of adolescent girls. Having been the most awful adolescent--a curse to a hopeful mother--I was definitely curious. If only my mother could have read this back then! This book explains it all; mostly the affect our society has on developing young girls. It seems I was destined to suffer from depression, low self-esteem, an eating disorder, and a toxic rel More...

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Mar 13, 2008

Laura rated it:

I first read this book over 12 years ago for book club. I recently picked it up again because I now have a daughter nearing the adolescent years. This book gave me a lot to think about and some great ideas for helping me parent a daughter that will either go through these issues herself or at the very least have friends and peers who do. I believe every parent should be aware of the issues described in this book and then discuss them with their sons and daughters.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 26, 2011

Glitnir rated it:

Overall, a pretty scary summation of the pressures affecting our growing daughters (especially for a father!). Though a bit dated, I'm sure many of the trends have only gotten worse since the 1990s. As a parent of a bright child, (and someone trying to familiarize myself with pressures and upcoming challenges), I hope we'll be able to mediate some of these!

My only real critique is her constant comparison to boys and how they're raised. Pipher seems to be saying that only girls can ha More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 22, 2011

Khaya rated it:

Hmmmm....very mixed feelings about this one.

Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls covers a lot of the same ground as Unprotected: A Campus Psychiatrist Reveals How Political Correctness in Her Profession Endangers Every Student. We read about adolescent girls struggling with depression, eating disorders, self-mutilation, premature sexual involvement, etc. Both Mary Pipher and Miriam Grossman are mental health practitioners who treat these girls and view their diff More...

14 comments like (6 people liked it)

Sep 25, 2008

Jonna rated it:

I maybe could give this book five stars. I read it my freshman year of college and then again last month and it was interesting how my perspective has changed. I still agree with the author's basic premise, though, that society is very damaging to young girls and women in general. She talks a lot about the effects of the media, peer pressure, goes into eating disorders, violence against women, etc. I would recommend it to anyone with daughters.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 24, 2010

Jessica rated it:

I read this book when it first came out in 1994, when I was 13. I had just been busted by my parents for stealing prescription drugs from their medicine cabinet (I think the plan was to kill myself...hazy), and this book appeared on my mother's nightstand soon after. I remember approaching the book like an army general who has gotten his hands on the enemy's battle plans, only interested in it as far as it could reveal to me what plan the adults were hatching this time so I could fortify my de More...

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Jul 06, 2010

A.K. rated it:

Makes a valid point or two but I remember being insulted by this as an adolescent girl. Specifically at the point when Pipher holds up a daddy-knows-best fundie family as raising a totally well-adjusted teenager. I'd rather be a maladjusted junkie slut than live in the midwest with my nice, cool, cryptofascist hard-on for jeezy parents, thanks. This should be on the "feminism, question mark" shelf.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 10, 2011

Kimberly rated it:

This book made me nervous at first as example after example of happy 10/11 year olds turned into variations of nightmare adolescents a few years later, with no real suggestions of how to help with the transition. The last chapter introduced some good ideas, and by living the gospel and being part of the church organization we already are doing the majority of them, which was reassuring. I can see ways I can help my daughters hold onto their "whole" selves instead of feeling like they More...

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