So Sexy So Soon: The New Sexualized Childhood, and What Parents Can Do to Protect Their Kids
by Diane E. Levin, Jean Kilbourne
book data
69 ratings,
3.58
average rating, 41 reviews
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published
August 5th 2008
by Ballantine Books
binding
Hardcover, 256 pages
isbn
0345505069
(isbn13: 9780345505064)
description
Thong panties, padded bras, and risqué Halloween costumes for young girls. T-shirts that boast “Chick Magnet” for toddler boys. Sexy content on almos...more
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 218)
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avg 3.58
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
Read in March, 2009
First off, I couldn't finish this book. The last third may be awe-inspiring and clever, but I'll never know.
Being the father of two girls, I borrowed this book in the hopes of getting insight into their still developing minds. What I got was puritanical alarmist drivel. True - in this day and age, there is sex everywhere. From Barbie to Britney and everyone trying to "If you seek Amy"... it's all around in the media. If you have daughters and it takes reading this bo...more
Being the father of two girls, I borrowed this book in the hopes of getting insight into their still developing minds. What I got was puritanical alarmist drivel. True - in this day and age, there is sex everywhere. From Barbie to Britney and everyone trying to "If you seek Amy"... it's all around in the media. If you have daughters and it takes reading this bo...more
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This was a very helpful book--especially the ideas on how to have conversations about sexuality with your children, and things you can do to address the commercialized gender roles they learn from many types of media. Part of it seemed a little alarmist (they cite Me and You and Everyone We Know without realizing it's critiquing the sexualization of childhood--in my opinion), but most of it is pertinent and pragmatic. The bibliography is very helpful, too. The chapter that I found the most encou...more
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This was a hard one for me because I really, REALLY wanted to like it. It's a great book if you haven't immersed yourself in weird media studies, but I have a long-held interest in media and children and advertising and all that. Maybe I just feel like, since they were preaching to the choir in my case, they should have had a really great sermon. Unfortunately, I don't feel like there were enough specific examples, or enough of a connection made between the science and the conclusions that th...more
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Read in December, 2008
This was a VERY open discussion about the direction our culture is taking and the sexualization of our young people for commercial interests. It talks frankly about all media sources and the effect they're having on the lives of our youth and on children, ie, violence and lack of respect, objectifying women and girls, and making everything about appearance and sexiness - even for very young girls, while taking caring relationships out of the equation for sex. It was eye-opening and thought pro...more
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Read in August, 2008
I work in the field of youth development and sex education. I thought this book was too sensationalized. True, sex is too pervasive in youth culture and the media, but it needs to start at home. Too few parents/guardians are having open, honest discussions with their kids about sex, standards of behavior--namely respect and responsibility, and communication. You can't blame the media and youth culture on issues that need to be addressed in the family unit and community.
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Read in May, 2009
I would recommend this book for parents of young girls. It has an intelligent discussion of how the media and peers influence our daughters, and what we can do as parents to counteract the influence of "sex sells anything." Short of moving out of the country, it seems nearly impossible to shield our children from the pervasive messages in advertising, movies, and music that insist that all things "sexy" are positive. As adults we know that this message is not accurate. Se...more
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Read in January, 2009
picked this up at my parent's place, and I made it a few chapters in. I disagree with one part of the premise, this very old-school feminist line that girls don't have an adequate idea of their possibilities. However, the rest of it, that kids are growing up to fast, that media and culture is hyper-sexualized, I totally agree with. I'm looking forward to getting to the chapters about what to do about it. I don't have my own kids, but I teach seventh grade and whoa..... :P
Okay, h...more
Okay, h...more
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Read in May, 2009
The premises of this book was very interesting. Essentially the authors describe how "sex sells" and how this notion is being used to market products to younger and younger children (with devastating results). They argue that advertisers are presenting kids with ideas about sexuality that they are far to young to comprehend and analyze. About half of the book is spent citing examples of this.
For me (as the reader), they were just preaching to the choir during the argument phase...more
For me (as the reader), they were just preaching to the choir during the argument phase...more
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Read in September, 2008
My thinkgirl.net review:
Diane Levin, cofounder of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, and Jean Kilbourne, creator of the films Killing Us Softly: Advertising’s Image of Women, have crafted an informative and advice-filled guide. The authors analyze media and consumer trends in a fascinating overview that spans the 1980s to present. They consider such events as the de-regulation of FCC children’s television guidelines and the recent popularity of Bratz dolls.
...more
Diane Levin, cofounder of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, and Jean Kilbourne, creator of the films Killing Us Softly: Advertising’s Image of Women, have crafted an informative and advice-filled guide. The authors analyze media and consumer trends in a fascinating overview that spans the 1980s to present. They consider such events as the de-regulation of FCC children’s television guidelines and the recent popularity of Bratz dolls.
...more
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Read in September, 2008
recommends it for:
anyone who's a parent
This is a fantastic book. It's disturbing (1/3 of American kids under the age of 3 have TVs in their bedrooms?!) It's really sad (In one study, 40 percent of teenage girls reported having had unwanted sex, and 1 in 3 teenage girls have been victims of some form of dating violence.) I recommend this book to any parent who is concerned about the sexualization and commercialization of young children...which should be all of us. So Sexy So Soon has some concrete suggestions: how to increase your ...more
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Good information. Could have been written in about half the pages, or perhaps as an expanded article/series, as it just gives a very basic overview of the authors's research. Nonetheless, an important book for all parents. If you've taken gender psych at all, you may not find too many surprises in the book, BUT, that said, I was surprised at all the advice I can really use as a parent. Good.
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Read in May, 2009
A lot of interesting information about media/children and sexualization. Toward the end it lost me a little bit because they started discussing what parents can do - and while useful, I'm not a parent yet and it was really techniques for parents (someone who is in the home) and not so much for professionals. Obviously this is in the title, but I was hoping for a bit more of a broad "what people can do". Overall, an interesting (and saddening) read.
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Read in December, 2008
My 14-year-old daughter saw a review of this book, read some frank excerpts to me, mentioned some shocking (to me) things going on in her middle school, and recommended that I read this book. I did and it has given me a better understanding of what is influencing her at school from her peers and from also from the media. It has opened up a channel of communication between us and gave me a basis to begin explaining to her how she is being influenced and how she can develop her own set of values i...more
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Read in June, 2009
this was kind of a fear monger book. although it did have it's good points, they didn't start until after the 1st hundred pages. (i think the book is less than 200 pages.) i think we all get that the world, even for our babies, has become highly sexualized. i think time would have been much better spent reading about specific ways to deal with it - recommended community groups, national groups, lists of people we can write to . . . i did think the idea of opening communication between pare...more
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Okay, admittedly, I didn't read the whole thing. But I found little research that I could support - what I saw was anecdotal evidence and survey results. Self-reporting is unreliable at best. I would've liked to see more empirical evidence, but I guess it's tough to get that when you're talking about kids.
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Read in March, 2009
Not a literary masterpiece, but a highly readable and valuable book on navigating the sexualization rampant in the media and society today. Levin and Kilbourne's book is practical, straightforward, and at times, hair-raising.
On a par with works such as Last Child in the Woods and The Case for Make-Believe.
On a par with works such as Last Child in the Woods and The Case for Make-Believe.
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Read in March, 2009
Very informative, and disturbing. It makes me so thankful I grew up in a time before girls as young as 8 felt pressure to be thin, sexy, and look like a hooker. (i.e. today). YIKES.
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Read in December, 2008
I don't even have kids, and I loved this book. I've always had an interest in the culture of sex we have, and this really puts it all into perspective. I would suggest this book to parents, and people who are interested in what's going on in the media, and how it affects how our children are brought up. This book was awesome, and they gave a lot of resources to fight against the media, and take back control. It was awesome!!!!
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Read in January, 2009
I very strongly recommend this book to anyone with children, anyone who is at all involved with children, and anyone who'd like to change the world for the better. Hopefully that's pretty much everyone. :0) This is a positive, eye-opening read, & while I don't agree with absolutely everything in it, there are some very valid points in it. There are some wonderful ideas in here about talking with children & helping them to feel safe & comfortable, etc. I believe this book does a great job of h...more
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Read in August, 2008
This book takes on the sexualization of girls with a smart, concise mix of cultural analysis and down-to-earth parenting advice. It's a winner.
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